The Captive Curse is the 24th game in the Nancy Drew adventure series. In it, Nancy goes to a German castle to discover the meaning behind the legend of a medieval monster that has been blamed for the disappearance of young girls for centuries.
It was promoted with a video web series called "Postcards from Germany". This game is also notable for a fight between Nancy and longtime boyfriend Ned, which received mixed reception from fans.
Synopsis[]
Escape the clutches of a legendary monster!
For centuries, a legendary monster has terrorized residents of a Bavarian castle, called Castle Finster, in Germany. According to the legend, the monster will vanish for years at a time until, without warning, it reappears to claim its next victim. So far, every victim it has claimed has been a young woman, reputed to be wearing a peculiar jeweled necklace at the time of her disappearance. Markus Boehm, the owner of Castle Finster, has now asked you, as Nancy Drew to discover the truth behind recent monster sightings, before the monster can strike again. As you delve deeper into the case, you begin to fear that someone in the castle plans for you to be the monster's next victim.
- Explore a German castle and delve into German culture
- Plug into castle security cameras
- Uncover hidden rooms and secret passages
- Play a German folk tale game
Characters[]
Karl Weschler[]
Karl is the Bürgermeister, the "master" of the castle. He usually stays secluded in his office, and is extremely worried about the monster problem, although he tries not to show it so that his attitude won't affect the castle's residents.
Anja Mittelmeier[]
Anja is the castle's Castellan, who runs the gift shop and is in charge of various other aspects. She's trying to maintain a good attitude as well, but feels as though something is innately wrong.
Lukas Mittelmeier[]
Lukas is the son of Franz, the head of security, and Anja's nephew. Being left alone most of the time, he usually finds a way to get into trouble, which most of the time relies on playing pranks on Karl.
Renate Stoller[]
Renate is a traveling storyteller who is currently staying at the castle. She's brusque but full of stories and wisdom, and seems to have a history at the castle.
Phone Friends[]
Nancy uses a cell phone that can be accessed by an icon at the bottom of the screen, although it doesn't get much reception in the castle, so she has to call people on a land line in her room. She can get hints from an app called the Hint Hotline that Ned installed on her phone if she's a Junior Detective.
Ned Nickerson[]
Ned is Nancy's boyfriend.
Frank Hardy[]
Frank is another detective Nancy knows. His brother, Joe, is with Ned, but she can never talk to him in this game.
Markus Boehm[]
Markus is the owner of the castle who simply wants Nancy to find the monster and doesn't really value her work.
Trivia[]
- This is the first game since Last Train to Blue Moon Canyon to feature one disc for installation instead of two.
- This is the first game to include the Hint Hotline feature on Nancy's phone. It would only appear in the next two games before hints are integrated into the task list for The Deadly Device.
Continuity[]
Foreshadowing[]
Main/recurring character revelations[]
Allusions[]
Goofs[]
- Nancy and Lukas see the "real" monster walking past the windows, despite it being on the second floor.
- Although Nancy finds the scarf belonging to Renate's missing sister, the subplot is abruptly dropped.
- There is no trivia tamer award despite a trivia question appearing at the end of the game.