The Men of Nancy Drew Games Pt. 2 of 3

 Once again I find myself rating the cringe of Nancy Drew men. see Pt. 1 of 3 for the beginning of the blog series. It will be split into 3 parts for the sake of length. Let's continue. 

Courtesy of thenancydrew.wikia.com

Starting at game number 11 and ending at number 23, this will work the following way. The rating system goes from 1 to 10, 1 being no cringe at all and 10 being all of the cringe. Ready? I'm just going to jump into this and go. Reasons for my opinions, which you don't have to agree with, will be explained.

There will be spoilers. If you haven't played these games, read with caution and maybe come back after you have played them. You've been warned. Note that culprits are not directly revealed in this blog.

Curse of Blackmoor Manor

Nigel Mookerjee - He is a 7 to 8, maybe 9 on the scale. I think his memoirs are the most boring thing on the planet. While it is hilarious to watch him scream at a moving statue, he's not a joy to interact with and is only slightly helpful. 

I could rate Hugh Penvellyn, but he's a phone contact. What I will say about him is that he probably isn't helping Linda by being on call constantly to other countries. He also isn't helping Jane by leaving her alone with only a tutor, his aunt, and a parrot. Simply stated, he isn't present to be supporting his family emotionally. It didn't help the situation. You can see it in how she constantly wants to play games with Nancy. Jane needed help before and now she needs even more. 

Secret of the Old Clock

Richard Topham - He's full of himself, a fraud, and he took advantage of an older man to get his money. He's a 10 because he is a jerk. 

Jim Archer - While I dearly wish we weren't told to sew his wife's dress, he is otherwise a nice man. He would have gotten money from Crowley and clearly needed it to save his business. 1 is his rating. 

Last Train to Blue Moon Canyon

Tino Balducci - He sucks because he treats the Hardy Boys and Nancy like they are inferior, although they obviously can solve the mystery better than he can. 10, straight up 10. 

Courtesy of hisgames.org

John Grey - I find him interesting. He doesn't like Tino, which bodes well for his rating, and he seems to have common sense. I give him a 1. 

Danger by Design

Dieter von Schwesterkrank - He is only slightly full of himself. I'd have to give him a 2 because of his ego. 

Jean-Michel Traquenard - This one is a 3 to 4. He gave us quite a lot of information and offered us food. Unfortunately, he has an even bigger ego than Dieter. 

The Creature of Kapu Cave

Big Island Mike Mapu - He is all about his business, to the point that he makes us go string shells instead of giving us jeep keys. I enjoy that, but all the same, it does hold you back from the Nancy part of the game. He's a 3 for making us go through hoops to go do our job.

Dr. Malachi Craven - His temper is lethal. You make one mistake and you can get fired from Hili Hili. For that reason, he is a 5. He jumps all over Nancy for asking about the Hili Hili security pass. He is right in the middle because he at least apologizes. He also stares into space as you talk to him. 

White Wolf of Icicle Creek

Ollie Randall - He's a 3 because he's trying to kill the wolf. He's also a 3 because he shoves a lot of chores on Nancy along with everything else we have to do. Otherwise, he's a man who loves his daughter and there is nothing else wrong with him. 

Yanni Volkstaia - He has an ego the size of Texas, thinks he's superior to all his competitors, and is generally not a joy to talk to. He's a 6 to 7. 

Bill Kessler - He's all about fishing. His family used to own the lodge. He's a fun guy that generally just sleeps or plays fox-and-geese. I give him a 1. 

Lou Talbot - While he's not a good conversationalist, I don't see much wrong with Lou. Lou may have indeed stolen the rex bone, but he let us have it back. He gets a 2. 

Legend of the Crystal Skull

Henry Bolet Jr. - This poor guy has to sort through the entire estate. He's also dealing with a horrible girlfriend who is forcing him to give expensive gifts to keep her happy. He's a 1. 

Courtesy of Youtube.com

Lamont Warrick - He's a junk collector and runs the local antique shop. You can find anything there, from an alien in a container to a mummy. We make this poor, poor man go through so much and he still doesn't seem to hate us. He's a 3 only because he went to the funeral to ask about the estate junk. 

