PC (Microsoft Windows)2009
Nancy Drew: Ransom of the Seven Ships
Dive into Danger to Rescue Bess from Kidnappers!
Dive into Danger to Rescue Bess from Kidnappers!
I don't dislike this game, despite the many people who do. It does have some awkward parts and the white guy dressing up as a Jamaican is not great, but the puzzles and environment overall are pretty fun in my opinion.
Her Interactive can claim that this game is insensitive all they want, it's not.
What it is is a big fat steaming turd of a game with some of the most ridiculous puzzles in a Nancy Drew game. The real reason they probably pulled it is because they're ashamed of the ♥♥♥♥ game design and obvious/tedious story.
The only real high points were the circuit board puzzle, the square panel puzzle, the water conduction puzzle, and the awesome lingual interpolation puzzle. Someone should get a raise for that last one as I now want more puzzles like that just to do in my free time!
This game, however, shall never be played again as it's absolute uncontested ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥! ♥♥♥♥ every last monkey on that damn island, ♥♥♥♥ George and her satellite phone, ♥♥♥♥ that stupid ass bird, and ♥♥♥♥ Johnny and his fetch quests.
booooooo!!!!
Although this game gets a lot of hate at times, I LOVE this game! I love the beachy atmosphere and music. There are a lot of fun puzzles in this game. I can criticize the amount of characters in this game, thinking there def should be more suspects. But at the end of this day, I love replaying this game.
It's really not my favorite of the games. The puzzles were frustrating beyond my patience.
Out of all the nancy drew games this is the worst
.
A very painful game to play, but that's what I'm here for. Damn shame this game got pulled for having an American posing as a Jamaican, while Americans posing as Scots is still live in Silent Spy.
It is probably a fool's errand to write a review on a game that is no longer available to purchase, but I am going to do so anyway because I have to vent my frustration somewhere. Ransom of the Seven Ships possesses a reputation as one of the worst Nancy Drew games out there, with some declaring it THE worst game of them all. As such, while I've been making my way through the Nancy Drew franchise, I have avoided Seven Ships. As I only have a few games left, however, I finally decided to grit my teeth and give this game a shot.
Surprise, it's bad. Really bad. I haven't yet decided whether this game is better or worse than the Creature of Kapu Cave, but it is certainly the most annoying Nancy Drew game I've played. At least Kapu Cave was mercifully short. I had the misfortune of spending 9 hours with this game, and now you get to hear about it. Lucky you.
The pros:
- The music. This goes without saying, but the music in basically all of the Nancy Drew games is good and this one is no exception. Pleasant steel drums perfectly invoke an island atmosphere, though their lighthearted sound does clash with the high stakes of the narrative.
- Lots of puzzles. This has some of the most puzzles in any ND game I've played. This comes with a big caveat of some of them are really tedious, but we'll get to that.
- A mystery involving Bess and George is fun....but we'll get to the downsides of that.
And that's it for positives. Now for the negatives. Spoilers below:
- The story is just a heaping plate of wasted potential. One of Nancy's best friends has been kidnapped and you have to save her by...solving a completely different, 400 year old mystery. What could have been an interesting mystery of Nancy actively searching for Bess instead becomes you just going along with the kidnapper's plan and looking for El Toro's treasure.
- Waste of characters. George is available to play as, but you only need to do so twice and she doesn't get to do that much. She spends basically the entire game sitting in the lobby and fiddling with the phone. Then there is the ONE suspect you have who is generally boring and also, surprise, leans into racist stereotypes and blackface (hence why this game is no longer available). Outside of that, you have CouCou the parrot, who manages to be even more obnoxious than LouLou and a group of insufferable monkeys who only exist to make Nancy's life hell and to pad the game. Speaking of that...
- Padding. Driving the golf cart, playing endless games with the monkeys, sailing...all are just tedious additions to pad out the run time. They aren't fun and feel more like chores than anything else. Did I mention I have a special hatred for those monkeys?
- Many of the puzzles are tedious or so simple that they don't challenge the brain. Many of them are multi-step and just aren't very fun. Forcing you to do underwater puzzles on an air timer is annoying enough, but then there's that ridiculous hourglass puzzle near the end of the game that I cannot see anyone completing without an abundance of time or a walk through.
- SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
I don't think I will forgive this game for bungling the cool idea of having one of Nancy's old foes reappear to get revenge. First, they picked one of her most forgettable villains and he ends up barely doing anything over the course of the game. Just felt like a waste of a really cool idea.
And that's all I have to say/WANT to say about this game. It is just as bad as everyone says it is and I account it a mercy that Her Interactive has decided to shelve this game. I AM happy I at least got the chance to play it once before it vanished, but I can't say I have a desire to ever play it again. I'd say only Nancy Drew fans who want to play all the games should give it a go....but unless you already own it or get your hands on an old disc copy or unofficial copy, then you're simply out of luck. But don't feel too bad, this is definitely one to skip.
Ransom of the Seven Ships gets 2/10
This is really the only Nancy Drew game I've ever left a bad review for. I have played every single ND game and this is really the only one I didn't enjoy.
I hated some of the minigames in this and how often you had to play them. The puzzles felt annoying rather than challenging, and they payoff never felt worth it. I actually didn't end up finishing this game, it's the only one I haven't played through. Also Bess and George look really weird in it.
I recommend skipping this one. Play sea of darkness instead.
hi
Most likely everyone's least favorite of the Nancy Drew series. I am one of those people. I bought it when it was first released by HeR on disc. I think I've only played it once. Today must've been my second try because I actually didn't remember much except for who the culprit is.
Why it was discontinued in 2020 and ending spoiler ahead:
[spoiler]The main suspect, Johnny Rolle is actually Dwayne Powers from Stay Tuned for Danger. He's an actor playing the part of a Jamaican man (ie: why it's considered racist); all to fool Nancy into thinking he's a beach bum that just happens to also be hanging out on the same island that Bess was kidnapped from. It is also later revealed that Nancy finds a drivers license and that Johnny Rolle is actually an Australian named Johnny Poole; who is an accountant and is hiding on Dread Isle from some bad people that want to hurt him. Then finally at the end he reveals himself to be none other than Dwayne Powers. A man who was on a mission and still trying to prove to himself that he's a great actor; all while fooling Nancy into acquiring El Toro's treasure and to seek revenge on our beloved Detective because she foiled his plans some 19 games ago. So there you have it.[/spoiler]
PS: Awful game, but I still recommend it because it's from a now defunct and beloved game series. Disc version is always available on places like eBay if you really want it.
HerInteractive is keeping things fresh with a new format in this Nancy Drew game. Usually, Nancy needs to talk to various people during her investigation. Picking up clues from those conversations is part of solving the mystery and trying to figure out who the culprit is before the end is part of the fun. In this game, Nancy's pretty much alone on an island, searching for hidden treasure, so she barely talks to the two people who are on the island with her. You have a singular focus in this game: find the treasure.
Once I realized that there was no one else to talk to and I just needed to find the treasure, I became worried that this game would be too simplistic and boring to play. It turned out to be pretty fun because the puzzles and gameplay were interesting and new. Except for driving around the island - I didn't love this sort of gameplay in other Nancy Drew games, but I really hated it in this one. If you didn't stay on the road, you'd slow down a lot. And it was difficult to stay on the road because the roads were really curvy. And everything was made more frustrating because the routes between places were long.
Love the series
This was a hard one (when not using spoilers) But that made it so much more enjoyable. Also a pretty good one. Not the best but FAR from the worst.
Good fun with lots of twists and loads of activities. Good way to relax.
Heureusement que je connaissais ce jeu car l'école et les cours d'anglais sont bien lointains... J'espère que les versions françaises seront un jour au programme car j'adore la série des Nancy Drew. Kidnapping aux Bahamas fait partie de mes préférés.
Edit: Wow, this one sucked so bad that they removed it from the store! Incredible!
They did Bess and George so dirty. You spend the whole franchise wanting to see them, and now that they are here, I just want them gone.
the racist nancy drew game
So good! Really wonderful story line <3
This is a great game with lots of puzzles to play and the I love the graphics in this game. It is definitely a step up from the former games, not that I don't like them too. I love Nancy Drew games. I hate that they are not making them now.
I love all of these games... I have played them since the beginning and am STILL obsessed with them, but now my kids play with me too
its a very fun game to play but it is challenging
Not as bad as I expected! The lack of characters and suspects is defintively the game's biggest flaw, combined with the fact that the two characters we do have are either not very interesting or outright obnoxious. The plot is paper thin, but the historical aspect is quite interesting, and the puzzles were all pretty fun. If anyone is looking for a game with more puzzles than plot, this is the one to get.
