I’ve been thinking for a long time how to start this review, and not because I don’t know what to write, but because as of now Surgeon Simulator 2: Access All Areas has become the game that has caused me to lose my patience the most. I am not much of play simulators, but when I do, I try to put myself in the shoes of the simulation and live that immersion that the developer tries to build. In Surgeon’s case it is quite difficult to achieve it because it all comes down to senseless, catastrophic operations that give pure fun, although for me it was all pure stupidity. I don’t think I’ll ever play this game again, at least on my own, and it makes me angry because cooperatively I know I would have enjoyed it a lot more.
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This crazy surgery simulator was launched in September 2020, but it was exclusive to the Epic Games Store, now, a year later, you will be lucky to enjoy it also on Steam and Xbox Game Pass such as Surgeon Simulator 2: Access All Areas. Developed by Bossa Studio, this sequel came seven years after the extravagant and popular first installment, but with this title they wanted to further expand their formula and make different game modes to meet the expectations that some fans were waiting for. It is possible that it will be striking and it catches your attention, you will not always operate by ripping off an arm or hammering some ribs while leaving all blood lost, but between intervention and intervention the controls will become on your worst enemies and the execution of the game will leave much to be desired.
Learn more about Surgeon Simulator 2
For those who do not know Surgeon Simulator 2, It is not a very complicated game to understand. In itself, it is a frenzied experience where you assume the role of a doctor, but only have the use of one arm with almost comically complex controls. He is trapped in a fictional hospital where a voice, very much like Portal 2, appears to discredit your work and make you more nervous, although the truth is that here the least you are going to focus on is the plot or the that happens around, since all you want is for your patient to survive a head transplant, for example. And if you wonder how long it lasts, I can’t tell you anything exact, since depends on your wits to get all the controls and survive in time, patience.
It reinvents itself, but it does not run quite well
The main experience has been diversified into three game modes: history, creation and group. The story mode is the main novelty that Surgeon Simulator 2 introduces compared to its first installment. The story that Bossa Studios creates takes you to face a series of levels with a very clear proposal “anyone can become a surgeon”. I would tell you that each level you advance is more difficult to complete, but the level of difficulty is extremely high in only the first levels. With a tutorial where I already started experience my first incompetence With its imprecise controls, it all comes down to a series of objectives to be met and always, but always, with care that the patient does not die.
The second novelty that it introduces is the fixed presence of a cooperative multiplayer of up to four players, who have to collaborate to meet each objective. However, here the game begins to have one of its flaws, as the matchmaking it is completely impossible. Long queues appear without finding anyone, although if you are lucky and connect with a player, an “Error” message will appear that does not allow the game to start, at least on Steam. It is true that it offers several channels to communicate with other players: voice chat and text chat, although it is clear that for this type of game the only lifeguard it is represented by the online presence of some friends. A shame because it is a game that among friends I am sure that he wins much more and the experience would have been another story, but unfortunately I have not had the opportunity to share this game alone. not highly recommended.
Of course, if you consider yourself a big fan of this saga and want to maintain the infinite longevity of this installment, you’re in luck. For your benefit, Surgeon Simulator 2 allows you to exploit the potential and inspiration of each with a level editor which is not bad at all. From here you can manage to create levels to your liking or choose those that are already created by other users. Also noteworthy is the experience system and daily challenges, which aim to level a cosmetic unlock system similar to a battle pass. Oddly enough, it is possible to unlock some cosmetics in story mode and operate with a crocodile mask.
The most frustrating controls I’ve ever come across
So far they are the most frustrating controls I have ever known, and look, I have spent several times the Eighty or have I played other games like him Goat simulator where the controls do not make sense, but when I carried out a movement that I considered perfect and everything went the other way, then I realized that my adventure was not going to be rewarding at all. These controls they are quirky and difficult.
You must learn to control your character’s outstretched left hand, which can move and turn in almost any direction, and use it to do all medical procedures in a “precise” manner. Okay, that of precise is completely impossible. Through this control system, you can grab different utensils that will help you during the interventions: saws, hammers, scalpels and other diabolical tools with which to clean the entrails of the unfortunate patient.
And if the controls are not complicated enough, they also add to the gameplay a small connotation of puzzle games. To access some areas that contain the organs or that are the tools you need to accomplish your goal, you have to pull levers or solve puzzles, including, for example, the use of body parts that have just been removed. Sometimes these puzzles themselves are more complicated than the operation itself, I threw myself literally 20 minutes jumping on top of a cardboard box to throw up an object that gave a switch to open a door, to later get it, take the saw and the patient dies bleeding. Start again. Added to that, the more advanced levels are designed to play with more people and it has been impossible for me to complete them.
Graphically fun with important sounds
It is true that the visual style of Surgeon Simulator 2 is quite fun, especially due to the construction of levels and the disastrous placement of certain objects that will make it famous as chaos and confusion. Graphically it is enjoyable, in fact, it is funny and the animations are original and adequate for the game they have created. Plus, the environments are well designed and help the pressure to save a life add to this insanity. In the technical aspect it is not a game with which you squeeze a lot if you have a high graphics, but it is affordable for most configurations.
Regarding the sound section, there is directly no soundtrack that is essential, you are not here to listen to music, I think nothing manages to relax you while you try to catch something without dropping it for the twentieth time, but sounds are important. There will be sounds that represent the state of your patient, having to interpret them as quickly as possible, such as the lack of blood or injecting a needle and with a bell knowing that you have to stop DJing. They are small details in which you can not do without the sound, plus it is not a game that encourages silence.
No, Surgeon Simulator 2 is not made for me
That’s right, Surgeon Simulator 2: Access All Areas is not a game that was made for me, in fact, I find it quite difficult. The controls are really complicated, extremely imprecise and a crazy thing that has not come to amuse me at any time. I know the controls are meant to be bad and indeed it is the appeal of the game, but the accomplishment of the objectives within the “surgeries” are too frustrating. Added to that, I do not recommend playing it alone, since this humorous masochism is more enjoyed among friends.
If I had to sum up Surgeon Simulator 2 in one word, it would be “chaos”. It is very difficult to recommend a game that despite some positive aspects, annoying controls and tedious puzzles make it an experience pretty maddening overall. Still, I think this game it is divisive. Many will love this nonsensical physics-playing mayhem, while others who value game pace and certain more technical aspects more will find themselves more outraged by everything that happens around them.