Nancy Drew: Secrets Can Kill is surprisingly deep for a 4-hour long 90s point and click game

This school needs to start doing background checks

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun / Her Interactive

Well, well, well. Of all the detectives in all the world, she came to me. She was a dame with hair red as communion wine spilled by a bishop looking at a nun’s cleava- oh what, wait, she’s how old? Christ, Philip, get your head out of the gutter for once, this is a family website. I was previously a snob about the Nancy Drew point and click puzzle games, and then came to regret it when a fan of them (very nicely) emailed me explaining they’re actually really good. We’re going to find out for ourselves by playing them. There are north of 30 in total, and I will update the rankings at the end of each article.

The first is 1998’s Nancy Drew: Secrets Can Kill, in which Nancy solves the murder of a Floridian highschooler named Jake Roberts, and there’s a lot to love about it right away. There’s a restrained cast, three locations in total, and the school sports team is called the Fighting Manatees. Thus the icon for the game is a lil’ cartoon manatee - and to be absolutely accurate, this is the remastered version of the game from 2010, not the original 90s version. I’m as disappointed as you.

Inherent to a book series like Nancy Drew is the plot doing a backflip early on to get into a position where a teenager is intimately involved in a murder. In the case of Secrets Can Kill, Nancy has actually been recruited by the cops! The reasoning for this flagrant breach of due process is that a) Nancy’s aunt Eloise is the school librarian, and b) I guess nineteen-year-old Nancy is more believable as a high school student than a middle aged detective. Still, though, it has literally been a week since Jake was bad-murdered, so you’d have thought the cops would have some conventional avenues of detection left to go down before drafting in an out-of-state adolescent. I do, however, like the peppy letter Nancy sends to her dad by way of exposition, which establishes her as already a detective. Like, yeah, it’s 1998! We don’t need to be told who Nancy Drew is, or see her getting bitten by a spider with a magnifying glass.

Before we go any further, let me introduce you to our very small cast.

• Nancy Drew - of course, a peppy 18-year-old citizen detective, and our playable point-of-view character from now on.
• Jake Rogers - the victim. He was beaten up and pushed down the stairs at school. Everyone hated him.
• Hal Tanaka - a Japanese exchange student whose family are pressuring him to get a full scholarship to a good school.
• Hector “Hulk” Sanchez - the jock, a star football player who hopes to get an atheltic scholarship to join the meatgrinder that is college football.
• Connie Watson - a hall monitor who spends all her time sitting in front of the teachers’ lounge, stopping you from getting in the teachers’ lounge.
• Daryl Gray - the rich kid, now curiously working in the local diner. Connie dumped him to go to the Sadie Hawkins dance with Jake.

There’s also Mitch Dillon , who services the school boiler and basically doesn’t appear, and Uncle Steve who is actually your cop contact, and who e.g. refuses to give you the code to Jake’s locker. Oh what, suddenly that’s a step too far, Steve?

She has her own letterhead. Girlboss behaviour. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun / Her Interactive

On that note, I have to say I was utterly charmed by the school, which has rows of lockers, a study area, and a huge library. There are books in there that both are and are not relevant to the case, which is a cool amount of effort to go to. My most favouritest thing is the pictures for the art competition, which are authentic, school-art-class-looking efforts, and I wondered if the team made them or got them from actual high school art classes, because they’re great. There are lots of little detail surprises around the school, like the set dressing posters and club announcements on the noteboards around the place all feeling like real things. There are loads of little surprises if you pay attention.

One of the more obvious surprises to me was the voice acting! Secrets Can Kill’s haunted 3D puppets are fully voiced, with Nancy having a kind of husky depth to her voice, as if the stress of being a teen detective has driven her to a pack of fags a day. Connie in particular really sells her increasing suspicion of our Nance, who has just moved to the town but keeps rocking up with questions about the murder every five minutes. Some lines are delivered with a weird tone of surprise, but all the characters are pretty indifferent to the recent murder - one even says Jake was just unlucky - which is how you know Jake was massively unpopular. It doesn’t take long for you to intuit that Jake was blackmailing everyone, even without solving any puzzles.