Эта игра является самой противоречивой в серии. Дело в том, что в ней есть прекрасные, сложные головоломки, над которыми и правда нужно поразмыслить, и совершенно неинтересный, предсказуемый сюжет! Давайте рассмотрим каждый аспект, чтобы узнать понравится вам эта игра или же нет.
Сюжет. Нэнси Дрю отправляется на отдых вместе со своими подругами Джесс и Бесс, но когда девушка оказалась на острове, то выяснилось, что Бесс похитили и теперь Нэнси предстоит отыскать утерянные сокровища, чтобы спасти свою подругу. Звучит неплохо. На протяжении всей игры я мечтала о том, чтобы это её друзья решили устроить розыгрыш над девушкой. Представьте как это было бы круто, если бы такое произошло на самом деле, но по итогу мы получаем максимально банальный сюжет с местью от злодея. В этой игре сюжет - это слабая сторона. Если вы играете в серию Нэнси Дрю ради интересных историй, то вам точно не стоит покупать эту игру.
Персонажи. В игре всего четыре персонажа. Это ваша подруга Джесс, за которую в ходе расследования вы будете несколько раз играть, Джонни Ролл, который застрял на этом острове, Бесс, которую вы увидите только в конце игры, и попугай Куку, который будет давать вам подсказки. Не нужно быть великим детективом, чтобы понять кто похитил Бесс. Стоит отдельно сказать про попугая Куку. Он может показывать трюки и помогать вам по ходу расследования, но не за просто так, а за гуаву, которую нужно выигрывать в мини-играх у мартышках. Игра буквально будет вынуждать вас возвращаться к этим мартышкам вновь и вновь, чтобы поиграть с ними в мини-игры и найти нужный предмет для нашего детектива. Это решение разработчиков напомнило мне об их провальной пятнадцатой части серии "Нэнси Дрю: Чудовище пещеры Капу", где таким образом заставляли игрока дольше проводить время в игре.
Головоломки. Они здесь отличные! Вам нужно приготовиться к тому, что некоторые из них довольно сложные, потому придется пораскинуть мозгами, чтобы найти правильное решение. Больше всего мне нравятся головоломки, где нужно что либо расшифровывать, потому когда Нэнси сказала о том, что нужно расшифровать дневник Эль-Торо, я была несказанно рада. Если вы играете в Нэнси Дрю из-за головоломок, тогда вам и вправду может понравиться эта часть.
Как по мне, то разработчики могли лучше подумать над сюжетом и добавить больше персонажей на остров, чтобы хоть как-нибудь разнообразить историю. В игре слишком много сюжетных дыр, чтобы на них можно было спокойно закрыть глаза. К сожалению, здесь игру не спасают даже сложные головоломки.
Несколько полезной информации для тех, кто всё же будет играть в эту часть: [spoiler]
1. Если при игре с обезьяной в мозаику нажать стрелку «назад» в левой части экрана, Вам будет автоматически засчитана победа.
2. Чтобы при погружении пополнить запасы воздуха в акваланге можно щёлкнуть на значок маски с ползунком в левом верхнем углу. Баллон заполнится до значения «99». [/spoiler]
Если вам нужны только головоломки, то берите эту игру. Здесь их довольно много и они интересные. Если же вы здесь за атмосферой и сюжетом, то эта часть явно не для вас.
С удовольствием снова окунулась в атмосферу Нэнси Дрю! До этого проходила именно эту часть примерно десять лет назад, и к счастью, забыла сюжет, что только подогрело интерес!) В итоге могу сказать, что игра удалась, и хоть и модельки персонажей выглядят не убедительно, тем не менее пейзажи и атмосфера в этой игре проработаны на 5 с плюсом!)
Головоломки в меру сложные, а их плотность не даёт заскучать. Большим плюсом является дневник, который представляет собой как-бы совокупность заданий, и ведет тебя сквозь всю сюжетную линию.
Советую всем любителям серии, а так же тем, кто хочет почувствовать летнее настроение и окунуться в поиски пропавшего клада семи кораблей!
