All of [the publishers] turned us down. They said girls and women would not play video games because they were computer phobic. It was an unbelievable comment, and yet it was pervasive in the industry. Our tagline quickly became “for girls who aren’t afraid of a mouse.” So, we did what any spurned entrepreneur would do – we self published on Amazon. They wouldn’t let us in the front door so we went around back. Soon after those same publishers came back to do a deal in retail. We hope that our games have helped to level the playing field for girls and women.

In terms of competition for teenage girls, we compete with a lot of other things besides games for their time. A lot of teenage girls are playing The Sims on the computer, chatting on the phone, updating their MySpace friends online, and gaming and surfing on the web. We’re just lucky they’re good at multitasking.

It is necessary to keep up with technology, but not essential to be at the top of the line, especially for our audience. While we don’t need the latest hardware for our games, our software still needs to be compatible with the majority of systems in the market, hence the upgrade to DirectX 9 and Windows Vista. Our games are 2D-point–and-click games, so they seem clunky compared to the latest first-person shooters and RPGs, but our engrossing story, quirky characters, and rich environments allow us to keep up and satisfy our audience.