Gilbert Buford - He seems to flirt with Bess, or he may just be southernly polite. Either way, it is a little weird. He's a 3. 

Phantom of Venice

Colin Baxter - He snaps at you randomly throughout the entire game, for "breaking" a microscope that wasn't broken at one point. He's also not good at knowing good sausage from bad. He lies to cover up that situation out of embarrassment. Did I mention the slides of tesserae he makes you sit through? And his snappy reaction when you back away from them? He's an 8.5 to 9.5 rating. 

Enrico Tazza - He makes you play cards to get information, but aside from that game (which I thoroughly enjoy) he's not cringy at all. He's a 1. 

Antonio Fango - You only watch him from the building across the street. He's fond of pigeons, which is no crime. While he's a criminal, he also gives me no reason to cringe. Another 1. 

The Haunting of Castle Malloy

Matt Simmons - This is the groom that Nancy finds locked in an underground lab. Going on vibes alone, he doesn't seem to be a bad dude, just an unlucky one and a prankster. He gets a 1. 

Kit Foley - This one is still pining for the bride. He has an old photo of them together with him, which he brought to the wedding, where she was marrying someone else. He was quick to say that Matt had run off (he hadn't). He's a 4 because he needs to let go of the idea Kyler is taking him back. 

Donal Delany - Oh boy, let's talk about the good people. The Celtic lore that he used to explain Matt's disappearance is less than sound thinking. He rates around 4 to 4.5 just for the "good people" explanation. 

Ransom of the Seven Ships

Johnny Rolle - Let me see, how about a 10? Not only does he use us to get off the island, but he's pretending to be someone else the entire time. All he does is take advantage of Nancy. 

Courtesy of Herinteractive

Trail of the Twister

Scott Varnell - His temper is on a short fuse. He's also quite moody all the time. I give him a 2 for reasons that involve the end game. 

"Frosty" Harlow - What I dislike the most about this game is doing all that work to fix the camera and getting reamed by both Scott and Frosty for not fixing it. Worse? Frosty knew the truth and left us out to dry. He sold the footage to someone else. He's a 3.5 to 4 for leaving us in that awkward position. 

Chase Releford - I like this one. He's a fun guy with a good sense of hard work. I'd shoot the breeze with him any day, so he's a 1. 

Pa - Pa is an interesting, sad soul. You can tell he does gossip, though he makes a show that he doesn't when you overhear Brooke come in looking for some juicy tidbits. He's a 1, too. 

Shadow at Waters Edge

Rentaro - This man does not know when to quit when it comes to getting his way. He pressures his girlfriend into leaving constantly, though she never does. You'll notice that he's the most talkative of the bunch here, probably telling you more than he should. He's a 7 for reasons that deal with the ending.

Courtesy of Pinterest

Stay tuned for part three and stay sleuthy!

Sources:

Nancy Drew | Nancy Drew Wiki | Fandom

List of Nancy Drew video games - Wikipedia

The Men of Nancy Drew Games Pt. 1 of 3

 Nancy Drew from the Herinteractive games encounters many men during her travels. Some are a bit cringy, depending on your perspective on her age and the situation of the case. Some are highly cringy. Let's dive into that topic.

 Courtesy of Tumblr

We're going to go through the men of Nancy Drew games and rate them on cringy-ness. The rating system will work like this; 1 is no trace of cringe and 10 is cringe to max. These are my opinions, ladies and gents, so please feel free to comment your opinions and please respect mine. I will state reasons for every man. This does not include Ned, Frank, or Joe because they are constant characters and don't depend on the case at hand. I also don't intend to do phone contacts.

This contains mild spoilers, fellow gamers and blog readers, so please read at your own risk if you haven't played any of these. You have been warned. I will not culprit reveal directly.

Secrets Can Kill 

 The original and the remake have the same characters, minus one. I am including both under this umbrella. 

Daryl Gray - He is a flirt. He is more attractive in 2D than 3D, but the rating remains the same. He is at least closer to Nancy's age than some of the other men, keep in mind, so it depends entirely on how loyal you are to Ned. I am a loyal girl, so I give him a 3 to 5 because he still flirts despite knowing of Ned's existence. 

