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Dragon Strike Review | A Retro Board Game Review of a Classic Dungeon Crawler for the Brave
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 3 เม.ย. 2022
- Always Board Never Boring was considering doing a playthrough of the classic dungeon crawler Dragon Strike, from TSR, which sought to bridge the gap between board games and Dungeons and Dragons. However, he realised he should probably review the game first, and as he had an old written review kicking around, he thought it was a good excuse for another Stick to the Script episode. He's taken the old review, dusted it off, updated a few bits, and now it gets to live here on TH-cam instead of on an old blog where nobody ever read it.
#DragonStrike #DungeonsandDragons #TSR
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I mixed this game with my Hero Quest all the time. I had been straining me brains out my ears trying to remember this games name, should make some 3D printed versions of those game boards, like we both have done with HQ.
My friend and I mixed this with Heroquest in a campaign we wrote.
The video was great.
Such good memories with this game... back in the 90's, I found myself reading D&D books WITHOUT a campaign more often than reading D&D books FOR a campaign. But I was able to get my not-quite-as-nerdy-as-me friends to play Dragon Strike, and it was... not as great as D&D, but still a ton of fun.
Thanks for watching, and sharing your own experience with the game. It can definitely be a lot of fun with a good crowd.
Bad day on Twitter? :) Great review as always, I'm nostalgic for this game and I've never even seen it before. Full of 80s/90s goodness.
I was wondering if you'd ever do a ABNB top 10/20/50 list of your fave games? People love lists, and I'd love to hear yours!
Every day is a bad day on Twitter! I guess I could do a top games list. I don't know how many people would be all that interested though. I will think about it. Thanks for the feedback.
Aha! I love this video! It's so campy and the "Warrior" is from American Gladiators!
Yes, it was Deron McBee. He was Malibu, which explains the hair.
This was such a fun game. I wish I still had my copy. We actually house ruled dice for movement distance just like Heroquest … because we loved how it worked in Heroquest .
I'm not a fan of roll and move, but I always felt it worked for HeroQuest, because part of the game was trying to do the best you could with what you had as you faced each new challenge. It became too easy to deal with the monsters when you always knew exactly how far you could move.
Some specific things I remember about the video that didn't match the game :
The miniatures in the video were different and better than the ones that came with the game.
The video implies you can do things that really aren't outlined in the rules (as mentioned killing the man-scorpion with its own stinger)
If you look closely some hero cards are different than the ones that come with the game. If I remember correctly, the warrior's card shows he gets a D10 for something but in the game he only uses D12s and D8s.
The game is turn based. Each player moves and does an action or does an action then moves (like hero quest) but during the video there is a point where all the players say what action they want to do, move their piece. The DM then says "now let's watch all play out" as though all actions are calculated simultaneously before any dice are rolled for individual attacks or actions. In other words, all the players have moved before doing any actions and then did all their individual actions as a group. Weird.
At one point they encounter an "owlbear". It's actually a funny scene but this isn't a monster type included in the game.
At one point the elf wants to shoot an arrow and the DM says "you might hit your friend". This could be a nice house rule but their are no rules for this in the instructions.
Off the top of my head that's all I remember but I'll add to the list of I think of others. I might watch the video tonight to see if I catch anything else I believe it's up on TH-cam
I should imagine when they were creating the video they were using prototype materials. This was pretty common (just look at the product photographed the back of the Space Crusade or HeroQuest boxes - the contents of those games are quite different to what was shown on the box).
It may also have been the case that the contents of the game, and even the rules themselves, weren't finalised when they were making that video. They could have been given the understanding it was a gateway game to D&D and therefore focused on roleplaying elements that ultimately weren't there. Regardless, you are right, it's in no way useful as a teaching aid, as it only vaguely resembles the game you would eventually play.
And yes, the video is on TH-cam, and well worth a watch.
I'll say this, that video and the Baldur's Gate soundtrack are things that get me most hyped to get back into the metaphorical DM chair and try to schedule with my friends to continue our campaign again. I dunno what it is something about it just hypes me up
Is it the joyous, "Now you're working together!" line? I also remember the audio CD from the D&D First Quest blue box. That one always made me laugh, but I think it probably did a better job overall.
@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring Probably. That and the memory of how the first two "bosses" ended and the excitement from that. I'm no Matt Mercer by any means but "how do you want to do this" is something I couldn't NOT try out myself and it did not disappoint
I really wanna see a playthrough of that solo mission. Also an in depth compare and contrast between this and Dragon Quest. I've been looking for good copies of both on ebay for a while now.
