Tag: Expectations

Playing with Expectations – Not So Scary Nancy Drew

Last month I wrote about expectations and how they have an impact on the emotional response you have with stories, games or any other form of entertainment. I wrote about how my expectations for a light-hearted romp made two Nancy Drew titles get to me. They managed to create tense atmospheres and even managed to scare me.

When I published that article, someone commented that I should have waited to play Nancy Drew: Ghost of Thornton Hall, as it was the scariest of all Nancy Drew games.

Having recently finished this title—on my way to play all the games in the Nancy Drew series, a goal I’m very close to achieving—I thought it might be a good idea to tell you about my experience with Nancy Drew: Ghost of Thornton Hall. Continue reading Playing with Expectations – Not So Scary Nancy Drew

Nancy Drew Scares: Playing with Expectations

I have spoken in the past of the Nancy Drew games by HeR Interactive and despite the continued contrivance of its puzzle design and placement, I do thoroughly enjoy every title in the series I have played so far. Mind you, I didn’t start at the beginning of the series but jumped in around the 16th entry, The White Wolf of Icicle Creek after I saw it on an episode of Game Grumps—I am now going back to the earlier titles.

The Nancy Drew adventures are usually light-hearted and even if there is something sinister afoot, it’s never scary or tense—except for those timed-puzzles, those are nerve-wracking. So my expectations when playing one is that I’ll just have a good time with puzzles and some nice if sometimes over the top voice acting. Continue reading Nancy Drew Scares: Playing with Expectations

Warcraft: The Beginning…and maybe also the end?

I love the world of Warcraft, the universe. I love the stories, the characters and its rich history—that is not without its retcons and mess-ups. Up until the moment I started country hopping, moving to a new place with frightening frequency (a little adventure I hope has ended), I collected and read every novel written in the universe. I enjoyed reading about the War of the Ancients by Richard A. Knaak, the man responsible for the entire Dragon lore in the Warcraft universe and many more stories. I loved reading Christie Golden’s stories on the Rise of the Horde and The Lich King. Jeff Grubb took me to Karazhan to meet Medivh and his increasingly erratic behaviour and possession by Sargeras. Continue reading Warcraft: The Beginning…and maybe also the end?

Tomb Raider Rises, Beats Expectations

I’m not a proud man. I don’t stick to my opinions even when I’m wrong and if I make a mistake I apologise.

So, with that in mind I’ll say this: I was wrong about Rise of the Tomb Raider and my low expectations. I was wrong. There, I said it, but don’t get too excited because I wasn’t completely wrong. There are still a lot of shallow elements to the game, stuff that seem at home in the Uncharted series but feel oddly out of place in Tomb Raider. But I’ll leave those for another article and now focus on the good bits. Continue reading Tomb Raider Rises, Beats Expectations