Hal Tanaka - Hal doesn't flirt with Nancy, doesn't do anything but study, and his only flaw is cheating on an essay. 1 is his rating because he does nothing to deserve anything above that. 

Hulk Sanchez - He is a "typical jock" that gets annoyed when you keep asking questions. He does begin to flirt with you, but gets put out with you after you start asking questions about jake. This sounds at least realistic to someone who isn't the sharpest knife in the drawer.  He's a 2, only because he's a bit of a stereotype.

Detective Beech - He is an 8, mostly because he is so obviously not who he says he is. He also has a hissy fit over losing something, causing Daryl to think he's less than okay. I won't say more about him, but he's definitely not who he says he is. 

Stay Tuned for Danger 

Rick Arlen - Rick is older than Nancy. He actively flirts with her, as well. He's kind of gross to me. "Stay beautiful" is the line that my husband jokes about when we talk about iconic lines in herinteractive games. He's a 10 on my cringe meter, but a negative 10 on physical attraction.

Dwayne Powers - He shows up in a later game and I'll only reference him here because giving that information is a spoiler already. He is a wildly unbalanced man who thinks life is a soap opera. 10, straight up 10. 

Ralph the security guard - He's aces. We love him. 1 because he has no cringe at all. 

Message in a Haunted Mansion

Charlie Murphy - He's a student secretly living in the mansion and working on renovations. I like him and find no fault in him at all. He's easily a 1. 

Louis Chandler - He owns Chandler interiors and was brought on by Rose. He leaves his laptop on with the least protection I've ever seen. He's a 2, only because he gets mad at you for reading a book he tried to hide, a book that you could have easily found before he did. 

Treasure in the Royal Tower

Dexter Egan - He sends you to do what he should be doing, gets a bit upset when you ask him to fix your radiator, but otherwise is a great, helpful man. He gets you into the tower, so he's a 1. 

Jacques Brunais - If you look for it, he will flirt slightly, even though he has a fiance. Long story short, 5. He gets insanely mad when you get hit on the head and lose his medallion. He isn't nice. 

The Final Scene

Brady Armstrong - Mr. "Wholesomely smoldering" is about a 9, only because he doesn't flirt with Nancy. On the other hand, he also mucks up her investigation and is sickeningly obsessed with his public image. Not to mention he turns out to be more connected to the theatre than you think. I won't say more.

Nicholas Falcone - He is a supremely helpful human being that actually helps you find evidence of previous ownership. I have nothing to cringe about. He is an activist that is on the scene to save the theatre. He's an ally, not the enemy, so he's a 1. 

Joseph Hughes - Sweet, sweet Joseph, who doesn't turn out to be so balanced in the head, has nothing to lose. His brother, whom he claims to be starting a movie theatre with later, is dead. He's a 2 to 3 for the sole reason that he keeps throwing a monkey wrench into proving credibility with the police. That and something I will hold back on telling you. 

Secret of the Scarlet Hand

 Courtesy of Youtube

Henrik Van Der Hune - He is slightly strange after he falls from the temple exhibit, but otherwise fine. He literally hands you the information you need to solve the game in his computer files. He's the most helpful character in the entirety of the museum. 1 is his rating. 

Alejandro del Rio - He uses you to get Joanna fired. He's withheld vital information in order to get a copy of a file. He's a jerk. For that reason, he's a 5. 

Taylor Sinclair - "Want a cookie? They're from Oaxaca!" He wears a tie that could hypnotize any human being. Also, other reasons that I won't say.  9 is his rating. 

Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake

Red Knott - He shows up in the yard making bird calls. Otherwise, he's fine. While he has no patience for people, I don't blame him for that. He's a 2, only because of the bird noises and bird pictures. 

Jeff Akers - Mr. give-you-a-ticket-for-nearly-burning-to-death is a rule enforcer to the end. He desperately tries to hide that his family worked for Malone. He's a 3 because of the shed incident and his love for giving tickets. 

Haunted Carousel

Elliot Chen - The hopeless procrastinator is the artist for the park. He is behind in his work and loves questions because they give him an excuse to take a break. He's a 2 to 3 due to his general vibe and "dark aura".