Dragon Quest was pretty much D&D disguised with board game trappings. I used to have it (and reviewed it on my blog back when I reviewed Dragon Strike), but it really is very roleplay-based. It had a cool board, like the HeroQuest one with blank rooms, and hundreds of cardboard standees for different monsters. The best bit was the (supposedly) limited edition box came with a set of six metal Ral Partha miniatures for the heroes, which were really nice. The worst thing is it only came with three adventures to teach you the ropes, and then you were on your own, so I always felt it was more of a sandbox than a complete game experience.
Unfortunately for so many differences in my life 😔 there are many things that I have not been able to try, that now I want to find, but unfortunately they are either unavailable or can be found at extremely absurd prices 😑
And this is why I really appreciate these videos of yours, because you are making me discover things that I have never seen in my life or that I have never had the chance to take, and I thank you because in a way you are making me part. participates even if I have never tried them in person 😋👍
That’s really cool. I’m pleased the videos are helping you to check out some of these old classics.
@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring Yes, and thank you so much 😊
Man I remember this game , was good back in the day , used to boards in hero quest many a times . Good review keep it up
I suspect a lot of people ended up using their Dragon Strike components for HeroQuest. Thanks for watching.
Never heard of this before and feel I was missing out!
It's a decent game. I'm thinking of running the solo mission on the channel at some point.
@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring good idea - that would be cool.
This is the game where the first monster my buddy pulled out was the dragon lol. I've got the Parker Brothers Star Wars Death Star vhs game still. As you can imagine the video quality is much higher but we've never actually played it. Yes. The video was quite campy. Strangely enough it had better cgi than most of what the sci-fi channel did through the 90's. Fun to see the game again.
Nice review! Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for watching.
I use the Dragon Strike boards for HeroQuest games!
Lots of people have said the same. It just made sense to open up those new map areas in HeroQuest.
Good to see a review about this game that isn't just about the VHS tape , good job 👍 also like the twitter jokes 😂
Thank you. The biggest joke is Twitter.
@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring amen lol
I know I’ve played Hero Quest and I’m like 75% sure I’ve played this as well back in like The early 2000s. Because the character cards look so familiar. Yeah my cousin probably had this one as well, because when I would sleep over he’s the one that had all the best cool RPG TABLETOP Games that always took a while to set up
I like the boards. I watched the video here on TH-cam. Well the first 2 minutes. I agree with your description. Good stuff thanks ABNB
Yeah, the boards are great. The video… is not. Thanks for watching.
I have this game. I like it!
There's a lot to like. Thanks for watching.
Great vid, might need to check that video out.
It is available on TH-cam. Just do a search for Dragon Strike and it should be one of the first hits.
@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring Nice. Thank you.
My copy of this is beat to hell and even one edge of the box lid is mostly ripped away from an encounter with a sliding glass door. It's still pridely on my shelf.
As long as you are displaying it with proud, that's all that matters. The big question though - is this the dopiest pose for a dragon in the history of all miniatures games?
@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring It's the Jazz Hands dragon. He just wants to dance with Rool the wizard.
Darkfyre's Feet of Flames. I always thought he looked a bit like someone had suddenly just flashed a spotlight on him.
@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring Dance!! Or suffer a Dragon Strike!!
I'd never heard of this one. So that was interesting. But some of the artwork was a bit lacking. I still think that overly artistic boards can be a hindrance as the novelty will diminish over time. Adding tiles and furniture to a board makes more sense to me.
I think the boards were very much in the style of all the maps that came with D&D starter sets through the 90s. I personally think they have a lovely atmospheric style, but I appreciate your point.
The artwork, with the exception of the cover, was a LOT lacking throughout.
TSR did the same kind of thing with the Spellfire card game. They settled for garbage artwork to well product.
Still a fun relic.
I agree the video wasn't the best. It looked half way promising but really fell flat. As for the figures, I didn't mind them when I first got the game. I actually forgot about the boards. I'm not really certain how much I played this as a kid since we had HeroQuest and one other fantasy board game called Dark World.
Funny how Dark World often crops up when people talk about this game. I actually mentioned it in the video, and it's turned up in another comment here as well. It was released in 1991 and had much more of a toy factor with 3D boards and interchangeable weapons so probably seemed more appealing in general (even though it wasn't as good as Dragon Strike). All classics, though (although HeroQuest will always reign supreme).
