Okay. The main other one I was eyeing was the forest one, sort of because It has a review average in the positive range, and sort of because When considering one of these to buy I hadn't yet fully figured out the stand alone vs. DLC games.

Yes that's fair enough. This game has always been a pain in the ass to navigate. To be honest I haven't played it in years. If you fancy trying more Fighting Fantasy adventures then Firetop Mountain, Temple of Terror and Deathtrap Dungeon were always my favourites. There are 'game book remake' versions out there, similar to this House of Hell game, and others which take it a little further. Good luck!

For example, the game says "You follow the landing round, past a wooden door which bears the name Tuttivillus". I interpreted that as meaning it is on the right wall (based on the maps orientation). They could have bothered saying "you pass it on your left" for my interpretation, or "as your round the landing, leading you right, a room bearing the name Tuttivillus is seen on your left".

It's the same as the original game books, where the 'meta' was to keep playing and dying until you found your way through. All of the Fighting Fantasy books were structured in a way where there was one correct path to follow, and the others where you would either die or reach the end without a critical item and then die!

I am currently playing through and making my own map. It is rather obnoxious how little clear orientation is given, especially since it is a given that the players will have to create a clear map for themselves based on the description, AND the game is designed in such a way that you cant turn around or backtrack.

Thanks a lot for your map. I think it is nicely done.

oh well

crap game, ♥♥♥♥ map