Battle Chess

STORY / GAMEPLAY
The game, as in real chess, needs strategy, patience and skills. What actually makes Battle Chess unique compared to the rest of chess video games is that the chess pieces come to life and battle one another when engaging; there are 35 battle animations for this awesome feature. Some battle sequences like “Knight versus Knight” or like “King versus Bishop” are direct references to the black knight fight in “Monty Python and the Holy Grail” movie and the short fight sequence between Indiana Jones and a swordsman in “Raiders of the Lost Ark”. The animations vary depending on the piece combinations. Some pieces, like the rooks, are castle walls that actually transform into a giant golem that moves around the chess board. It’s truly a very nice thing to watch! Note that in the NES version, all animated battles are done on their own screen (scene) rather than “live” on the chess board. Also, the action on this version is quite slow and you cannot skip the animated sequences, so your next move needs to wait until the battle sequence is finished. So we have a Battle Chess that’s rather slow paced but with some nice twitches!

GRAPHICS / SOUND
Technically, the NES version is quite impressive if we take into consideration its hardware limitations. Most of the original’s animated battle sequences are included and it also features colorful graphics with detailed sprites-pieces. Every piece has its unique movement and battling patterns like the Queen uses magical powers and raises her arms firing lightings to her rival or the Rook who turns into a rock monster and kills an enemy by smashing his head! The sound is equally good, offering (low-quality) sampled sound FX in the battle sequences, ranging from weapon clangs to soldiers cries!