EDIT: 0 or 1/10 - after playing all the Nancy Drew games ... I can confirm this one is truly the WORST.
2/10 - worst Nancy game I've ever played.
+
This is the one Nancy Drew game I refuse to replay! So much filler not enough content! I have recently replayed this game for my youtube channel and never again. The controls were buggy, Not enough urgancy with the kidnapping, all the filler. I will not be playing this again.
This game is dreadfully appalling. Graphics are even dummier than the 1980's nintendo games. My PC with voguish GPU and ultra-modern processor + 16 GB RAM laughed on me for playing this. Don't buy this. Better read the novel out of which this is made.
It's not a bad game. There's just so little to do. The puzzles are heavy handed and most of the time are on a timer. Very taxing. The lack of people to talk to and the need to constantly drive around the map is exhausting. Great visuals and music though. Made me feel like I was really on vacation. While I'm a big fan of the series, this is a low point of the main run. Not the lowest, mind you. But low.
If you can tolerate a slightly annoying amount of animal sounds (braaaack!) then this game will give you hours of puzzle enjoyment. It is a difficult game on Senior Detective mode. Many puzzles I had to find walkthroughs for after trying to figure them out. But it's still an enjoyable experience, especially if you have a 7-9 year old kid who would like to play with you and help drive the golf cart around. It's classic Nancy Drew by HER and has all the elements you'd expect. But again, it's not an easy game!
very fun
Out of the Nancy Drew games that I have played this one is fun, but a little tedious to constantly travel from place to place. The game has a good plot and entertaining puzzles.
Crashes all the time and Her Interactive has ignored many of my emails asking for assistance. Steam also won't help because it isn't developed by them. Waste of money.
Played these games as a kid. Still a fun game to return to.
fun
Though fairly par for the course as Nancy Drew games go, the achievements were a nice addition to this particular mystery. Most games in the franchise are well-known for their immersive, puzzle-based gameplay and suspect-questioning mechanics, which I always enjoy, and this one did not disappoint.
I'm going to write a pros-and-cons list style review, which I don't usually do. I would give this game a rating of 6/10.
PROS:
-Funny hint-giving bird similar to the one in Blackmoor Manor
-The one suspect is interesting and a colorful character
-Diving, rock-climbing and driving make this one of those interesting "change-of-pace" games with a little more arcade-y adventure than usual
CONS:
-There's an overall creepy feeling that I can't explain. It isn't suspense, just something weird in the scenery
-The music is wayyyyy too cheery considering we are dealing with a kidnapping, and is really repetitive
-The puzzles are too complicated and the tasks are too far-reaching, making it take you forever to reach the end
-Character switching was not used to its full potential in the slightest (see: Kapu Cave, Alibi in Ashes, even Crystal Skull)
All in all, I think ND lovers will enjoy this more than new players, because the puzzles were too frustrating and the tasks too involved. Adding even one more character would have made it more interesting, though I appreciate that the lack of interaction did lead to a change of pace that would be normal to feel on an isolated island. Try it out if you love every ND game - otherwise, you may want to try another game first.
В своё время эта часть Нэнси Дрю для меня казалась чем-то особенным. Разработчики к тому моменту уже давно поняли, что троп "они сделали это ради сокровища" слишком прост, чтоб писать под него головоломки, поэтому начиная с третьей части у нас практически в каждой игре есть спрятанный макгафин. Но здесь мне нравится сама идея того, что Бесс похищена ради этого самого сокровища, поэтому выкуп надо быстренько найти. Ну и да, это первая игра, где наконец показали в лицо подруг Нэнси. Хоть их дизайн потом несколько раз меняли, здесь он прямо такой книжный, ты прям чувствуешь их. Сама игра довольно занятная, паззлы в меру сложные, кроме пожалуй песочных часов, без секундомера фиг знаешь как решать. Ну и расшифровка дневника Эль Торо для начала игры довольно хардкорна, но спасибо английским артиклям и местоимениям, это было проще чем в русской версии. Из придирок - поездки по острову в гольфкарте к концу игры приедаются, попугай, дающий подсказки лишь за гуаву, которую можно лишь получить за миниигры от обезьян - это самый халявный способ растянуть игру за счёт миниигр. Которых тут считай всего три. Ну и подозреваемых толком то и нет, хотя и тут студия вышла победителем замутив не один, а аж два твиста, один из которых понравится хардкорным фанатам серии.