The puzzles are pleasingly complex, too. The 90s were the halcyon days of not getting any help, and Nancy doesn’t narrate what she should do next out loud. It’s up to you to put together that if, for example, Hal mentions that Hulk had a recent sports injury, you should probably go and ask Hulk about it. The most in-depth puzzling is a load of secret messages that are hidden on the school notice boards, many written backwards or in code, which reveal hints about checking library books, things like that. It’s the sort of game that had me writing things down in a real life notebook, something that we praise Sam Barlow for today as a great innovation! How short memory is. Some puzzles make no sense (knowing to check an encyclopedia for the kanji for crane requires some intuitive leaps), but all in all the depth of the puzzles is what stretches the run time to four-ish hours. There’s even a bit where a boiler is about to explode, and it’s way easier to survive if you found some bolt cutters in the diner - but they’re also entirely optional! Nice!

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun / Her Interactive

Similarly, the beats about academic and financial pressure aren’t what I was expecting. There’s a subplot about a masked martial arts master secretly winning tournaments that genuinely took me by surprise. These issues aren’t given the depth that they would be in, I dunno, a 12-hour indie game dedicated to them, and Hal’s story definitely leans into a stereotype, so that’s far from ideal. But I wasn’t really expecting to see these sorts of issues come up at all , so some points for effort there.

Unfortunately, while I didn’t encounter any problems with the static pointing and clicking around the halls of the school aside from it being a bit clunky - even working on Steam Deck - I did have to resort to using a guide. It turned out that Secrets Can Kill bugged out on me, and didn’t trigger a dialogue option that in turn should have triggered a threatening note. Alas, I had to watch the end on a YouTube let’s play, and it was simplistic and obvious and didn’t make best use of the cast. A disappointment on two counts, there. Still, Secrets Can Kill has given us a solid starting point for the rest of this Case Rankings series. I’m interested to see how Nancy’s personality evolves as we go.

Case Rankings

1. Secrets Can Kill (1998)

Rock Paper Shotgun is better when you sign in

Sign in and join us on our journey to discover strange and compelling PC games.

All 75 Arc Raiders Blueprints and where to get them

These areas have the highest chance of giving you Blueprints

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Looking for more Arc Raiders Blueprints? It’s a special day when you find a Blueprint, as they’re among the most valuable items in Arc Raiders. If you find a Blueprint that you haven’t already found, then you must make sure you hold onto it at all costs, because Blueprints are the key to one of the most important and powerful systems of meta-progression in the game.

This guide aims to be the very best guide on Blueprints you can find, starting with a primer on what exactly they are and how they work in Arc Raiders, before delving into exactly where to get Blueprints and the very best farming spots for you to take in your search.

We’ll also go over how to get Blueprints from other unlikely activities, such as destroying Surveyors and completing specific quests. And you’ll also find the full list of all 75 Blueprints in Arc Raiders on this page (including the newest Blueprints added with the Cold Snap update , such as the Deadline Blueprint and Firework Box Blueprint), giving you all the information you need to expand your own crafting repertoire.

In this guide:

• What are Blueprints in Arc Raiders?
• Full Blueprint list: All crafting recipes
• Where to find Blueprints in Arc Raiders Blueprints obtained from quests Blueprints obtained from Trials Best Blueprint farming locations

What are Blueprints in Arc Raiders?

Blueprints in Arc Raiders are special items which, if you manage to extract with them, you can expend to permanently unlock a new crafting recipe in your Workshop. If you manage to extract from a raid with an Anvil Blueprint, for example, you can unlock the ability to craft your very own Anvil Pistol, as many times as you like (as long as you have the crafting materials).

To use a Blueprint, simply open your Inventory while in the lobby, then right-click on the Blueprint and click “Learn And Consume” . This will permanently unlock the recipe for that item in your Workshop. As of the Stella Montis update, there are allegedly 75 different Blueprints to unlock - although only 68 are confirmed to be in the game so far. You can see all the Blueprints you’ve found and unlocked by going to the Workshop menu, and hitting “R” to bring up the Blueprint screen.