Harlan Bishop - He's the security guard that is on parole. He's a good dude, except for wanting the private code to Ingrid's workshop. For this, he is a 2 to 3. 

Danger on Deception Island

Holt Scotto - He's running for harbor master. He doesn't like when you hang around the lighthouse. At the end of the day he's helpful, though he calls you "girly" at least once. He's a 1.

Andy Jason - He is all about whaling and his business. He's a 2 because he doesn't seem to care about anything but his business.

Secret of Shadow Ranch

Dave Gregory - Basically, he's into Nancy and he's nice. He's a 1. 

Tex Britten - He can't say anything but "no" at times. He's the head wrangler, so he takes care of the horses. He keeps giving you chores, too. He's a 2 because he keeps giving you chores.

Shorty Thurmond - Well, he's a 7. He isn't a good singer and isn't known for good food. He also has other reasons I won't speak of. 

Courtesy of Pinterest

For the next ten ratings please stay tuned until next week and "Stay Beautiful!"

Sources:

Nancy Drew | Nancy Drew Wiki | Fandom

List of Nancy Drew video games - Wikipedia

differences in game audience

The game audience is extremely important when it comes to marketing. Age of player and maturity really does factor into this, since a seven-year-old is not going to be playing FNAF or Portal with too much success, nor is a 38-year-old going to find any challenge in a Reader Rabbit game. This is why the rating of a game matters. 

Courtesy of mll.fi

You truly do need to know what you are playing when you buy any form of videogame. The rating system is built for that purpose, so little kids don't pick up a game like Grand Theft Auto or Phasmophobia. It ranges from EC (early childhood) to AO (adults only). Understandably, parents and anyone who doesn't want pornographic content care about this rating system. 

Game designers also consider audience age and maturity during the design process. This looks like hint systems built into games aimed at everyone and kids, as well as no hint systems in Portal and many horror games. Yes, hints can be built in for all ages, but adult-aged games generally don't hand the answer to you on a silver platter. You can go online for some of that help. Long story short, kids will have hints obviously stated (Nancy Drew games on Junior level or early Nancy Drew games) while Portal leaves you all by your lonesome to figure it out. Before the internet, some players couldn't finish a game without buying a strategy guide. Now we have them abundantly (as long as the game has been released at least a few months).

Adult themes can show up in games such as Herinteractive's Nancy Drew series. However, they are subtly placed so the player themselves can put the pieces together. Most horror games do this. Ghost of Thornton Hall is like this. You see, younger players may not find it or put the ideas fully together, while the adults will find it. It makes a game playable for younger audiences, yet enjoyable for adults. Nancy Drew games are playable and enjoyable for adults and kids - especially since the audience is either growing up or adults playing with their kids. 

The Rating System Explained

Here's a breakdown of what each rating means, for reference. 

EC - Early childhood, ages 3 plus, no crude content

E - Everyone, ages 6 plus, some crude content and a variety of mischief/comic slapstick

T- Teen, ages 13 plus, violence and language and suggestive themes

M - Mature, ages 17 plus, mature sexual themes and more intense Teen category

AO- Adults only, ages 18 plus, graphic depictions of sex and violence

RP - Rating pending, rating on the way

As you can all see, this gives you a sense of what gameplay will bring you. E is the most common rating that you see in a public space. Most everyone can enjoy that game and find it fun. Parents have an active responsibility. You ultimately pay for the game as a parent by giving an allowance or directly shopping with your kids. Parents have control over what can and can't be played. While it is true some kids will hide the games and play them while their parents are not home, parents need to be paying attention to the rating systems. There is no law to make it illegal to sell kids games above their age range. Parents are solely responsible for making that judgment call. Just because everyone has it does not mean your child should. Your young child may not be mature enough to understand what is and isn't real or appropriate behavior. AOs are also rare, so keep in mind they are not going to be displayed in public for both public decency and rarity reasons. 

Hint Systems

Kids need more obvious hint systems. Plain and simple. Common sense does not always allow a young child to know what to do next. On the other side of things, I could solve some puzzles in seconds without help somehow and struggle with them in adulthood. How? The world may never know. Also, kids don't overthink like adults. Either way, Nancy in the Herineractive games may state the terribly obvious next step because the game is suggested for ages 10 and up. Junior and Senior mode allows challenge options and less hints to those who don't want the easier puzzles. This easily makes it an E game for all ages (and I mean all ages, looking at the fanbase). 