Good puzzles and mystery
Excellent bird
Timed Puzzles and Arcade Sections
Perhaps it would have been more suitable if this game had been made into an action adventure instead, such as a tomb raider clone, as there is a lot of driving, diving, climbing and timed movement sequences and timed logic puzzles.
Although this game had some brand new elements worth checking out - third person perspective sections of diving, golf cart driving, pacing around a desert with a metal detector and mountain climbing, the overall difficulty of all the puzzles was pretty high. I had to employ the use of a walkthrough and a stopwatch (on my phone) for the hour glass puzzle and a camera (on my tablet) to take photos of the island map for golf cart driving and the El Toro journal for reference for the final puzzle. I am sure that if you had played this game in 2009 you would have had much greater difficulty if you did not have these devices ready to help you. Particularly - I feel I could have failed one of the final puzzles - the hour glass puzzle towards the end, until I used the alternate solution in the walkthrough that involved flipping the hour glasses at intervals during a timed countdown of 27 seconds. I call puzzles like this one "game killers", because some gamers will not be able to finish the game if they cannot solve it. And then there is the randomised final puzzle involving multiple keyholes with misleading clues, the coconut throwing game, and the timed underwater Sudoku.
Not everyone likes Sudoku - and giving the gamer a timed one, using coloured tiles while Nancy is running out of oxygen under water is just nasty. Just how many skills does this puzzle require? Even if you have the solution, you still need to manage your oxygen level, and have good colour coordination to pick the right coloured tiles to complete the puzzle in record time. You DO want to make a game that adventure gamers enjoy, right?
This game is only suitable for hardcore adventure gamers who do not mind really tough logic puzzles that are TIMED, and are not too uncomfortable with timed 2D movement sections. Personally I feel this game is way too hard for any regular adventure gamer even if you had a walkthrough. Some gamers may not even be able to finish the game, as they may be stuck at certain places where they are bested by a difficult timed puzzle. I would expect a Lara Croft action adventure to do that to a player but not adventure games - I expect to be able to play adventure games to completion. I have completed the game, and at 8 hours, but I am glad to be done with it and I do not look forward to playing this game over again.
Story wise, I am surprised that they brought back a villain from one of her early games, and that it is revealed that the villain had tracked Nancy's successes through the series. It is a brave direction for the series to have returning characters and I hope Her Interactive could continue to explore having more recurring characters in future games of the series, besides Sonny Joon.
There are other Nancy Drew games that are more enjoyable to play.
I LOVED this one! Good plot twist and a lot of exploring. Parrot was seriously annoying, but the rest of the game was so good, I'll give a pass.
This ND game contained a good variety of puzzles and some of the better ones compared to other games. The length of this game was really good too, I was entertained for awhile. I liked the concept and story of this game, but the lack of characters made it a bit dull, I was hoping there would be a better spin to the ending. The ending seemed sped up and there was a big coincidence that Nancy is placed right where that door is. I would definitely play again eventhough the achievements are more of a hassle, why would I do that action SO many times in a normal playthrough? No thanks.
tl;dr: Like with Sudoku, if you've played any Nancy Drew game, you've played all of them. Recommend if that's your bag, pass if it isn't.
The draw of Nancy Drew is, even though the series isn't wildly imaginative or groundbreaking in terms of point-and-click adventure games, there's a comfortable consistency to each installment. The art style has been identical across all 35-or-whatever-they're-up-to-now games, such that it feels like they were all made in the early 2000s and are just slowly getting released for marketing reasons. Only one or two episodes I've played so far have deviated drastically from the core gameplay, one being a Nintendo DS release (aimed toward very young players and not nearly on the same level as the main series).
Ransom of the Seven Ships has most of the same flaws present in every (PC release) ND game I've played so far:
- cannot skip cutscenes or dialogue
- navigation is sometimes confusing
- "timed" events may not unlock until some arbitrary other event happens (looking at you, metal detector I obviously need but Nancy won't ask for it until ??? happened)
- forced to play irritating nonstory minigames to progress (I despise Sudoku, actually)
- long-dead characters left behind anachronistically complex puzzles like carved boxes with artificial intelligence
- awards are only granted at the end of the game, so who knows if you unlocked that grinding achievement until you find out you didn't
Unfortunately, some of the puzzles in this game are not particularly colourblind-friendly (the Sudoku being especially aggravating since I already hate it AND it's timed), and it's a bit unbelievable that 17th century sailors would leave behind complex mechanisms to protect stuff that was just scattered on the beach for any clown with a metal detector to find. Or spare SCUBA tanks in the underwater maze they totally had the technology to set up, yup.
