Dungeon Master Forum

Another review from me, this time for Sophia's dungeon Surgical Strike.

Gameplay: 9
Surgical Strike is similar to Chaos Strikes Back in its non-linearity. The good part of this is that you can go around and explore a lot, and if you don't get past a certain spot, there is surely something else to check out. The bad part, however, is that it is relatively easy to get lost. Later in the game, numerous shortcuts are being opened, and while they certainly make all areas more accessible, I got a bit more confused about what is where. Thorough mapping is definitely advantageous.

Apart from the "I don't know where I am"-factor, there is not much to criticize. There are lots of puzzles of all kinds, be it the classic DM-like teleporter or throwing puzzles, riddles that require certain items and some challenging, but rarely too hard fights. Some of the monsters spawn quite quickly, especially the worms and ghosts, but since the characters you start with are fairly strong, this is hardly an issue.

Originality: 9
The dungeon layout itself might not really be innovative, but new items, spells and monsters more than make up for that. Sophia displays some excellent ideas, like weapons that can be used from the back row, interesting new spells that create monsters, a place where a rather useless spell from DM is finally needed, and monsters that drain your ability scores or mana. There are too many of these great details to list them all, so I'll just say that they are amazing.

Difficulty: 8
Surgical Strike features strong characters to match the tough monsters, so you have a good chance of survival. Still, the dungeon is quite hard, as several of the puzzles are difficult to figure out and finding your way around isn't exactly easy. Sometimes you will find a key and hardly remember where the fitting lock might be. Dying is rarely a problem; making progress, however, sometimes is.

Puzzles: 9
Lots of puzzles, with several innovative and few really obscure ones. Only some of the puzzles that open up secrets are sometimes really far out, but since they are optional, that is hardly an issue. The dungeon features puzzles of all different kinds, so there will be something for everyone in here.

Size: 8
Similar to Chaos Strikes Back, Surgical Strike is packed with action and stuff to do. This effectively makes the dungeon seem larger than it really is. It is not gigantic, but will keep you playing for a long time as there are few dead places and generally lots to do.

Replayability: 9
Non-linearity is always a good thing for replayability. Surgical Strike adds to this its array of secret areas. I searched the dungeon rather thoroughly and only found 9 of 17 secrets, so there is certainly something that makes you want to go back.

Craft: 10
Anything less than a 10 would be a travesty. There are lots of shortcuts that lead you back to where you might need the key item you just found, and though they often confused me a bit, they spare the player a lot of running. The new items and weapons like the Giggler Bombs or the Dragon Spit are marvellous, as well as the new monsters.

Game Ending: 8
I have found three endings, and I think those are all there are. Both of the bad endings are surprising and rather funny, while the real ending is nice and atmospherical. It might be a bit easy to figure out what you have to do to defeat the final opponent, though.

Atmosphere: 8
The archives and the blue dragons (which look really really cool) set the tone for the dungeon and provide a nice little background story. There is not much else of that in the dungeon, but soem of the concepts are pretty well executed, like the Nightmare and its "boss".

Overall: 10
Surgical Strike might not be mind-blowing in every single aspect, but it is at least great in every part. The best thing about it is that it all fits together. The dungeon really feels as if it could have been the Expansion Pack #2 for DM, the magic is there. Cool monsters, great puzzles, innovative new items and foes, lots to discover and explore and great replay value all make for one of the best dungeons out there. If you haven't played it yet, don't hesitate any longer. You won't regret it.

Best part: Very hard to choose as there are numerous great parts; the boss of the "Nightmare" did stand out, though.

Worst part: Running around looking for a new part to explore, getting lost and ending up in a place that you thought was somewhere completely else

Another great review Trantor, nice one. I appreciate these.

I never got to finish this one, as explained in your "My Very own 'I'm Stuck in Surgical Strike'" thread Trantor, but I thoroughly enjoyed the dungeon trawl. I agree with nearly all that you've said up to where I've reached, and I wonder if there's a false wall / pit or small switch that's been missed.
Alas, I've tired of banging against walls in an attempt to progress

Good review.
But as far as I know SuSt is just playable with a RTC version around 0.37 (or 38 - I don't know exactly).
Though I am using v0.44 there might be no chance for me to play that Dungeon - 'cos I don't want to downgrade...

Mustn't we allow these incompability with the latest RTC Version in a review?

I think it is a big bad disadvantage for a Dungeon. Especially newbies will have a Problem in finding the right Version and might get uninteressted in RTC then.

Ah, it's easy to those who know, THOM.

At the time of writing the RTC version is 0.44, and it is downloadable from GG's site thus:
http://chaos.zpc.cz/rtc/RTC_V044.zip

So if you wanted version 0.38, you'd try:
http://chaos.zpc.cz/rtc/RTC_V038.zip

Note to self: If I ever release a dungeon in RTC, add the version I compiled the dungeon in within an attached readme text file.

Good pl;an while ti is not V1.0. I forget why there are incompatibility issues, and if they affct anything actually...

Really old dungeosn suffer from this...one day when I have spare time I might document which dungeons need what, but never get the time and inclination, sorry!

SS2 certainly plays badly on later versions of RTC as monster attacks are all messed up. I need to restart it and try again in the correct version as it became quite annoying.

Trantor - thanks for the excellent review. I think one of the reasons why we don't see so many old-style in-depth reviews is that not many people actually finish custom dungeons these days. I never completed Surgical Strike despite enjoying it a lot. I think what I liked most was there was lots of cool stuff to experiment with and no party-pooping spell restrictions.

I think I may have to agree 100% with you on this one - no arguements from me here. I've played this dungeon until I'm blue in the face (and sometimes red with frustration, but in a good way). I really should have posted my thoughts on it once I'd finished it as they would have been fresh in my mind then - I'm a little rusty now, you see.

I must admit, I've never finished CSB or DM2 and the only two customs I've finished are Reactor and Surgical Strike, both by Sophia. The wonderful thing about it is that I didn't even realise it until Sophia told me herself!

Replayability is a fantastic conception for this dungeon as you prob won't find everything in your first play through (I know I didn't). Once you know the dungeon's layout and which shortcuts lead to which area then you gain a whole new perspecive on SS. I've restarted SS numerous times for various reasons, and I've never once tired of doing it.

With a solidly designed dungeon layout and feindishly difficult puzzles, not to mention new weapons, which take advantage of exploiting the game's mechanics, and monsters, one of which still terrifies to this day (no, it's not Morphus), Surgical Strike was both a joy and a nightmare for me to play - IMHO an excellent mix for a dungeon.

The ONLY major gripe I have with the game is the 'good' ending's boss was waaaay too easy for my liking. I was like 'oh, is that it...' but by no means was it a let-down...

Thank you all for your nice words.