Courtesy of blogspot.com
Bulletin board code from Secrets Can Kill Remastered

I talk about Portal 1 and 2 because no hint system exists. Truly. None. You need help? Consult Youtube or a walkthrough. I don't see young kids doing well with this game. My husband didn't beat this alone. It requires a gamer who thinks way outside the box. Some kids might do decently on it, if I'm thinking about the gifted kids who need more challenge, but the average kid will inevitably get quite frustrated and potentially stop playing. This was aimed at adults, based on the dialogue as well. The main AI is rather mean-spirited and not friendly. 

Good hint systems shouldn't give you the answer on a silver platter unless it is necessary and you can't beat it without beating your head on the wall. Again, later Nancy Drews do this well by providing a hint system that gives smaller hints, then the solution if you're desperate. You can call people for hints in some games. Bottom line, the solution can't be found in the hint system by accident. Small nudges within the game dialogue or even in the setting can also be good to set up. If a portrait on the wall can show you half the solution to the puzzle box in the corner it gives the player a push in the right direction. Kids may need a more on-the-nose hint, yet I still think it depends on the kid in question as to how much they need. No matter what, kids' games are more direct with hints. 

Adult Themes

Here comes the dialogue and plotline of the game. Adult themes can be dark and subtle or in your face. A graphic sex scene is not subtle, but a rumpled bed and a pack of condoms on the dresser are less blatant-ish (especially if you see it, but don't get a verbal confirmation of it). Subtle hints that have to be noticed through the player exploring are wonderful for making the player put together the entire situation. This is how you can hide a darker plotline in a lighter one. Rather than showing graphic images and verbal confirmation, you can put a journal page or two scattered around the house to reveal what happened.

Courtesy of Pinterest

Thornton Hall, again, does this with a note in the basement. No one speaks of it. Not one question can be asked through Nancy about it. Yet, some theorize that Clara not being told who her daddy is and that note are connected, leading to the conclusion that her father was an older relative of hers (incest, if you don't catch my meaning). The subtle clues scattered in games give backstory. Game theorists feed off this type of explorative storytelling, which makes players want to explore it all before progressing the game. 

Adult-only games don't bother with subtle anything. You don't have to tap-dance around players who aren't mature enough to get it. I find these to be graphic games I don't play. Pornographic content is stuffed into these games, which is why AO is a rare rating. Pornography is plentiful online, I know, but yet AO is rare for a game to receive. I don't have to say what these contain, most likely, given these are feeding fantasies that probably shouldn't be fed. 

Sources:

Video Game Rating System (childdevelopmentinfo.com)

Video Game Content Ratings: Does Anyone Care Anymore? | The Artifice (the-artifice.com)

What makes a good hint system? (getpostcurious.com)

Mirage : A character study

When I watched The Incredibles (the first one, for clarification purposes) I looked at Mirage as someone who might not have been fully down with the plan. Is it possible she did the bidding of Syndrome under romantic pressure? Was she used by Syndrome to get to Mr. Incredible and did he create a relationship to do so exclusively? 

Courtesy of Tumblr

While she is definitely guilty of helping Syndrome murder Supers, what I want to know is her motivation. She was down to do all the dirty work of Syndrome, but why? She clearly wasn't in it to murder children based on her reaction to Mrs. Incredible/Elastigirl declaring there were children on the plane. Obviously, she was only signed up to kill the Supers they were targeting. Syndrome shows how unbalanced and sociopathic he truly is, even letting her be potentially snapped in half by a furious Mr. Incredible. You'll note that this is when she snaps back on Syndrome and literally undoes all the work she did to lure Mr. Incredible to the island. This points to her motivation being directly connected to Syndrome himself. 

I used to think Syndrome killed her, but given that Syndrome left the island and then got betrayed by his own cape I think that's quite impossible. He was never aware that he was betrayed by Mirage. It is no longer a mystery to me what she did. I honestly think she left the island and ran off somewhere. Comics say she works for the NSA. We'll never know where she went in between because she's too good at espionage. Long story short, I do think that Syndrome could have killed her if the plot had let him return to the island, but the plot of the story never had him return. Capes were truly a bad idea. 