But hey, if you already understand about all that and still want to give this installment a whirl, it's definitely the Nancy Drew experience you know and love! Also, I really like the cryptogram decoding part, definitely MY bag!
The game itself is cool, with a great story, extremely pretty locations, and you can even go scuba diving! Awesome! :D
Even though I've recommended this game, though, there are still a lot of disappointments in this one. The worst being the puzzles. As far as the puzzles go, it's a 1/10 for me. The majority of the puzzles in this game are AWFUL. Like decoding a journal, the solution to it just makes no sense whatsoever. And there's too many numbers and math puzzles in this game. There were so many, it almost makes the game too boring and frustrating to play. If the actual game had been as bad as the puzzles, I definitely would not have recommended this. But the story was absolutely brilliant, 10/10, and, for me, is what won me over. There was gorgeous scenery, exciting scuba diving, you can dig for treasure and use a metal detector to find stuff, and you can even play as Georgia Fayne at one point! I love it when you get to switch and play as different characters, and this game comes with actual steam achievements! :) You actually even get to see a little bit of what Nancy looks like, too! You don't see her face, or anything, but you do see her hair, when you're digging in the sand, or rock climbing, it's the same thing for Georgia. I wish Her Interactive would actually let us see what Nancy looks like. Would be nice to see the face of the person we are playing as :D
A couple other things I didn't like was that BIRD (voiced by Lani Minella, can you believe it, the same person who voices Nancy Drew :O), who annoys me intensely. I love birds, have 3 of them as pets, but the parrot in this game is really annoying - spoiled/bratty and rude, and talks repetitively like a stuck record, I just want to swat him :D And 2 out of 3 of the games with the monkeys are really terrible, especially since one of them requires you to win by chance (the coconut toss one is fun, the only good one). Plus, the culprit of this game is so predictable; it's very easy to tell who it is, as soon as you meet him/her, since there's such a shortage of characters in this game.
Anyway, even though the puzzles are really bad, you can quickly get them over with from the walkthrough, so you can move forward and enjoy the story, it's not that bad (except for that alley game with the monkey, and that hourglass puzzle, those are hard!!)
It's totally worth playing through to the end, though, because the ending of the game, when Bess and Georgia finally see each other again after Bess was kidnapped, was just so cute ^_^ All I'll say is, it was the best happy ending of a Nancy Drew game I've ever seen, and makes me smile every time I watch it, when replaying the game ^_^
I definitely enjoyed this Nancy Drew, but it definitely has some flaws. It is unique though because it features a very limited cast of characters. The mini-game puzzles were appropriately challenging. I was frustrated though that a few of the adventure game logic puzzles seemed irrelevant [SPOILER] (there's a bit where you have to identify the right cave by listening to bat noises...or you can just trial and error walk into all three of them) [/SPOILER], and a few of them were painfully restrictive (it wasn't enough to logically figure out a sequence of actions for one puzzle, you also had to click on the exact right place on the screen, and Nancy gave you no encouragement that you were on the right track if you nearly had it). Overall I recommend it, but not as highly as other Nancy Drew games.
I have no idea what Her Interactive was thinking when they made this game.
It's the worst in the series and I honestly don't think it's worth playing at all.
If you're considering buying it, I definitely recommend watching a playthrough on YouTube first because there's a good chance you won't like it.
A few reasons I didn't like it:
•Nancy getting outsmarted by monkeys and bossed around by a parrot
•There's only 1 suspect and not much interaction with other characters
•Most puzzles are annoying or tedious
•Navigating around the island is slow and bothersome
*Ignore my playtime for RAN because I previously played it before owning it on steam (and only got the game on steam because it came included in a bundle)*
I really liked this game. I enjoyed having George and Bess actually there rather than just over the phone and enjoyed switching characters.
I have all of the ND games, and I find them to be great fun. However- this game felt like a chore. It's not at all fun, and the puzzles are super weak. Skip this one and spend your money on The Haunting of Castle Malloy or Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake.
