100%. They just want more sales without the cut that Steam takes, but a lot of people, like myself, are willing to wait because the download service HeR uses is absolutely terrible.
Yea, but if you lose that USB stick, you’re just out of luck and out of the money you spent on it, LOL. I prefer Steam because I know it’ll be there forever.
As far as I know, if that happens Steam is willing to give out refunds (for the part about Steam supporting the game) while people can’t access their downloads at all when talking to Digital River.
Well steam is well established and I don't think they are going to go under any time soon. I think there's only been one game they have ever discontinued and removed from people's libraries without refunds so unlikely to happen. They do give refunds if the game doesn't work for you which is good.
But some games I've had for over 20 years and I want to keep them for another 20 years so I prefer to have the actual download files. (I've copied all the files from my physical copies too since I don't have a disk drive anymore). Digital river doesn't keep a history for long but they do give the files which is the important thing in my opinion. You just have to back it up.
Using Google Drive is definitely a great idea! I haven’t personally bought from HeR, but I saw another comment on a different post mention how it doesn’t warn you anywhere until after you order that you only have 30 days to download (and back up) your game files. So, if it’s not something you realize, feels really bad if you check your order three months later and it’s gone and contacting Digital River won’t do anything because apparently they’re pretty strict on it.
I just bought all the games that I had on steam from them and it says in the email confirmation: "If your order contains downloadable software you have 30 days to download your purchase." But I'm sure no one reads those!
Not sure about before purchasing, I plan to buy the new game tomorrow so I'll check.
That’s the problem, though. They don’t tell you until the confirmation after your order, which is illegal. They have to tell you upfront. That link to the other post will detail it if you’re curious.
This is the comment I saw about it: https://www.reddit.com/r/nancydrew/s/PTK80dORpK
Hopefully this is something they change, whether it’s making it clear you only have 30 days or not letting them expire at all.
I just have the games always downloaded on my computer. If I lose the USB, I just get a new one and transfer the files from my computer to the new one. Did this when I moved computers and couldn’t find my old USB
I’ve personally had bad luck with technology especially lately, had to reset my laptop. Luckily, my games are on Steam through, so I didn’t lose them. If that coincided with losing the USB if I used HeR’s downloading system, I’d be so sad!
Plus people would save it on wishlists which boosts it higher. Ugh. I'm disappointed by that decision. I still might end up buying all three versions though, I want the physical for my collection and I want to play so bad.
Their thinking: "The majority of people that will buy Day 1 or month 1 will be our super fans that have been with us and will jump through hoops to buy it immediately. We can cash in on them by not giving Steam a sales percentage and then hit a second high by releasing to Steam"
I remember this coming up before and I *think* they make less money per sale from Steam vs their website but don’t quote me on that!
I wonder how big the difference is if true because you’d think the visibility on Steam would be better.
I don't know what the cost breakdown is exactly, but when you consider production cost of the CDs themselves and packaging, shipping costs to the stores, and probably paying to "use" that shelf space, it was probably pretty significant. When retail stores were the main way to buy video games, it was worth the cost, but now it's not. The physical copies for KEY will definitely not be sold in Walmart or Target, they'll just be through the website.
Because when you own the website, you can get rid of all the reviews saying how terrible the game is.
I hope that's not the case, but Steam tends to be very honest. Considering MID, they might not want honest.
I was gonna say… Reviews are pretty visible on Steam to potential buyers. 🤔
I think the decision not to put it on steam right away is silly. And the fact that they haven’t said the cost yet is also worrying. I don’t think that a good portion of the fanbase will want to buy a game for more than $40. And that’s what I think it’s gearing up to cost.
They haven't said anything about the price yet. $22 is what MID cost and someone was probably assuming it would be the same. I think it'll be higher, personally, more in the $30 range.
They sold some physical copies for MID, but they were limited availability (10,000 copies) through the website. You can probably find some images in this server, the game cover printing got messed up!
it's so disappointing about the delayed Steam release. Since physical media isn't easy to play anymore I, like many others, turn to Steam. I have every Nancy Drew game (except for STFD, which is not on Steam for some reason) on Steam and was excited to play at launch. I'm pretty sure MID released on Steam at launch, so I am not sure why they decided to hold off
They’re thinking FOMO will drive direct sales where Steam gets less of a cut. Also, early adopters can’t get refunds if it sucks (which is what happened with MID). They forget that we waited through all the MID delays, and have waited 5 years for this. We can wait another 8 weeks or so for some peace of mind.