@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring What I liked with Dark World was more of the 3D portion especially the castle. The upgrading of weapons was also nice unless you was the last one to get the upgraded weapon assuming you survived to get it. HeroQuest may reclaim its title with the new edition and expansions.
The Dark World turn order Mace of Chaos thing was fun too. I'm having a great time with the new edition of HeroQuest.
I remember watching the VHS so that I could learn how to play the game and then being confused as hell when I read the rules because it didn't at all match. That was some real BS.
Yeah, the video really doesn't cover what the game actually does, and contradicts the rules more than once. Fortunately, it's a good game!
@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring I actually had this game well before I got hero quest so it was my first experience with this kind of thing. Loved it.
Still to this day confused by what miniatures were used in the video and what happened to them
I think the video was great for the time as young teenager when it came out it was pretty cool lol
Now though it's cheese 😂
I thought it was pretty awful back in 90s, but I rewatched it when I was putting together this review and... oh boy... It's a shocker.
@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring have you looked at "Dark world" it's pretty odd dungeon crawler with expacs and very board gamey mechanics
@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring that video brings back so much memories from that era. Feels like intro from Stonekeep but more derpy.
Dark World is actually one of the games I mentioned in the review. I had all three - the core set, the Village of Fear, and Dragon's Gate. It was pretty fun to throw them all together. I loved them for their nostalgia and the little weapons and potions that slotted into the miniatures, but could never get them to the table. One day someone made me an offer I really couldn't refuse so I sold them. Sometimes I do regret that, but I like to think they went to a better home where someone really loved playing with them all the time.
You know... Some consider Dragon Strike a Gateway to D&D...
And it’s a pretty good one, I think.
@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring yup. I got my start with HeroQuest. But Dragonstrike encourages improvosation
Yeah it was a really interesting way of doing it. I liked how they gave the monsters little scripts, and heroes didn't always just rush in swinging their dice around. A neat little hybrid, and one I'm very happy to have in my collection.
How many shots did it take for you to throw three ones? 😆 (Sorry if this has been asked before)
It was over 100 takes.
@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring 😯
Hyperreality: Synonym for "rotoscoping with really bad CGI."
It's a shame it bled into the components and the box art as much as it did, because the actual artwork in the game is really good.
@@AlwaysBoardNeverBoring Yeah. The game is great. It's as close to an actual AD&D game as can be without being AD&D, and ironically, some of the elements, such as types of rolls being solely done with specific dice, was later used by Index Card RPG.
It's a lovely game. One of two TSR games in my collection that I prize highly (the other being the really rather awesome Dragonlance, which I will get around to on the channel eventually).
Try Cave Evil.
I like the art for Cave Evil. I've never had a chance to play it though.
99p? That's a pridely sum. It would be worth it just for those excellent board tiles to use in other games.
Oh it was the bargain of the century. I expected the bidding to go higher. I was very pride of myself getting such a good deal.
Dragon Strike, the poor mans HeroQuest! 🤣
I think it probably does get seen that way, but it has a lot going for it and honestly has the more interesting rules set. It does suffer a bit for some rough presentation and the fact it was late out of the gate, arriving after HeroQuest had already lodged itself on so many gaming shelves around the world.
hyper-reality indeed
When I first wrote this review over a decade ago I called it Hyper Reality Bites. I'm such a card.
I was reading Ben Riggs' book "Slaying the Dragon - The Secret History of TSR," and the story behind this game is fascinating.
TSR was in desperate need of a cash influx, so they started taking advantage of their publishing deal with Random House, ŵho paid TSR a percentage of every product shipped to them as a loan whether it sold or not.
Dragon Strike originally sold about 100,000 copies, which was a successful first run.
They figured a second printing of another 50,000 copies would satisfy the market.
Instead, TSR made the decision to ship 150,000 more copies to Random House, which sat unsold in their warehouse, just so they could get the initial payment for them.
When Random House finally returned all of the extra copies to TSR, TSR ended up selling the surplus for one dollar each, just to be rid of them.
Not the first of many mistakes TSR made that led to the downfall of the company.
well getting eaten by a dragon sounds less awful than discussing things on twatter
Absolutely. Given the choice, I'm offering myself up as a sacrifice to the dragon every time.