9.95 Chess Review

Chess is one of the longest running pastimes in history. In fact, the game originates from China, was translated into Arabic in the 7th century, and was brought to Europe when the Moors invaded Spain. By the end of the 10th century, chess was played by kings, philosophers, clergy, and other important figures.

9.95 CHESS allows for multiple difficulty levels. By raising the amount of time given to the computer to play, the difficulty is increased. Longer times allow the computer to process more possible moves, then say, a one second time limit would. Aside from the computer’s time, the computer’s randomness and aggressiveness can be changed from 0-9. The final customization on the start screen is your color and who plays, whether computer vs. computer, human vs. computer, or human vs. human.

9.95 CHESS has a neat feature where you can add or subtract pieces from the board, along with move pieces. This allows you to play out past chess matches that you might remember, reliving them or even classic matches, such as Kasparov vs. Deep Blue, of course if you can remember how the pieces were set up. 9.95 CHESS also has an undo move feature, allowing you to fix small errors.

One of my favorite parts of the entire package is that you can leave a game by turning off your Zodiac or running another application and resume it from where you left. Another plus, or minus for those of you who aren’t very skilled, is that the AI is opportunistic. When given a chance to swap pieces, the computer won’t hesitate.

I’m not sure how many plays the computer can process per second, but I’d guess that it is hundreds. However, when I undo a move and redo what I originally did, the computer always redoes the play that he was going to perform. This either tells me that it is not processing as many plays as I give it credit for or the play that it attempted was the best for the situation, probably the latter.

9.95 CHESS is a small package for a cheap price. The AI is much more advanced than I anticipated, but due to my moderate skill level, I’ve managed to win a few. If you’re on the road a lot and wish that you had a magnetic chess board, just pick up a chess board that’s mobile, such as one on your Zodiac.