Battle Chess
Encyclopedia
Battle Chess is a computer game version of chess
in which the chess piece
s come to life and battle one another when capturing. It was released for the Commodore Amiga and subsequently on the 3DO
, MS-DOS
, Apple IIGS
, Apple IIe
, Commodore 64
, Amiga CDTV, CD32
, Atari ST
, Apple Macintosh, Acorn Archimedes
, FM Towns
, Windows 3.x
and Nintendo Entertainment System
. A new version of Battle Chess is currently in development by Subdued Software via a license from Interplay Entertainment. It is set for a release date of summer 2011 for the PC and iPad
/iPhone
.
and kills a pawn by smashing his head. Some battle sequences like Knight versus Knight or King versus Bishop are direct references to the black knight fight in Monty Python and the Holy Grail
(1975) and the short battle between Indiana Jones and a swordsman in Raiders of the Lost Ark
(1981).
The game can be played in a 2D version with no animations, and the Amiga CDTV version features a fully voiced introduction describing the movements of the pieces for the benefit of beginners. Digitized sound is utilized in the DOS version for all battle sound effects and is played through the PC speaker, without the need for a sound card, using a technique akin to RealSound
.
The game could be played against a human opponent (by hotseat
, or by null modem
or over a local area network
in some ports) or against the computer's artificial intelligence
(AI). The game has an opening library from over 30,000 moves (which were not available for the C64 and Apple versions).
The Amiga version received favourable reviews from magazines due its comical battle sequences which were advanced (for the time) in terms of graphics, animation and sound. The German game magazine ASM, however, criticized the weak chess AI.
Magazine ratings:
Over a period of time Battle Chess spawned imitators such as Star Wars Chess
and Terminator 2: Chess Wars. Interplay won "Best Graphics Achievement In A Non-Graphics Product" from Software Publishers Association (later renamed to Software and Information Industry Association
) for their efforts.
Battle Chess producer Brian Fargo
expressed his fondness for the game in a 2006 interview, although he added that he did not think there would be much of an audience for it today.
The game was reviewed in 1989 in Dragon
#144 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 3½ out of 5 stars. The Lessers reviewed the Battle Chess Enhanced CD ROM in 1993 in Dragon #192, giving that version 5 stars.
themselves after ending their relationship with Electronic Arts
, besides Neuromancer.
In 1991, Battle Chess Enhanced was released for the PC, which features improved VGA graphics and a symphonic musical score that plays off of the CD-ROM. The same year a sequel was released titled Battle Chess II: Chinese Chess, based on Xiangqi
, commonly known as "Chinese chess." The next year Battle Chess 4000, was released, which spoofs science fiction movies and television series (such as a battle sequence that involves the monolith from 2001: A Space Odyssey) and uses a clay animation
art style similar to Clayfighter
.
The game was featured in the 1992 film Knight Moves
starring Christopher Lambert
and Diane Lane
, about a chess grandmaster who is accused of several murders.
A similar game, titled Battle VS Chess, was developed by TopWare Interactive
. Interplay filed and won an injunction for copyright infringement in 2010. TopWare was prevented from releasing Battle vs Chess in the United States, trial is set for the Summer of 2012.
Chess
Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
in which the chess piece
Chess piece
Chess pieces or chessmen are the pieces deployed on a chessboard to play the game of chess. The pieces vary in abilities, giving them different values in the game...
s come to life and battle one another when capturing. It was released for the Commodore Amiga and subsequently on the 3DO
3DO Interactive Multiplayer
The 3DO Interactive Multiplayer is a video game console originally produced by Panasonic in 1993. Further renditions of the hardware were released in 1994 by Sanyo and Goldstar. The consoles were manufactured according to specifications created by The 3DO Company, and were originally designed by...
, MS-DOS
MS-DOS
MS-DOS is an operating system for x86-based personal computers. It was the most commonly used member of the DOS family of operating systems, and was the main operating system for IBM PC compatible personal computers during the 1980s to the mid 1990s, until it was gradually superseded by operating...
