The game is loosely based on two books, Tour of Danger (1992) and The Thirteenth Pearl (1979). There are two levels of gameplay, Junior and Senior detective modes, each offering a different difficulty level of puzzles and hints, however neither of these changes affect the actual plot of the game. Players take on the first-person view of fictional amateur sleuth Nancy Drew and must solve the mystery through interrogation of suspects, solving puzzles, and discovering clues.
It has an ESRB rating of E10+ for moments of mild violence and disturbing imagery. The game is available for play on Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X platforms. Shadow at the Water's Edge is the 23rd installment in the Nancy Drew point-and-click adventure game series by Her Interactive.