Wow! After pre-ordering the game over a month ago, my game finally arrived on Wednesday! I had solved the case by Thursday afternoon and I absolutely loved the game! Here is my review of the game. I have rated each category on a scale of 1-5, 5 being the best possible score.
Plot (5)
From the
SPY game page: "Nearly a decade ago Agent Kate left home to neutralize a biochemical weapon in Scotland. While her assignment was a success, Kate died in a car accident. Or so we were told. Now the echoes of a similar plot reverberate and it's up to you, as detective Nancy Drew, to thwart the sleeper cell and expose the truth about your mother's tragic demise."
The moment I saw the teaser trailer at the end of
GTH, I was so excited. Ever since I began reading the books in 2007 I have wondered about Nancy's mom. Not anymore! I also loved the "spy" theme. I was afraid that HeR would overdo it and make Nancy's mom some crazy international spy. Thankfully, that did not happen! Kate was actually an investigative reporter who got mixed up in this crazy terrorist plot and tried (with the help of an organization called Cathedral) to stop them. She could have backed out, but didn't want to quit or leave the people of Glasgow in danger. I feel that in her position, Nancy would have done the same thing. Actually, I guess you could say she
did do the same thing by solving this case.
Characters (4.5)
Alec Fell: Alec was my second favorite character. He is the first person you meet as soon as you arrive in Glasgow. He's a great character, but I wish we got to know more about him. This is understandable though, because you really can't trust anyone in the game! You don't know who is good or who is bad until the very end!
Bridget Shaw: Bridget, the second character you meet, was definitely my favorite! It is hard to tell you why without giving away a major spoiler, so I'll just say this: Bridget Shaw is not entirely who she seems to be and there is a chance we may be hearing from her again in the future!
Moria Chisholm: I loved talking to Moira so much! She's one of those super nice, older characters who has great stories to tell. I love talking to characters like that, as long as they don't go on and on with their stories (like Takae and Renate ;) ) I also loved that many of her stories were about Nancy and triggered memories of Kate.
Ewan MacLeod: Ewan is your contact at Cathedral. Because he has access to so much information, he is very helpful when you are trying to learn more about the other characters! He also has a ton of great spy gadgets that you get to use!
Setting (5)
The setting was absolutely amazing! By the end of the game I had counted nine locations you get to totally explore and two that you briefly visit to complete a few easy tasks. Everywhere you go is absolutely gorgeous and had so much to explore.
Phone Friends (4)
Carson and Ned were your phone friends in this game. You get to have some really great conversations with them. Especially one with both of them after he catches Ned breaking into the Drew home (after Nancy asks him to of course!). Over the ending credits yo get to hear a really great conversation that Nancy has with her Dad once she is back home after solving the case. They mostly talk about Kate and it was really great! I'm not sure if this was only on the bonus edition or not. I only wish that we got to talk to Bess, George, and maybe even Hannah since this was a really big and emotional case for Nancy.
Puzzles (4.5)
The puzzles were great! There were a lot of new puzzles in this game that we have never seen before. I loved the cookie puzzle you do to earn money throughout the game! A couple were a little too difficult for me, but for the most part I was able to solve them without needing spoilers.
Music (5)
WOW! The music was absolutely beautiful! My favorite song was Kate's theme. I loved how they incorporated this song into the puzzles too! I don't own any of the soundtracks to previous games, but I will definitely be buying this one.
Culprit/Ending (4)
I had a million different guesses as to who the culprit might be throughout the game! I was wrong almost every time! They definitely keep you guessing. You discover who the culprit is about thirty minutes before the end of the game. Once you figure out who they are, you have to catch them and then solve several puzzles to stop their plan of attack! I wish we had more of an explanation about their motive, but that is my only complaint.
Miscellaneous (4)
It took me 7-8 hours to finish the game (2-3 days total). For me, that is the perfect length. The graphics were beautiful too! They get better with every game! The amount of snooping was enormous! You get to snoop in everyone's everything and find out a ton of stuff about them1 In this game you see pictures of Bess, George, and all of Nancy's other friends too. Everyone but Bess looks the same. I thought that the first Bess (from RAN) was okay, and that second Bess (from ASH) was almost perfect (she was just a little too skinny). I really didn't like this third Bess, though. Her hair was much shorter, and in pig tails. She looked no older than 16. Maybe a little younger. You get used to it though.
Overall, this turned out to be my favorite game yet! After totaling the scores, it got a total of 36 out of 40 points! If you haven't purchased this game yet, you definitely need to! Digital pre-orders are still available for a couple of days, and after that the game will be available in stores! I hope you enjoyed reading my review! If there are any other games you want me to review, let me know! I can do and of the games available for Mac (22-29 & SCK2).
~Sienna