Evidence of Romantic Connection

Body language is one of the keys to catching a romance in the air. He takes her by the chin early on. You don't usually do that when you are just friends. Either Syndrome or Mirage wants it to be more and it isn't, or it was a romantic connection and she's seeing through him. She shoves Syndrome away from Mr. Incredible to save him. Again, the betrayal timing happens after she learns he doesn't care about killing children or her life. It may have been developing as time went on. The video below is a theory (one that some agree and disagree on) that may also explain why she'd even work for him. Some people think he had psych-related powers and was working for the US government on the sly, which may be where Mirage came in. 

What I've found is that Mirage does have a romance blooming with Syndrome, until he decides to gamble her life like it was worth less than a penny. It is clear that she sees him as misunderstood, rather than unstable. She has convinced herself he has good qualities and cares about her. This delusion ends the minute he tells Mr. Incredible to go ahead and kill her. She also has some moral lines, allegedly, because she has serious qualms with killing children that aren't her targets. 

Morals and Ambitions

To be sure, we're not looking at a saint. She is guilty of tracking and having a hand in killing Supers. She sees an opportunity for power in Syndrome that shifts slightly as the movie plot continues. Emotion is there, yes, but how much has she already done? Mirage pays for none of her crimes and ends up recruited by the NSA (possibly to make up for her crimes). Maybe she had a choice between the NSA and prison. We'll never know for sure unless someone actually states what happened in future comics or movies. 

An attraction to power is not something that leads down a saintly road. Power is something that gets taken by force and never leaves you on stable ground. It can also blow you in a different direction every time someone you're attached to gets power stripped from them. If the only connection to Syndrome was power, I'd say she undid her hard work against herself, but I don't think that is fully true. Yes, Syndrome had power - a whole island of technology, too -, but he crossed a line by attempting to kill children (which is a principle even some hardened resistance fighters of WWII sometimes maintained). It isn't coming out of left field to say that Syndrome crossed a line by also gambling her life, especially given that there is a romantic element in play. Power was her motive for killing Supers, yet I highly doubt her motive for betraying Syndrome had anything to do with power (unless she did consider he was a bit off-kilter and could be a sinking ship). 

Another possibility that remains is whether Syndrome needed her anymore. She bent to his every whim, found Mr. Incredible and several Supers for him, and yet Syndrome was going to let Mr. Incredible crush her. This reflects that he may have led her on until he had what he wanted. Mr. Incredible was the target he was going for, if I understand him correctly, due to a childhood grudge. He had to wade through several Supers to get there. Now that Syndrome has what he wants, what use is Mirage? She could have seen the red flags and the change in Syndrome after Mr. Incredible was on the island. The real Syndrome comes out for her to see and she may have betrayed him, then run off for the sake of self-preservation. The scene where he gambled her life was proof she was now disposable and she was not going to be treated like a pawn.

Conclusions

All this comes down to three connections to Syndrome, which are power, a romantic relationship, and ambition., She had the ambition to be his second in command, the romance to keep her tied to him, and the attraction to power that kept her working for him. He revealed she was a pawn in his game when he gambled her life, resulting in romantic devastation and the realization that she was now disposable. The motive for the crimes may have been her love for Syndrome and his power, but the motive for her undoing her work was the way he gambled her life and crossed lines for petty revenge purposes. No angels here, ladies and gents, but we do have a smart woman who saw the red flags and ran before he could actually dispose of her. I do believe he could have murdered her along with the other Supers they killed, had he lived to the end of the movie. A sociopathic manipulator like him could have absolutely murdered his second in command (since he'd done it so many times already and had no qualms about killing innocent Supers).

Sources:

 https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/Mirage_(The_Incredibles)#:~:text=Mirage%20is%20the%20secondary%20antagonist,to%20pass%20off%20her%20life.

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/453245149992616085/

https://the-incredibles.fandom.com/wiki/Mirage

https://en-academic.com/dic.nsf/enwiki/930166

https://www.shmoop.com/study-guides/movie/the-incredibles/cast/mirage-elizabeth-pea