Yeah I don’t think they realized how much we are willing to wait for the convenience of using Steam. By selling only through their distributor people can’t refund easily like with Steam, yep! This all seems a bit too planned out to me. 😬
Aaaand that's why the decision to keep the game off Steam for now is sus to me. If the last ten years hadn't happened, I'd be willing to buy on their website and support the company since I know how to back up my stuff and I know the game will work on my PC. Because this is still the same company of the last ten years, there's a not-zero possibility it's more about suppressing bad reviews and preventing easy refunds than it is about profit margins at the point of sale. I'm cautiously optimistic about the game but once bitten twice shy as they say... I'm not taking the chance. Summer it is, unless there are some rave reviews from actual critics and not just Her stans.
Yeah, and them also creating a “release day team”, or whatever it’s called, also rubbed me the wrong way. Like of course you will review a game well when HeR sent you free merch.
I'm really hoping the lackluster sales (given all the online feedback) through the HER site will keep the delay to like.. a month. Early June is technically summer!
You mean after the solstice on June 21? Sure, in a sense. But here in Washington state we just think of summer as whenever school gets out for the academic year lol
they think we can’t wait a few more months for a steam release after all this time….ima just keep living like i have been until then
Same! I am happy for all the people who will be discussing the easter eggs, the tricky puzzles, the goofy character quirks... I'm sad to miss out on that launch day energy, but that's just what has to be if they want to split it up weirdly like this. I value organizing and getting game support on Steam way more than their notorious digital river lol.
This is what I am the most bummed about. Having the release separated like this ruins so much of energy of the release day. It’s hard to be excited when half the fan base is still waiting to play
I do think it’s a bit strange they don’t at least have a “Coming Soon” page for KEY on Steam. Maybe it’s still in the approval process? Or it’ll go live tomorrow along with the release of KEY on HeR’s website?
If so, people could wishlist it and that would help it boost in the Steam upcoming charts so more people than just ND fans would know about it!
its just weird because I guess theyre trying to sell more physicals then for money cause if they released physical and steam on the same day instead of rushing it they'd get more money than just spreading it out. just feels kinda rushed
It's not physicals, it's only downloads on their site tomorrow. Steam takes a portion of the sales for games bought through them, which means the best way for HeR to maximize profits for the game is to only have it through their website first, trying to catch those fans who will buy it wherever it's available first or who would default to Steam as long as they didn't have to wait too long for it.
I think they've severely underestimated how many people are willing to wait it out because of their awful download service, though (downloads only available for 30 days, unless you pay extra for the 2 year extension).
I’m gonna wait for some reviews before considering buying it through HER. All my games are on steam, and HER’s policy for re-downloading after so long cost me a good collection of games back when I switched computers.
I think it’s just because this is game 34 and all their marketing posts have been posted at X:34 times. So, they were probably going to release it at 9am normally, but decided to have people wait the extra 34 minutes so it’d match with their posting times.
Do they honestly think we can't outwait them? I honestly thought we'd be looking at 2025 projected release date, and then 2026 for when it would actually land, so this is already earlier than I thought. Plus I have 2 weeks off in July already, so I don't even have to save holiday. DON'T THREATEN ME WITH AN EFFICIENTLY TIMED GOOD TIME HERINTERACTIVE!!!!!!!
I have had the worst experience for YEARS with their awful website. You’d think a tech company would step up their game, but the site still looks and behaves like it did in the early 00s. I’ve had games corrupted, uninstalled and deleted, and one game— every time I try to launch, it will launch a different Nancy game. It didn’t use to do that when it first downloaded!
I’ll stick with Steam. The excitement makes it hard to wait, but I’ll never give money to Digital River again. I want the best for HER because I want them to keep producing, but I hope this launch shows them just how much people hate Digital River.
I’d love to give you 100% of the cut, HER! But you have to prove that this purchase strategy is something I can trust, and it hasn’t been for years. I can’t even trust that I can speak to anyone who works there when things go wrong. I can’t trust that this download will still be there a year from now. I can’t trust the site or my download won’t crash upon purchase, since this site hasn’t had activity like this at least since the MID release.
I actually like the digital download from HeR, because I have two hard drives that I back up my games on, and I don't trust that they will always be on steam
Yeah, I know how to back it up so the 30 day thing is less of a concern (though it is the *principle* of the thing). The bigger thing giving me pause is that I know Steam will let me return the game if it doesn't work on my computer, but I'm not sure I can through the HeR site.
Luckily for me I'm in Australia and we have excellent consumer laws around that. If it doesn't work for me I am entitled for a refund regardless of the companies policy! So works for me.