, Apple IIGS
Apple IIGS
The Apple , the fifth and most powerful model in the Apple II series of personal computers produced by Apple Computer. The "GS" in the name stands for Graphics and Sound, referring to its enhanced graphics and sound capabilities, both of which greatly surpassed previous models of the line...
, Apple IIe
Apple IIe
The Apple IIe is the third model in the Apple II series of personal computers produced by Apple Computer. The e in the name stands for enhanced, referring to the fact that several popular features were now built-in that were only available as upgrades and add-ons in earlier models...
, Commodore 64
Commodore 64
The Commodore 64 is an 8-bit home computer introduced by Commodore International in January 1982.Volume production started in the spring of 1982, with machines being released on to the market in August at a price of US$595...
, Amiga CDTV, CD32
Amiga CD32
The Amiga CD32, styled "CD32" , was the first 32-bit CD-ROM based video game console released in western Europe, Australia, Canada and Brazil. It was first announced at the Science Museum in London, United Kingdom on 16 July 1993, and was released in September of the same year...
, Atari ST
Atari ST
The Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was released by Atari Corporation in 1985 and commercially available from that summer into the early 1990s. The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals...
, Apple Macintosh, Acorn Archimedes
Acorn Archimedes
The Acorn Archimedes was Acorn Computers Ltd's first general purpose home computer to be based on their own ARM architecture.Using a RISC design with a 32-bit CPU, at its launch in June 1987, the Archimedes was stated as running at 4 MIPS, with a claim of 18 MIPS during tests.The name is commonly...
, FM Towns
FM Towns
The FM Towns system is a Japanese PC variant, built by Fujitsu from February 1989 to the summer of 1997. It started as a proprietary PC variant intended for multimedia applications and PC games, but later became more compatible with regular PCs...
, Windows 3.x
Windows 3.x
Windows 3.x can refer to either an individual or all of the following versions of Microsoft Windows:*Windows 3.0*Windows 3.1x*Windows 3.2...
and Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
. A new version of Battle Chess is currently in development by Subdued Software via a license from Interplay Entertainment. It is set for a release date of summer 2011 for the PC and iPad
IPad
The iPad is a line of tablet computers designed, developed and marketed by Apple Inc., primarily as a platform for audio-visual media including books, periodicals, movies, music, games, and web content. The iPad was introduced on January 27, 2010 by Apple's then-CEO Steve Jobs. Its size and...
/iPhone
IPhone
The iPhone is a line of Internet and multimedia-enabled smartphones marketed by Apple Inc. The first iPhone was unveiled by Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, on January 9, 2007, and released on June 29, 2007...
.
Features
There are 35 battle animations. The rook, for example, turns into a rock monsterGolem
In Jewish folklore, a golem is an animated anthropomorphic being, created entirely from inanimate matter. The word was used to mean an amorphous, unformed material in Psalms and medieval writing....
and kills a pawn by smashing his head. Some battle sequences like Knight versus Knight or King versus Bishop are direct references to the black knight fight in Monty Python and the Holy Grail
Monty Python and the Holy Grail
Monty Python and the Holy Grail is a 1974 British comedy film written and performed by the comedy group Monty Python , and directed by Gilliam and Jones...
(1975) and the short battle between Indiana Jones and a swordsman in Raiders of the Lost Ark
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Raiders of the Lost Ark is a 1981 American action-adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg, produced by George Lucas, and starring Harrison Ford. It is the first film in the Indiana Jones franchise...
(1981).
The game can be played in a 2D version with no animations, and the Amiga CDTV version features a fully voiced introduction describing the movements of the pieces for the benefit of beginners. Digitized sound is utilized in the DOS version for all battle sound effects and is played through the PC speaker, without the need for a sound card, using a technique akin to RealSound
RealSound
RealSound is a patented technology for the PC created by Access Software during the late 1980s. RealSound enables 6-bit digitized PCM-audio playback on the PC speaker by means of PWM drive, allowing software control of the loud speaker's amplitude of displacement. The first video games to use it...
.
The game could be played against a human opponent (by hotseat
Hotseat (multiplayer mode)
Hotseat or hot seat is a multiplayer mode provided by some turn-based video games, which allows two or more players to play on the same device by taking turns playing the game...
