Throwing a Clock Out of a Window

Hello fellow sleuths! I'm sure some are curious about the title of this post. The honest truth is that it's already almost November!

The last post I made on here was back in July, and we're currently 5 days out from the first day of the eleventh month of 2023. I'm quite amazed at how quickly time has passed this year. So much has happened and it's already almost time for 2024! I'm here to give a quick recap of everything that's happened and to discuss what's to come. Without further ado, let's dive in:

• July: This month was NUTS. We had a pretty sizeable forest fire spark up only about 20 minutes outside of town. For myself, it was a rather... stressful time because half my family was away and I wasn't sure how fast the fire would move. I didn't know if we were going to have to evacuate or if things would end up alright. Fortunately, it was the latter but I was dealing with other personal things that were really negatively affecting my mental health. It was a rough month for sure, but we got through it! Regarding news in the Nancy Drew world, HeR continued to reveal more about ND34 including the use of a dictionary, Nancy's new journal, the vocal introduction of Hans, and a map mechanic reveal.
• August: The fire situation had finally gotten under control and there was no longer a threat of any fire. We had some friends visit and got to go hiking, fishing, swimming, and exploring in nature which was super fun. The HeR marketing team began to properly introduce themselves to the public to establish a stronger bond between them and the community. They released multiple videos featuring Brighella, Indy, Roo and another team member called Ghost.
• September: This was a SUPER crazy-busy month for me. I went on vacation for 3 weeks to multiple European locations and one US location. I started the trip in Norway, then went to Denmark, England, Ireland, and ended the trip off in New York City where I got to meet some amazing clue crew friends in real life for the first time! I'm so excited that I got to meet my friends Alyssa, Nicole, and Johanna in person. I can't wait for the day I get to meet them again! HeR was very quiet during this month. They put out a couple QnA videos from the marketing team, and Indy had put together a few reveal videos for things fans can expect in KEY. The Second Chance moments will be returning in a classic form, Indy showed off some of the recording process for getting her voice into the game, and finally she answered another couple questions in a short video. They ended the month off with a puzzle from Roo foreshadowing a post from Ghost.
• October: And here we are at the end of October. Some significant news came out this month that Arglefumph got to go out to Washington and test KEY in person. He talked about his experience in a short video and a 45-minute livestream on his YouTube channel. This sparked a TON of question and speculation about how far along the game actually is. HeR also announced a new couple contests, both of which feature a prize of a digital download of KEY when it is done. I don't see any logical reason why they would have that as a prize if they didn't think they were close to releasing. HeR had also published a new weekend puzzle and Indy got to go to the Nancy Drew convention in Salem, MA. I, on the other hand, came home from my trip at the beginning of this month and had COVID for a week which wasn't the most pleasant of experiences, but it's all sorted out now!

Looking forward, next month marks the 25th anniversary of Nancy Drew: Secrets Can Kill releasing! Carter from The Nancy Drew Times has been planning his new Late Night Nancy Drew show and will be releasing episode 1 next month. I'm really hoping HeR announces something significant for KEY next month because of the fact that they'd be celebrating 25 years of a single video game series. I think that's pretty exciting!

I just finished fully updating my website, specifically the ND34 News Timeline page. It's taken me way longer to get everything in line and organized than I had planned, but it's now all sorted, up-to-date, and ready for the viewer's contemplation!

I'm super excited to see what the rest of 2023 has to offer! I've got my fingers crossed for more Nancy Drew stuff and I'm really hoping we see a release of KEY in the first quarter of next year! What are your thoughts on everything that HeR has released so far? Any hopes for the future? Let me know!

That about does it for today's post. Until next time, detectives!

Huw

PS: Here's one place I managed to find in New York City! I thought it was so cool and can't believe I almost missed seeing it at all. Couldn't go in, but was stoked to be able to see it at all!