Publisher: Ubisoft
Ages: teens & up
Parental
Advisory:
War theme
A fantastic family title that tests the mind and serves the ultimate strategy game, Ubisoft's Chessmaster 10th Edition delivers. Whether a player is a beginner or a tournament-level contestant, the title offers an excellent learning tool as well as a challenging opponent.
The title's Chessmaster Academy section features International Master Josh Waitzkin, who walks players through chess basics and introduces strategies for dominating opponents. The Academy also features attacking moves taught by chess champion, Larry Christiansen.
While we had no means to truly challenge the chess engine (how many players are there that can actually beat the engines in these games at their hardest levels?), Ubi Soft says that its King engine is powerful enough to defeat a grandmaster. Experienced chess players can test their skills against ranked AI opponents, set up tournaments and simultaneous exhibitions, and also rate their performances in the statistics system.
Less important, but fun, are the animated chess sets and whimsical 3D sets. As players improve, the game suggests appropriate AI opponents. Beyond allowing players to compete against others online, players can establish online rankings, create tournaments and access new teaching tools.
The interface has been improved and is clean, clear and easy-to-navigate. It's a welcome change from prior versions. The graphics are excellent and there's an initially intriguing 3D effect that is a fun novelty, for a short time.
While most youngsters would probably prefer to shoot aliens and bad guys, Chessmaster 10th Edition offers a thorough and challenging chess experience. It's a great game that appeals to beginners as well as kids and advanced chess players. On the other hand, if you already own a chess game that you're happy with, there's probably little reason to invest in a new game.
9/28/04 www.daytrum.com Editorial Staff