没看到妹子本体遗憾，福利少了，潜水没福利照片。
I'm not sure why this game gets such a bum rap, but it seems like it is the least popular Nancy Drew game (besides the Shattered Medallion). But I dunno, I played it and I liked it just fine. The length of the game is decent, there is a pretty good backstory, there is a... umm... I'll say "a reference" back to a previous Nancy Drew game, there is enough puzzles to keep me entertained.... So yeah, it's not creepy enough to be one of my favorites, but it's definitely one I'll play again in the future. (I've already played it 3 times, in fact!)
This particular game of Nancy Drew's is probably my least favorite of the newer games for Herinteractive. It just doesn't do it for me the way some of them do. I think some of this may have to do with the theming but also a little bit with how badly they portrayed George in the game. In the book series she wouldn't act that undecisive and slow so its kinda sad. The dependence on swiming also took a toll on how much I enjoyed it as well. But in general its a good game just not my personal favorite.
This is a difficult game to review. For most fans of the Nancy Drew series, Ransom of the Seven Ships is the go-to answer to "What is the worst game in the series?". For me, it is probably in third place for worst game after the crap show that was Creature of Kapu Cave and the chore-a-thon Trail of the Twister. However, I've seen some people say that this game is one of their favorites. I think it just depends on what your favorite aspect of the Nancy Drew games is. If you like well-thought out, complicated, and challenging puzzles, I think you'll really like this game. However if you like interesting characters, an immersive setting, and an intriguing plot, that's where this game kind of falls through the cracks.
I think the problem is that Her Interactive tried to do a lot of new things in this game that just weren't executed well. I felt that the plot is really ingenious - Nancy and her friends are lured to a desolate island, Nancy's friend Bess is kidnapped and the kidnappers blackmail Nancy into solving a mystery in order to save Bess. This takes the hidden treasure trope that is common in ND games to a whole new level. My big problem with the game is that it lacks the scary, suspenseful atmosphere that the plot necessitates. The kidnappers are on the island, just out of sight, watching Nancy's every move and holding Bess ransom - you should feel that creepy feeling like you're being watched, you should feel like Nancy is working against the clock - but instead Nancy seems to go about the puzzles leisurely while cheerful island music plays in the background.
The lack of suspense coupled with the lack of characters (there are only 2 characters Nancy can see and talk to) make, for me at least, a game that is not very compelling. Add in a couple of minor annoyances like an extremely slow navigation system and an annoying hint parrot and you get a game that I actually had to force myself to power through and finish.
So overall I think that this is a game that could have been fantastic but ends up hurting itself. Personally I couldn't recommend this game, but that's because my favorite aspects of a Nancy Drew game - characters and mystery - are not this game's strengths. If my favorite aspect of a ND game was the puzzles, then it might be a different story. So if you love to challenge yourself with puzzles, you should give the game a try. If not, I would skip this one and try a different game in the series.
I love Nancy Drew games, but the driving around and sailing gets old real quick. I love the mini games with the monkies, but they could have made the navigation better. It made me quick to realize why the reviews have been mixed.
♥ Mixed puzzles.
When I was younger, I was always held back from making further progress in Nancy Drew games by how difficult the puzzles were. It seemed to be that I'd struggle with one, struggle, rage, struggle, finally get it only to stumble upon an even harder puzzle.
Now that I've returned to playing the games, I'm glad to see more diversity with the difficulty of the puzzles. It seems to be more of a mixed bag when it comes to Ransom of the Seven Ships. I was able to solve several puzzles on my own - only two I had to consult walk throughs for.
♥ Driving a golf cart? Scuba Diving?
Sign me up! I found it a lot of fun to be able to zip around the island (though the car goes rather slow) and be able to explore underwater for things. I actually tried three times and was able to find the Easter Egg buried under some coral.
Her Interactive placed focus on having the player explore the environment....and the ways they urged you to do so are fun, if not great.
♥ The monkeys!
I quite enjoyed playing mini games with the monkeys. There are three mini games that you can play and if you win, you may choose a reward such as a quest item, fruit to feed the parrot, or even silly things like eye patches and sea shells.
Since the game can feel taxing with going here and there and everywhere, I appreciated the break that playing with the monkeys provided.