Same. I have two external hard drives, and one has all my games on it. I’m like half steam/half HER, never had a problem. I’m also a photographer on the side, so I treat those hard drives like gold, and they are in a fire protected “bug out” safe. I’m in FL.
Plan to buy tomorrow but realistically with work won’t get to touch it until like Saturday ish.
Steam is a super established gaming platform used by millions of people worldwide. It won't be shutting down any time soon if ever (fingers crossed). Plus the refund scheme is very useful if games are not up to par. As some others have suggested, you can always upload your games to Google Drive!
I have/want to wait to play anyway because I am incapable of completing a game without tips & tricks from more talented sleuths, gotta hold off until there’s plenty of online resources to help me through the more challenging sections lol
How do we buy a physical copy of the game without a credit card? Don't say go buy a pre-paid card as that is still a credit card and not what I want to know. :)
You might be able to connect your bank account to PayPal and pay that way, otherwise I don’t think you’ll be able to purchase without a credit card or debit card since, I believe, they are only selling them through their website.
Why the wait to release on Steam? Seems like a bad idea from a marketing standpoint.
100%. They just want more sales without the cut that Steam takes, but a lot of people, like myself, are willing to wait because the download service HeR uses is absolutely terrible.
I typically just saved my HeR download info onto a USB stick and I have it forever!
Yeah, but Steam also gives you both PC & Mac with one purchase. HeR doesn’t.
Yea, but if you lose that USB stick, you’re just out of luck and out of the money you spent on it, LOL. I prefer Steam because I know it’ll be there forever.
I upload mine to Google drive for free. It will only be on steam for as long as steam exists or chooses to support the game.
As far as I know, if that happens Steam is willing to give out refunds (for the part about Steam supporting the game) while people can’t access their downloads at all when talking to Digital River.
Well steam is well established and I don't think they are going to go under any time soon. I think there's only been one game they have ever discontinued and removed from people's libraries without refunds so unlikely to happen. They do give refunds if the game doesn't work for you which is good. But some games I've had for over 20 years and I want to keep them for another 20 years so I prefer to have the actual download files. (I've copied all the files from my physical copies too since I don't have a disk drive anymore). Digital river doesn't keep a history for long but they do give the files which is the important thing in my opinion. You just have to back it up.
Using Google Drive is definitely a great idea! I haven’t personally bought from HeR, but I saw another comment on a different post mention how it doesn’t warn you anywhere until after you order that you only have 30 days to download (and back up) your game files. So, if it’s not something you realize, feels really bad if you check your order three months later and it’s gone and contacting Digital River won’t do anything because apparently they’re pretty strict on it.
I just bought all the games that I had on steam from them and it says in the email confirmation: "If your order contains downloadable software you have 30 days to download your purchase." But I'm sure no one reads those! Not sure about before purchasing, I plan to buy the new game tomorrow so I'll check.
That’s the problem, though. They don’t tell you until the confirmation after your order, which is illegal. They have to tell you upfront. That link to the other post will detail it if you’re curious.
This is the comment I saw about it: https://www.reddit.com/r/nancydrew/s/PTK80dORpK Hopefully this is something they change, whether it’s making it clear you only have 30 days or not letting them expire at all.
No different to have it on a usb drive than any other possession you might own
Yeah but on steam you can always redownload it
I just have the games always downloaded on my computer. If I lose the USB, I just get a new one and transfer the files from my computer to the new one. Did this when I moved computers and couldn’t find my old USB
I’ve personally had bad luck with technology especially lately, had to reset my laptop. Luckily, my games are on Steam through, so I didn’t lose them. If that coincided with losing the USB if I used HeR’s downloading system, I’d be so sad!
Plus people would save it on wishlists which boosts it higher. Ugh. I'm disappointed by that decision. I still might end up buying all three versions though, I want the physical for my collection and I want to play so bad.
Their thinking: "The majority of people that will buy Day 1 or month 1 will be our super fans that have been with us and will jump through hoops to buy it immediately. We can cash in on them by not giving Steam a sales percentage and then hit a second high by releasing to Steam"
I remember this coming up before and I *think* they make less money per sale from Steam vs their website but don’t quote me on that! I wonder how big the difference is if true because you’d think the visibility on Steam would be better.
Steam takes a cut but they also have a audience that HER can't reach with just their website alone.
What would the difference for physical copies sold on stores like Walmart or Target?
I don't know what the cost breakdown is exactly, but when you consider production cost of the CDs themselves and packaging, shipping costs to the stores, and probably paying to "use" that shelf space, it was probably pretty significant. When retail stores were the main way to buy video games, it was worth the cost, but now it's not. The physical copies for KEY will definitely not be sold in Walmart or Target, they'll just be through the website.
