Mad -- I feel your pain -- I mean, your disbelief.

Maybe the women in those films have decided that it's finally time to confront their fears? Maybe they think that whatever is making the noise will be afraid of the light of a torch or candle? Maybe they're over-confident because they're wearing armor under their nightgowns?

Maybe, in terms of casual games, the idea isn't to fully develop a character after all, but to create a familiar situational "hook" and then focus more on the gameplay than on the story.

I've been pondering your reply for days now Becky! I don't disagree with anything you have said about the reason for using younger protagonists in the context of the scenarios you have mentioned. My thought is that Casual games have the ability to tell different types of stories & have the potential to go deeper with that whilst incorporating the puzzle elements, HO scenes etc. I had to have a think about in what ways you may use an older, more experienced protagonist interestingly. A few scenarios I thought of included older people who want to seek out their past as they have become estranged from family & friends earlier in life through just falling out, disappearing, being kidnapped (such as children & young women - it happens), coma & imprisonment (especially in a foreign jail). There is also a lot of potential there, to keep in context with this & the previous thread, to use sidekicks & mentors who could be younger & more knowledgeable than the older protagonist. Just some thoughts!

EDIT: Just seen the posts above! Becky, for me the stories have got to get more interesting as the gameplay gets repetitivie. Mad, I think candles & flimsy nightgowns is a definite no no for older protagonists!

A foreign jail! Now that you mention it, I have been in a foreign jail in casual games. I've been behind bars in Royal Trouble, Escape from Thunder Island, and Robin's Quest. (And those are the ones I happen to remember after thinking about it for a couple of minutes -- there are undoubtedly others.)

I just broke out of jail at the beginning in Revenge of the Spirit: Rite of Resurrection. I'm clearly a highly suspicious character. And I don't believe I was much over age 20 in any of these games, though I haven't learned much about myself yet in Revenge of the Spirit, so that game might be an exception.

I like the idea of a young person mentoring an older one in a foreign land.

Does Nejo count?

Gil.

I was in jail somewhere in Africa with the Jolly Gang, now that you mention it. Was that in Nejo?

Wasn't Nejo the young syrian on the junk stall in Broken Sword 1?

Aha! Does Nejo count as a young mentor of an older person? (Rather than counting as a place to be in jail in a foreign country.) Well, Nejo certainly was the smartest person in the market (including George).

Does he count? Why ever not?

BTW, I'm pretty sure I've been in jail as a grandmotherly Miss Marple type of detective in The Blue Toad Murder Files. Apparently the Brits are the only ones who would toss me in jail once my hair becomes silvery.

It would be fun to have established characters 'of a certain age', maybe Lady Piermont, the man-hungry aristocratic Brit, and Pearl, the down-to-Earth American team up. With the assistance of Nejo, of course. (Duane's off hunting spies somewhere.) I don't know if the casual market is ready for Lady P's sense of humor though.

Gil.

One for the record books! I can just imagine the game description on the portals.