Nancy Drew: Ghost of Thornton Hall
Ghost of Thornton Hall is the 28th installment in the Nancy Drew point-and-click adventure game series by Her Interactive. The game is available for play on Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X platforms. It has an ESRB rating of E for moments of mild violence and peril. Players take on the first-person view of fictional amateur sleuth Nancy Drew and must solve the mystery through interrogation of suspects, solving puzzles, and discovering clues. There are two levels of gameplay, Amateur and Master sleuth modes, each offering a different difficulty level of  puzzles and hints, however neither of these changes affect the actual plot of the game. The game is loosely based on a book entitled "Uncivil Acts" (2005). Plot. Jessalyn Thornton and her best friend, Addison Hammond, visited the uninhabited Thornton Hall on an island off the coast of Georgia for a pre-wedding celebration and sleepover, but the fun ended when Jessalyn disappeared. Now Jessalyn's friends, family, and coworkers search the undergrowth and abandoned spaces throughout Blackrock Island, seeking any evidence that might lead to her whereabouts. That's why paranormal expert Savannah Woodham called in Nancy Drew to  investigate potential leads. This case requires a skeptic, someone who isn't afraid of a place where stories of the supernatural hang as thick as Spanish moss from cypress trees. Did the heiress to the Thornton business empire vanish among the monuments, or is someone holding something besides family secrets? Development. Characters. Additional voice work was performed by Patrick Hogan and Adrienne MacIain. Inspiration. The game takes place at the fictional setting of Blackrock Island, Georgia. Thornton Hall and the structures surrounding it take inspiration form a variety of real-world places. Release. The game was released on May 14 , 2013, though pre-orders began on April 9, 2013. Special editions of the game, which included bonus games, phone charms, outtakes, and audio tracks were sent out to those who pre-ordered the game directly from Her Interactive. In the trailer that was released with The Deadly Device, one who has played Ghost of Thornton Hall can clearly tell that the ghostly figure depicted in the trailer is Harper, but the ghost's design has changed since the release of the game. Reception. Brandy Shaul of Gamezebo rated it 4/5 stars and wrote, "Ghost of Thornton Hall continues to provide  some of the best storytelling around, and the game’s ample dialog means even the most die-hard player will take a few hours to unravel all of its secrets. While navigation may be cumbersome, it’s definitely not a deal breaker, and it’s far too easy to get sucked into the game and never want to stop until you reach the conclusion." Adventure Gamers deemed the game satisfying yet uneven. Hooked Gamers found some of the subplots distracting and trivial, as opposed to the world-building subplots found in other titles of the series. Commonsensemedia thought the game  played it safe, however delivered well on its formula. Adventure Classic Gaming recommended it to fans of the series and lovers of first-person adventure games. Gameboomers was disappointed that this title had less educational value than its fellow Nancy Drew games. Gamecola thought that the video game was targeted at an older audience than the book series it was based on. References.