It’s possible to find duplicates of past Blueprints you’ve already unlocked. If you find these, then you can either sell them, or - if you like to play with friends - you can take it into a match and gift it to your friend so they can unlock that recipe for themselves. Another option is to keep hold of them until the time comes to donate them to the Expedition.

Full Blueprint list: All crafting recipes

Below is the full list of all the Blueprints that are currently available to find in Arc Raiders, and the crafting recipe required for each item:

Note: The missing Blueprints in this list likely have not actually been added to the game at the time of writing, because none of the playerbase has managed to find any of them. As they are added to the game, I will update this page with the most relevant information so you know exactly how to get all 75 Arc Raiders Blueprints.

Where to find Blueprints in Arc Raiders

Below is a list of all containers, modifiers, and events which maximise your chances of finding Blueprints:

• Certain quests reward you with specific Blueprints .
• Completing Trials has a high chance of offering Blueprints as rewards.
• Surveyors have a decent chance of dropping Blueprints on death.
• High loot value areas tend to have a greater chance of spawning Blueprints.
• Night Raids and Storms may increase rare Blueprint spawn chances in containers.
• Containers with higher numbers of items may have a higher tendency to spawn Blueprints. As a result, Blue Gate (which has many “large” containers containing multiple items) may give you a higher chance of spawning Blueprints.
• Raider containers (Raider Caches, Weapon Boxes, Medical Bags, Grenade Tubes) have increased Blueprint drop rates. As a result, the Uncovered Caches event gives you a high chance of finding Blueprints.
• Security Lockers have a higher than average chance of containing Blueprints.
• Certain Blueprints only seem to spawn under specific circumstances: Tempest Blueprint only spawns during Night Raid events. Vulcano Blueprint only spawns during Hidden Bunker events. Jupiter and Equaliser Blueprints only spawn during Harvester events.

Raider Caches, Weapon Boxes, and other raider-oriented container types have a good chance of offering Blueprints. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blueprints have a very low chance of spawning in any container in Arc Raiders, around 1-2% on average. However, there is a higher chance of finding Blueprints in particular container types. Specifically, you can find more Blueprints in Raider containers and security lockers.

Beyond this, if you’re looking for Blueprints you should focus on regions of the map which are marked as having particularly high-value loot. Areas such as the Control Tower in Dam Battlegrounds, the Arrival and Departure Buildings in Spaceport, and Pilgrim’s Peak in Blue Gate all have a better-than-average chance of spawning Blueprints somewhere amongst all their containers. Night Raids and Electromagnetic Storm events also increase the drop chances of certain Blueprints .

In addition to these containers, you can often loot Blueprints from destroyed Surveyors - the largest of the rolling ball ARC. Surveyors are more commonly found on the later maps - Spaceport and Blue Gate - and if one spawns in your match, you’ll likely see it by the blue laser beam that it casts into the sky while “surveying”.

Surveyors are quite well-armoured and will very speedily run away from you once it notices you, but if you can take one down then make sure you loot all its parts for a chance of obtaining certain unusual Blueprints.

Blueprints obtained from quests

One way in which you can get Blueprints is by completing certain quests for the vendors in Speranza. Some quests will reward you with a specific item Blueprint upon completion, so as long as you work through all the quests in Arc Raiders, you are guaranteed those Blueprints.

Here is the full list of all Blueprints you can get from quest rewards:

• Trigger Nade Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Sparks Fly”.
• Lure Grenade Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Greasing Her Palms”.
• Burletta Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Industrial Espionage”.
• Hullcracker Blueprint (and Launcher Ammo Blueprint): Rewarded after completing “The Major’s Footlocker”.

Alas, that’s only 4 Blueprints out of a total of 75 to unlock, so for the vast majority you will need to find them yourself during a raid. If you’re intent on farming Blueprints, then it’s best to equip yourself with cheap gear in case you lose it, but don’t use a free loadout because then you won’t get a safe pocket to stash any new Blueprint you find. No pain in Arc Raiders is sharper than failing to extract with a new Blueprint you’ve been after for a dozen hours already.

