BATTLE CHESS ENHANCED VERSION CD-ROM FOR THE MULTIMEDIA PC A Review by: Jeff Herskowitz Copyright RIPC © 1993 Resource International Publishing Company Route 1, Box 168 Milford, TX 76670 CompuServe 70053,1502 System Requirements: 80386 Computer (or higher) with 4M of RAM available, MSDOS 3.3 or higher, SVGA or VGA color monitor, Hard Disk with 1.5 megabytes available, a CD-ROM, mouse optional (but recommended). The game of chess was invented about 1500 years ago in India as a way of settling land disputes between nobility. It has taken over a millennium for someone to make the game better. Interplay has done just that. The basic game of chess is fairly simple. It takes only a short time to learn, but a lifetime to master (if ever). All the aspects of basic chess are included in Battle Chess Enhanced CD-ROM. However, Interplay has gone even further. The game features multi-level playing capabilities that are sure to challenge anyone, from a novice to a master. Long distance gaming is possible with built in modem capabilities. Interplay has even outdone their acclaimed standard Battle Chess with stunning new full color (640x480x256) VGA display. Features: Even if you have never played chess before, this is the package for you. The documentation is well written and easy to understand. It contains some of the opening moves of the Chess Masters for the last century or so. This way the players can see what the best chess players in history might have done. The animation is the heart and soul of Battle Chess Enhanced Version CD-ROM. Without it, this would be any ordinary chess game. Each playing piece has its own distinctive style of movement and of combat, not only does each piece appear to have a unique personality, but if a sound card is present, a personalized musical anthem. For example, when a Pawn walks to a new spot, the game plays a rather unassuming selection of music, however when the Queen sashays to her appointed place a powerful and royal tune accompanies her movement. The following are examples: Bishop takes Pawn The Bishop walks to the appointed square. The pawn readies his staff to fend off the offensive piece. With a graceful move of his staff the Pawn attempts to frighten the Bishop away. Without missing a beat, the Bishop stamps down his staff of office and creates a gaping hole beneath the hapless Pawn. The Pawn disappears down the hole with a parting scream that slowly fades away. The hole disappears as the Bishop takes his new place. King takes Bishop Announced by his regal tune, the King approaches the spot where his victim stands waiting for the ensuing clash. Straight out of an Action / Adventure Film, the Bishop swirls his staff of office above his head in an effort to intimidate the King. With typical boredom, the King impassively watches this display. Reaching into his voluminous robes, the King pulls out a revolver. Realizing that he is in trouble, the Bishop looks to the player for assistance, but none is forthcoming. The King practices his aim by shooting at the Bishops feet and making him "dance." Bored after only a few shots, the king promptly perforates the Bishop with a few well chosen shots. As the bishop is removed from play, the King saunters onto the recently vacated spot. The sound features are the secondary attraction to the game. Unlike some other games that play the same theme music to death over, and over, Battle Chess cycles through at least three different scores while waiting for player input. This is a very refreshing bonus while playing. Possibly the most impressive feature to the game is the 45 minute fully animated tutorial with speech capabilities (if a sound card is present). The tutorial begins with the King walking on to a bare chess board and introducing himself. He tells the player what his purpose is on the board and how he can move. He even gives a demonstration of how he can attack another piece. Then the rest of the pieces walk onto the chess board and verbally introduce themselves as well as show their possible movement and how they are able to capture another piece. This is more entertaining then most television shows out today. It is definitely FAR more educational. Drawbacks: The main drawback is that to install the game onto your hard drive requires 30 megs of space. This 30 megs is taken up by a SINGLE file, consisting of all the animation. While this is supposed to speed up the animation, it does create a problem if the user is already cramped for space. The animations themselves are incredible, but annoyingly slow. A piece that has unlimited moves in one direction takes too long moving from one spot to another. Running on a 486-33, I became quite bored waiting for pieces to move. Part of the copy protection is that the CD must be installed in the CD-ROM drive at all times. The game calls files from the CD at all times during the game. If the CD is removed from the drive and any attempt is made to move a playing piece the game will freeze. Overall, this package is quite a value. Unlike many games, this one can be played many times without any repetition. The game is also able to get more challenging as the player improves in skill levels. When a player can eat the game on level one at lease 50% of the time, it is time to try a more challenging skill level. The top competency for the game is practically guaranteed to keep a almost any player on their toes. Even a novice chess player like myself can find entertainment in watching the chess pieces combat each other. ______________________________________________________ Published by: Interplay Productions, 3710 S. Susan, Suite 100, Santa Ana, Cal. 92704 Tel: (714) 549-2411 List Price: $79.95