The importance of Nancy Drew video games 🎮🔎🔦

When I was a little kid my parents went through a “health nut” phase, which basically means that I didn’t know what a Cheeto was until I finally started having play dates at other people’s houses. But, their rules went farther than food and into all aspects of life, meaning that when I eventually discovered video games at a young age it was a setup for disappointment.

Video games were absolutely so off-limits for me, and screen time, in general, was kept to a minimum. In hindsight, I thank my parents for these choices because I read more than anyone I knew, and (being an only child for most of my life) I really had to flex my imagination muscles in order to have any semblance of entertainment. However, in elementary school, there was nothing I wanted to do more than play video games. Not the video games you’re thinking of though, not that Mario crap or Zelda, etc. No, I am a woman of taste, and my seven-year-old brain desperately wanted to play Nancy Drew mystery video games. I got a taste of one ( a fashion murder mystery entitled Danger By Design 😩) and I was HOOKED from that point on. Unfortunately, the game glitched out halfway through and my parents promptly used that as another excuse to not waste the money. For years I would longingly remember the joy I felt playing that game, the way the puzzles confused me, and how fun it was to pay attention to every detail and storyline to get all the clues and I wanted to get those feelings back.

During my senior year of high school, I was having a really rough time. I was very close to not graduating and every day felt like I was drowning in work, depression, inadequacy, and failure. Then one day I suddenly remembered Nancy Drew video games! Miss Nancy hauled my sad ass up and said “go solve this mystery, girl!”, what was I going to do, say no? Playing these games made me remember what it felt like to be little again, and I could almost forget about the crushing weight of what I was going through at the time. For a little while in those games I didn’t have to grow up, I didn’t have to face school or college apps or auditions and rejection, I just solved puzzles and watched early 2000s chunky animations move around the screen. When I decided to take a gap year I continued playing ND because it started to feel therapeutic. It was like all the things that had been off-limits to me as a kid were suddenly free and I felt like I was experiencing a renaissance of my own childhood. I had never felt happier (also due to the fact that I was ut of school and had actual free time to enjoy life) and these games turned into a form of self-care that I turned to when I really needed to heal and get ready for my next steps. Even though it sounds silly, Nancy Drew gave me a path to reconnect to my childhood and through that, I started re-discovering the passionate person I had once been. My writing this year has mainly been focused on my journey of rediscovering that lost inquisitive spirit and I never had space to explain that these games were the gateway to starting the whole endeavor. Without Nancy Drew, I think I would have had a much harder time opening up to myself and allowing myself to want to learn again without being afraid of failure. Without reconnecting with my childish nature I don’t think that I would have experienced the emotional growth that I did during my year off, and I wouldn’t even be able to write about myself the way I have this year. And it wouldn’t have been possible without these goofy little video games. Thank you Nancy Drew for making me feel like a kid again.

Now for a ranking of my favorite ND games in case anyone wants to join in the fun!

#1 Shadow at the Water’s Edge: Ghost story, yes. Awesome setting in Japan, yes. Very very spooky, yes. Sudoku, hell yes. Terrible voice acting, also yes. Overall very fun, very creepy, and long as hell.

#2 The Haunting of Castle Malloy: This one takes place in Ireland, what more could you want! Great soundtrack, fun ghost story and kidnapping, cool historical elements 👍

#3 Labyrinth of Lies: If you were a kid who was obsessed with Greek Mythology like I was you’ll enjoy this. It’s a fun mystery that requires a bit of the knowledge we all got from the Percy Jackson series. Good time!

#4 Danger by Design: Okay sooo… she’s not the best out of all of them but for nostalgia sake, she’s here. Old game so bad graphics, fun setting in Paris, possible murder and stolen identity?, Fashion!, really terrible french accents make it even more fun, and you get to beat someone up at the end!