One of the best ways to get Blueprints is by hitting three stars on all five Trials every week. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blueprints obtained from Trials

One of the very best ways to get Blueprints is as rewards for completing Trials in Arc Raiders. Trials are unlocked from Level 15 onwards, and allow you to earn rewards by focusing on certain tasks over the course of several raids. For example, one Trial might task you with dealing damage to Hornets, while another might challenge you to loot Supply Drops.

Trials refresh on a weekly basis, with a new week bringing five new Trials. Each Trial can offer up to three rewards after passing certain score milestones, and it’s possible to receive very high level loot from these reward crates - including Blueprints. So if you want to unlock as many Blueprints as possible, you should make a point of completing as many Trials as possible each week.

Best Blueprint farming locations

The very best way to get Blueprints is to frequent specific areas of the maps which combine high-tier loot pools with the right types of containers to search. Here are my recommendations for where to find Blueprints on every map, so you can always keep the search going for new crafting recipes to unlock.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Dam Battlegrounds

The best places to farm Blueprints on Dam Battlegrounds are the Control Tower, Power Generation Complex, Ruby Residence, and Pale Apartments . The first two regions, despite only being marked on the map as mid-tier loot, contain a phenomenal number of containers to loot. The Control Tower can also contain a couple of high-tier Security Lockers - though of course, you’ll need to have unlocked the Security Breach skill at the end of the Survival tree.

There’s also a lot of reporting amongst the playerbase that the Residential areas in the top-left of the map - Pale Apartments and Ruby Residence - give you a comparatively strong chance of finding Blueprints. Considering their size, there’s a high density of containers to loot in both locations, and they also have the benefit of being fairly out of the way. So you’re more likely to have all the containers to yourself.

Buried City

The best Blueprint farming locations on Buried City are the Santa Maria Houses, Grandioso Apartments, Town Hall, and the various buildings of the New District . Grandioso Apartments has a lower number of containers than the rest, but a high chance of spawning weapon cases - which have good Blueprint drop rates. The others are high-tier loot areas, with plenty of lootable containers - including Security Lockers.

Spaceport

The best places to find Blueprints on Spaceport are the Arrival and Departure Buildings, as well as Control Tower A6 and the Launch Towers . All these areas are labelled as high-value loot regions, and many of them are also very handily connected to one another by the Spaceport wall, which you can use to quickly run from one area to the next. At the tops of most of these buildings you’ll find at least one Security Locker, so this is an excellent farming route for players looking to find Blueprints.

The downside to looting Blueprints on Spaceport is that all these areas are hotly contested, particularly in Duos and Squads. You’ll need to be very focused and fast in order to complete the full farming route.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blue Gate

Blue Gate tends to have a good chance of dropping Blueprints, potentially because it generally has a high number of containers which can hold lots of items; so there’s a higher chance of a Blueprint spawning in each container. In my experience, the best Blueprint farming spots on Blue Gate are Pilgrim’s Peak, Raider’s Refuge, the Ancient Fort, and the Underground Complex beneath the Warehouse .

All of these areas contain a wealth of containers to loot. Raider’s Refuge has less to loot, but the majority of the containers in and around the Refuge are raider containers, which have a high chance of containing Blueprints - particularly during major events.

Stella Montis

On the whole, Stella Montis seems to have a very low drop rate for Blueprints (though a high chance of dropping other high-tier loot). If you do want to try farming Blueprints on this map, the best places to find Blueprints in Stella Montis are Medical Research, Assembly Workshop, and the Business Center . These areas have the highest density of containers to loot on the map.

In addition to this, the Western Tunnel has a few different Security Lockers to loot, so while there’s very little to loot elsewhere in this area of the map, it’s worth hitting those Security Lockers if you spawn there at the start of a match.

That wraps up this primer on how to get all the Blueprints in Arc Raiders as quickly as possible. With the Expedition system constantly resetting a large number of players’ Blueprints, it’s more important than ever to have the most up-to-date information on where to find all these Blueprints.

While you’re here, be sure to check out our Arc Raiders best guns tier list , as well as our primers on the best skills to unlock and all the different Field Depot locations on every map.

ARC Raiders

PS5 , Xbox Series X/S , PC

Rock Paper Shotgun is better when you sign in

Sign in and join us on our journey to discover strange and compelling PC games.