Nancy Drew: Trail of the Twister

Developer(s)	Her Interactive
Publisher(s)	Her Interactive
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows Mac OS X
Release	June 29, 2010
Genre(s)	Adventure
Mode(s)	Single-player

Trail of the Twister is the 22nd 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 comic mischief. 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, Junior and Senior detective 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 The Mystery in Tornado Alley (2000).

Plot

A series of equipment meltdowns have been plaguing a prominent Oklahoma storm research team. They are expected to win a $100 million grant in the upcoming Green Skies storm competition. P.G. Krolmeister sends Nancy Drew to the join the team undercover as an intern, replacing the previous intern, Pete, who wound up with a broken leg after an accident stranded him directly in the path of a storm. Nancy needs to keep her wits about her, as she not only has to expose a saboteur, but is in danger from the powerful storms.

Development

Characters

Scott Varnell - Scott is the leader of the Canute Storm Chasers and a professor at the University. Although he is in charge of the team, he's quick to blame others for all of the troubles they're having instead of taking responsibility. Is he trying to divert attention from something he has done?

Debbie Kircum - Debbie is eager, passionate, and dedicated to her work. As Scott's right hand, she handles the majority of the day-to-day operations of the team. At times it seems like she does most of the work but receives the least amount of credit. Could she be sabotaging the team to show them just how important she really is?

Chase Relerford - As a meteorology undergrad student, spending his first season out in the field, Chase is a remarkably good mechanic. He is capable of fixing everything from computers to cars, and as far as he's concerned, "there's no saboteur, things just get broke and have to be fixed." If he's so good with machines, why doesn't he notice the sabotage, or is he just covering for his own crimes?

Tobias "Frosty" Harlow - Frosty is the team's media expert who earned his nickname from a close encounter with a large and dangerous hailstorm. The nickname unfortunately went to his head and continues to increase his appetite for fame and fortune. Would he go so far as to sellout his own team just to make his financial dreams come true?

"Pa" Ochs - Pa runs Ma 'n Pa's General Store and local oddity museum. He's got a lot of experience with Oklahoma weather and seems to think of the researchers as naive city-folk. But out in "the sticks", Ma and Pa's is the only place for a team to get supplies and gas. Would Pa stoop to sabotage to keep the storm-chasing clientele coming back for more?

Phone Friends

P.G. Krolmeister - Krolmeister, the wealthy sponsor of the Canute storm-chasing team, has hired Nancy to solve the case.

Frank & Joe Hardy - Frank and Joe are characters known from the Hardy Boys book series. In the game, they are good friends of Nancy, and they are available to give slight hints about the case.

Cast

• Nancy Drew - Lani Minella
• Debbie Kircum - Jessica Avellone
• Scott Varnell - Alex Robertson
• Tobias "Frosty" Harlow - Andrew Perez
• Chase Relerford - Richard Sloniker
• "Pa" Ochs - Brian Lewis
• Brooke Tavanah - Ashley Flannigan
• Frank Hardy - Jonah Von Spreecken
• Joe Hardy - Rob Jones
• P.G. Krolmeister - Mark Waldstein
• Radio Voices - James Crowder, Robert Riedl, Ian Schwartz, Alex Yopp

Gameplay

Cheats

There is an easy way to earn lots of Pa Pennies from the Land Rush game. If you select one square on your first turn, then quickly back away from the screen, the machine will give you the maximum number of Pa Pennies you can earn for whichever level you're on.

Easter Eggs

• After releasing some mice at the springhouse, leave some cheese candy at the entrance. Drive around for a while, talk to some people, then go back to the springhouse and collect the egg.
• After finding the missing divining rod, click on all of the holes of the prairie dog habitat near the cornfield.
• Buy the mystery box at Pa's store, then use the token inside on the jackalope machine.

Fatal Errors

In each of the games, there are different points where Nancy can make "fatal errors." These points are usually when she blows her cover as a detective or gets seriously injured. At such points, the game will stop and give the player the option to try again before the fatal error occurred. If the player doesn't wish to retry, then the game is over. The fatal errors in Trail of the Twister include:

• Crashing the car too many times.
• Driving into a hailstorm after repairing the antenna.
• Leaving the storm shelter too soon.
• Driving directly into the twister during the final chase.
• Failing to unlock the springhouse in time.

Gameplay Awards

In some of the games, awards can be earned for doing various tasks. If all awards are earned, there will be an additional blooper video at the end of the game.

• Big Spender: When price doesn't matter.
• Candy Dispenser: For sweetening the days of others.
• Couch Potato: For watching TV instead of sleuthing.
• Easter Egg: CONFIDENTIAL
• Glass Half Full: For looking on the bright side.
• Homesteader: Staking claim to your lands.
• Quiz Wiz: For acing the test.
• Sightseer: Repeated touring of the OK plains.
• Storm Spotter: For tracking down all the clouds.
• Super Sleuth: Snooping in every corner.
• Sweet Tooth: For repeatedly sampling the candy.
• Trivia Tamer: For correctly answering the questions.

References to Previous Games

References to previous games in the series include:

• A mug with a Waverly Academy logo is found on the start-up desk (Nancy Drew: Warnings at Waverly Academy)
• Koko Kringle candy bars are sold at Ma 'n Pa's General Store and a wrapper can be found on the filing cabinet in the house (Nancy Drew: Secret of the Scarlet Hand)
• The Hilihili Research Center is mentioned in conversations with Debbie and Scott. The center's logo can also be seen by the crops being grown. (Nancy Drew: The Creature of Kapu Cave)
• Lori Gerard is mentioned in a conversation with Frosty if you ask about the disaster kit. (Nancy Drew: Last Train to Blue Moon Canyon)
• When clearing debris from the doorstep of the house, there is a license plate reading BIM 1 (Nancy Drew: The Creature of Kapu Cave).
• There is a photo of Lizzie Applegate hanging in the living room of the farmhouse (Nancy Drew: Message in a Haunted Mansion)
• P.G. Krolmeister is the inventor of many products used throughout the series (Nancy Drew: Secret of the Scarlet Hand)
• Prudence Rutherford is mentioned in a conversation with P.G. Krolmeister (Nancy Drew: Secret of the Scarlet Hand)
• When turning on the TV before it gets fixed, screenshots from previous games are visible (Nancy Drew: Warnings at Waverly Academy; Nancy Drew: Danger By Design; Nancy Drew: Curse of Blackmoor Manor; Nancy Drew: Stay Tuned for Danger)
• Nancy's cell phone wallpaper (Hardy Boys = Nancy Drew: Last Train to Blue Moon Canyon; White Wolf & Squirrels = Nancy Drew: The White Wolf of Icicle Creek; Venetian Garden = Nancy Drew: Curse of Blackmoor Manor; Mel's Dorm = Nancy Drew: Warnings at Waverly Academy)
• The candy brand is ""Wickford"", a reference to Ezra Wickford, from Nancy Drew: Treasure in the Royal Tower.
• In the bloopers, Pa dances on a stage, making fun of Nancy in Nancy Drew: The Phantom of Venice.

Trivia

• A can of soup at Ma 'n Pa's is labeled "Broth of Khan," a reference to Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.
• If Nancy eats several pieces of candy in a row, the screen will turn green.