- This page is for the original 1998 version of the video game. For the book the game was adapted from, see Secrets Can Kill (book). For the 2010 remastered video game, see Secrets Can Kill: Remastered.
Secrets Can Kill is Her Interactive's first Nancy Drew adventure game and the first computer game based on the Nancy Drew character. The game was released on November 23, 1998, and took its basis from Nancy Drew Files #1: Secrets Can Kill. In the game, Nancy is visiting her Aunt Eloise in Florida when a student at the local high school is murdered. Nancy goes undercover at the school to find the killer.
In May 2010, Her Interactive announced Secrets Can Kill would be remastered in celebration of the Nancy Drew character's 80th anniversary. The game was discontinued on August 1, 2010, with the remastered version being released August 23.
Synopsis[]
Read between the lines to expose a killer!
A family visit throws you, as Nancy Drew, into the scene of a crime that happened just last night! You are taking a nice summer vacation in Florida with your Aunt Eloise and while you're there, a student at Paseo del Mar High School - where Eloise works as a librarian - is murdered in the school itself. Now Jake Rogers is dead, and a secret died with him - or did it? Although the police are looking into the matter, Eloise asks you to investigate as well, so you must go undercover to solve the case. Roll up your sleeves and dig into an engrossing mystery that is full of places to explore, puzzles to solve,, suspects to question, danger to evade and evidence to evaluate. A wily killer may be on the loose...so keep your wits about you.
- Dust for fingerprints and examine everything with your magnifying glass
- Explore a high school and snoop through confidential files on the suspects
- Discover the first Nancy Drew PC game that started the #1 selling adventure series
Characters[]
Nancy only encounters four students, three of which are actually in the building. It is most likely after school, and these people are just hanging out. Nancy also seems to be wearing funky vision goggles that make her see people in two dimensions.
Daryl Gray[]
Daryl is the student body president and works at Maxine's Diner. He found Jake's body and is the only student who knows that Nancy is investigating the murder.
Connie Watson[]
Connie is somewhat evasive and an award-winning judo fighter. She didn't like Jake, but says no one liked him.
Hal Tanaka[]
Hal is a Japanese exchange student who's studying to be a doctor. If he does not get a scholarship, his parents will bring him back to Japan, so he uses almost all his time for study. His real name is difficult to pronounce, so he shortened it to "Hal".
Hector "Hulk" Sanchez[]
Hulk is the school's best athlete. A bit pushy and arrogant, he prides himself on his ability to play football and intends to be a pro player.
Phone Friends[]
The phone is located in the Student Union at the school. To activate it, you'll need the phone card from the right drawer of the desk in the first room of Aunt Eloise's house.
Bess Marvin[]
Bess is one of Nancy's best friends. She offers Nancy advice and hints.
George Fayne[]
George is Nancy's other best friend, and also offers her advice and hints. She and Bess are cousins.
Ned Nickerson[]
Ned is Nancy's boyfriend, and also offers her advice and hints.
Others[]
Also, you might like to try some other numbers in the game, such as the pizza place, the drug depot, Maxine's Diner, Aunt Eloise's house (the number on the phone card), and the police department.
Production[]
Development on the game began in 1996, when Her Interactive was a subsidiary of American Laser Games. Based on their success in adapting The Vampire Diaries into a video game, Simon & Schuster gave them a license to develop a series of games based on the Nancy Drew series. During 1997 and 1998, American Laser Games underwent multiple layoffs, which culminated in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy and restructuring. During the restructuring, Her Interactive was spun off into an independent company and received a new CEO, Jan Claesson, who moved the company headquarters to Bellevue, Washington.[2]
Trivia[]
- This is the only game not to feature the Nancy Drew theme song until Midnight in Salem.
- The game's "color" became the teal that represented Nancy Drew on Her Interactive's website for several years.
- Mildred Wirt Benson, the first ghostwriter to use the pseudonym Carolyn Keene, played the game and wrote a positive review in her column for the Toledo Blade.[3] She also wrote a letter to the Her Interactive office and received a "special thanks" credit in the following game, Stay Tuned for Danger.
- The game's sound files include an unused rap song about Nancy Drew, written by a friend of the game's composer, Kevin Manthei, and apparently intended for its end credits.[4][5]
Foreshadowing[]
- Stay Tuned for Danger: Nancy mentions Aunt Eloise got a letter from her friend in New York, about "a television station getting death threats."
Allusions[]
- Some of the titles in the library are references to other Nancy Drew books. For example, Crime at the Ch@t Cafe was the final title in the Nancy Drew Files series, released the previous year.
Alternative Art Boxes[]