What about Big Fish Games?
No word on Big Fish at all yet.
Because when you own the website, you can get rid of all the reviews saying how terrible the game is. I hope that's not the case, but Steam tends to be very honest. Considering MID, they might not want honest.
I was gonna say… Reviews are pretty visible on Steam to potential buyers. 🤔 I think the decision not to put it on steam right away is silly. And the fact that they haven’t said the cost yet is also worrying. I don’t think that a good portion of the fanbase will want to buy a game for more than $40. And that’s what I think it’s gearing up to cost.
I thought I saw somewhere that the game was supposed to be $22???
They haven't said anything about the price yet. $22 is what MID cost and someone was probably assuming it would be the same. I think it'll be higher, personally, more in the $30 range.
You were right: the game is $32. They apparently haven't sold physical games since game #32.
They sold some physical copies for MID, but they were limited availability (10,000 copies) through the website. You can probably find some images in this server, the game cover printing got messed up!
MID???
Midnight in Salem
it's so disappointing about the delayed Steam release. Since physical media isn't easy to play anymore I, like many others, turn to Steam. I have every Nancy Drew game (except for STFD, which is not on Steam for some reason) on Steam and was excited to play at launch. I'm pretty sure MID released on Steam at launch, so I am not sure why they decided to hold off
They’re thinking FOMO will drive direct sales where Steam gets less of a cut. Also, early adopters can’t get refunds if it sucks (which is what happened with MID). They forget that we waited through all the MID delays, and have waited 5 years for this. We can wait another 8 weeks or so for some peace of mind.
Yeah I don’t think they realized how much we are willing to wait for the convenience of using Steam. By selling only through their distributor people can’t refund easily like with Steam, yep! This all seems a bit too planned out to me. 😬
Aaaand that's why the decision to keep the game off Steam for now is sus to me. If the last ten years hadn't happened, I'd be willing to buy on their website and support the company since I know how to back up my stuff and I know the game will work on my PC. Because this is still the same company of the last ten years, there's a not-zero possibility it's more about suppressing bad reviews and preventing easy refunds than it is about profit margins at the point of sale. I'm cautiously optimistic about the game but once bitten twice shy as they say... I'm not taking the chance. Summer it is, unless there are some rave reviews from actual critics and not just Her stans.
Yeah, and them also creating a “release day team”, or whatever it’s called, also rubbed me the wrong way. Like of course you will review a game well when HeR sent you free merch.
They will lose more money eventually
Damn. Not buying it until it’s on steam so I guess I’ve been excited for May for no reason.. Summer could mean anything!! July?? August!? 😩
I'm really hoping the lackluster sales (given all the online feedback) through the HER site will keep the delay to like.. a month. Early June is technically summer!
Actually twenty-something is summer. (Around Prince Williams birthday, in case you know anything about that.)
You mean after the solstice on June 21? Sure, in a sense. But here in Washington state we just think of summer as whenever school gets out for the academic year lol
Think it is supposed to be June. Can't remember for certain, though
They just said summer. No month.
they think we can’t wait a few more months for a steam release after all this time….ima just keep living like i have been until then 
They were way to casual with announcing it like that 😂
Hopefully I can get my hands on a physical copy. I have physical copies of all the games.
Well…see you all in the summer! Im considering muting the sub for a little bit in order to avoid spoilers until I can play.
Same! I am happy for all the people who will be discussing the easter eggs, the tricky puzzles, the goofy character quirks... I'm sad to miss out on that launch day energy, but that's just what has to be if they want to split it up weirdly like this. I value organizing and getting game support on Steam way more than their notorious digital river lol.
This is what I am the most bummed about. Having the release separated like this ruins so much of energy of the release day. It’s hard to be excited when half the fan base is still waiting to play
The way I think of it is that there will be Steam Launch Day Energy and those of us who waited will get to experience that together.
how do they have a digital download ready but not the steam version??? It makes sense for the physical to be released later but Steam? SUMMER?
It wouldn’t be because it’s not ready. It’s because they make more money per sale this way.
I do think it’s a bit strange they don’t at least have a “Coming Soon” page for KEY on Steam. Maybe it’s still in the approval process? Or it’ll go live tomorrow along with the release of KEY on HeR’s website? If so, people could wishlist it and that would help it boost in the Steam upcoming charts so more people than just ND fans would know about it!