✘ More like a chore than a game.
The main quality that I highly disliked of Ransom of the Seven Ships was how tasks would make you go all over the place. Is it fun to explore? Yes. Would I prefer only being able to investigate one place? Of course not. However it became extremely tedious...go here, do this, only to find out that I needed to go back to the beginning to get what I needed, then back again, etc.
Sure it tacks on to the amount of gameplay. However does it add on to the amount of fun? No.
✘ Flat. Flat. Flat.
When I first played this, I was so excited for George to appear. I love when Nancy Drew games branch out to involve other characters such as Bess, George, the Hardy Boys, etc. In this game you can interact with George or the beach bum.
Okay? Cool! ...Not so.
The characters just felt so FLAT. I thought the history behind the treasure was interesting and enjoyed the puzzles, as challenging as they were, yet there seemed to be no connection between what happened and how the characters responded, aside from Nancy. Dialogue with George was more like a chore than a conversation...and the beach bum? Yawn.
The man's journal you find has a more interesting voice & detailed personality than the living AI do.
✘ The twist is eh....?
When it comes to the ending of the game, I felt it was quite flat compared to others in the series. The "twist" is only shocking if you have played the previous title that the antagonist was featured in. It didn't have quite the same effect on me, nor will it to others I imagine, who haven't played the game connected to this one.
Overall I would only suggest playing Nancy Drew: Ransom of the Seven Seas if you are trying to play through the entire series. While it has some solid virtues, I feel like it fails to entertain, and finishing the main story feels more like a chore than anything else.
5/10
I could not finish this one. Really boring.
Excelente!!!
The most annoying of Nancy Drew games.
I love Nancy Drew games, but this one was just painful. There are only two people on this island to talk to. I communicated most with an obnoxius parrot. No wonder why it's called Dread Island. The background music haunted my mind long after gameplay. I had to turn it off. And, with very little human communication in this game, I played in silence. The plot was as flat as you can get. The ending was predictable. I only wanted to finish this game to get my money's worth. It still wasn't.
I recommed recommend Alibi in Ashes if you're looking for a light-hearted game and especially if you're interested in switching roles in the game.
Ransom of the Seven Ships brought not just one but two different ways to travel around the island, which was entertaining. The monkeys could be incredibly tedious, but it was possible to beat them and get all of their "prizes". As someone who has played the games from the beginning, I appreciated who the culprit turned out to be.
Interesting story and working with George to find Bess. Pretty long in terms of a Nancy Drew game. Lots of puzzles and games.
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If you haven't played any Nancy Drew games do not play this one.I normally love all the Nancy Drew game but this one was terrible. I bought this game because I haven't played any of the recent Nancy Drew game in a while. Normally I can solve puzzles without the help of a walkthrough eventually, not in this game. Do not waste your money on this. I would highly suggust another Nancy Drew games such as Last Train to Blue Moon Canyon, Curse of the Blackmoor Manor, Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake.
PRO:
You get to see Bess and George (Nancy Drew's Best Friends)
CONS:
Way too complicated puzzles (ex. finish a colored Sodoku in 75 sec) that you need to have the walkthrough printed and next to you at all times.
It's way to easy to figure out who the Kidnapper is
Drive a golf cart that 5mph around routes that are curvey and long
Story its self not interesting
Have to use a walkthrough to understand the plot.
0/10: I really wish I could just get my money back on this one.
I think this game is pretty cool, I have been always been into mystery games.
I love all the Nancy games, but this one is middle of the road for me. It has the full range of puzzles and tasks, but falls short on the story. The graphics were great as always, and seeing Bess and George was great. The ending has a great twist for those of us who have played all the other Nancy games. On the hole this game is great for players both young and old. Those of us familiar with the Nancy Drew series will be well satisfied.
I think this game was a little bit slower of a pace compared to the many Nancy Drew games I have played. I did like that it took longer to complete as a result with more complex puzzles and with the sailing feature. It was fun to explore the island and the surrounding ocean, but I think that the quality of the controls could be improved for an overall better navigating experience. There was also less interaction with other characters, so be prepared for a lot of independent tasks and puzzles that don't involve interviewing the suspects. Overall, I enjoyed this game, but if you want a Nancy Drew game that is a little bit more fast paced I would recommend checking out some of the others in the series.