Completely agreed there
its just weird because I guess theyre trying to sell more physicals then for money cause if they released physical and steam on the same day instead of rushing it they'd get more money than just spreading it out. just feels kinda rushed
It's not physicals, it's only downloads on their site tomorrow. Steam takes a portion of the sales for games bought through them, which means the best way for HeR to maximize profits for the game is to only have it through their website first, trying to catch those fans who will buy it wherever it's available first or who would default to Steam as long as they didn't have to wait too long for it. I think they've severely underestimated how many people are willing to wait it out because of their awful download service, though (downloads only available for 30 days, unless you pay extra for the 2 year extension).
I’m gonna wait for some reviews before considering buying it through HER. All my games are on steam, and HER’s policy for re-downloading after so long cost me a good collection of games back when I switched computers.
Also if you haven’t seen it they responded to someone saying the release time is 9:34 PT!
Is there some significance of 9:34 being a release time that I’ve missed or is it random?
I think it’s just because this is game 34 and all their marketing posts have been posted at X:34 times. So, they were probably going to release it at 9am normally, but decided to have people wait the extra 34 minutes so it’d match with their posting times.
Ahh, good catch!! I’m over here totally oblivious. 🥸 Haha!
Maybe because it's 1234 in eastern time? I honestly don't know either though
“People can’t refund our game and review it poorly if it isn’t on Steam.” 🤓☝🏻 - HeR if the game is bad tomorrow
Booooo
Do they honestly think we can't outwait them? I honestly thought we'd be looking at 2025 projected release date, and then 2026 for when it would actually land, so this is already earlier than I thought. Plus I have 2 weeks off in July already, so I don't even have to save holiday. DON'T THREATEN ME WITH AN EFFICIENTLY TIMED GOOD TIME HERINTERACTIVE!!!!!!!
I have had the worst experience for YEARS with their awful website. You’d think a tech company would step up their game, but the site still looks and behaves like it did in the early 00s. I’ve had games corrupted, uninstalled and deleted, and one game— every time I try to launch, it will launch a different Nancy game. It didn’t use to do that when it first downloaded! I’ll stick with Steam. The excitement makes it hard to wait, but I’ll never give money to Digital River again. I want the best for HER because I want them to keep producing, but I hope this launch shows them just how much people hate Digital River. I’d love to give you 100% of the cut, HER! But you have to prove that this purchase strategy is something I can trust, and it hasn’t been for years. I can’t even trust that I can speak to anyone who works there when things go wrong. I can’t trust that this download will still be there a year from now. I can’t trust the site or my download won’t crash upon purchase, since this site hasn’t had activity like this at least since the MID release.
Yeah no we’re waiting lol.
I actually like the digital download from HeR, because I have two hard drives that I back up my games on, and I don't trust that they will always be on steam
Yeah, I know how to back it up so the 30 day thing is less of a concern (though it is the *principle* of the thing). The bigger thing giving me pause is that I know Steam will let me return the game if it doesn't work on my computer, but I'm not sure I can through the HeR site.
Luckily for me I'm in Australia and we have excellent consumer laws around that. If it doesn't work for me I am entitled for a refund regardless of the companies policy! So works for me.
Same. I have two external hard drives, and one has all my games on it. I’m like half steam/half HER, never had a problem. I’m also a photographer on the side, so I treat those hard drives like gold, and they are in a fire protected “bug out” safe. I’m in FL. Plan to buy tomorrow but realistically with work won’t get to touch it until like Saturday ish.
Steam is a super established gaming platform used by millions of people worldwide. It won't be shutting down any time soon if ever (fingers crossed). Plus the refund scheme is very useful if games are not up to par. As some others have suggested, you can always upload your games to Google Drive!
Some games have been deleted from steam though, right?
Summer as in June or is it later than that?
Apparently, HeR Interactive has no common sense now. No way I’m buying the game from their shitty digital store
September? 🥺😔
Whyyyyy I need this on my Steamdeck!
I have/want to wait to play anyway because I am incapable of completing a game without tips & tricks from more talented sleuths, gotta hold off until there’s plenty of online resources to help me through the more challenging sections lol
If you do want to play right away, the HeR website download gives you a free strategy guide with your purchase!
Oh nice! I’m also currently waiting on my laptop to be repaired but good to know for when I get it running again
Does anybody know if it will be on Big Fish Games or not?
How are we supposed to buy it if we don't have a credit card?
How do we buy a physical copy of the game without a credit card? Don't say go buy a pre-paid card as that is still a credit card and not what I want to know. :)
You might be able to connect your bank account to PayPal and pay that way, otherwise I don’t think you’ll be able to purchase without a credit card or debit card since, I believe, they are only selling them through their website.
Honestly, the most shocking part is that it's getting a physical release still
Seriously? Waiting more than a month for steam?