, or by null modem
Null modem
Null modem is a communication method to connect two DTEs directly using an RS-232 serial cable. The name stems from the historical use of the RS-232 cable to connect two teleprinter devices to modems in order to communicate with one another; null modem communication was possible by instead using...
or over a local area network
Local area network
A local area network is a computer network that interconnects computers in a limited area such as a home, school, computer laboratory, or office building...
in some ports) or against the computer's artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. AI textbooks define the field as "the study and design of intelligent agents" where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its...
(AI). The game has an opening library from over 30,000 moves (which were not available for the C64 and Apple versions).
Reviews
Magazine ratings:
- AUIAmiga User InternationalAmiga User International was a monthly computer magazine published in its later years by AUI Limited, it was the first dedicated Amiga magazine in Europe and in comparison to other Amiga magazines, AUI had a more serious perspective...
- 9 out of 10 - Commodore UserCommodore UserCommodore User, known to the readers as the abbreviated CU, was one of the oldest British Commodore magazines. A publishing history spanning over 15 years, mixing content with technical and games features...
- 85% - ST/Amiga FormatST/Amiga FormatST Amiga Format was a computer magazine that covered the Atari ST and Amiga computers. It was published by Future Publishing to cover the ever growing market for the, then-new, 16-bit home computers. At first, the issues were equally balanced with coverage for both Commodore Amiga and Atari ST...
- 85% - Computer and Video GamesComputer and video gamesA video game is an electronic game that involves human interaction with a user interface to generate visual feedback on a video device. The word video in video game traditionally referred to a raster display device, but following popularization of the term "video game", it now implies any type of...
- 84%
Over a period of time Battle Chess spawned imitators such as Star Wars Chess
Star Wars computer and video games
Star Wars has spawned over one hundred computer and video games, dating back to some of the earliest home consoles. Some are based directly on movie material, with the remaining games heavily involved in the Expanded Universe.-Early history:...
and Terminator 2: Chess Wars. Interplay won "Best Graphics Achievement In A Non-Graphics Product" from Software Publishers Association (later renamed to Software and Information Industry Association
Software and Information Industry Association
The Software & Information Industry Association is a United States based software trade association. The organization lobbies United States policy makers as well as conducting surveys and research and many conferences and webcasts....
) for their efforts.
Battle Chess producer Brian Fargo
Brian Fargo
Brian Fargo is an American video game designer, developer, producer and executive probably best known for his company Interplay Entertainment.-Career Overview:...
expressed his fondness for the game in a 2006 interview, although he added that he did not think there would be much of an audience for it today.
The game was reviewed in 1989 in Dragon
Dragon (magazine)
Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
#144 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 3½ out of 5 stars. The Lessers reviewed the Battle Chess Enhanced CD ROM in 1993 in Dragon #192, giving that version 5 stars.
Sequels and legacy
Battle Chess was the first title developed and published by InterplayInterplay Entertainment
Interplay Entertainment Corporation is an American video game developer and publisher, founded in 1983 as Interplay Productions by Brian Fargo. The company had been a quality developer until they started publishing their own games in 1988, like Neuromancer and Battle Chess. The company was renamed...
themselves after ending their relationship with Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
, besides Neuromancer.
In 1991, Battle Chess Enhanced was released for the PC, which features improved VGA graphics and a symphonic musical score that plays off of the CD-ROM. The same year a sequel was released titled Battle Chess II: Chinese Chess, based on Xiangqi
Xiangqi
Xiangqi is a two-player Chinese board game in the same family as Western chess, chaturanga, shogi, Indian chess and janggi. The present-day form of Xiangqi originated in China and is therefore commonly called Chinese chess in English. Xiangqi is one of the most popular board games in China...
, commonly known as "Chinese chess." The next year Battle Chess 4000, was released, which spoofs science fiction movies and television series (such as a battle sequence that involves the monolith from 2001: A Space Odyssey) and uses a clay animation
Clay animation
Clay animation or claymation is one of many forms of stop motion animation. Each animated piece, either character or background, is "deformable"—made of a malleable substance, usually Plasticine clay....
art style similar to Clayfighter
ClayFighter
ClayFighter is a fighting game released for the Super NES in 1993, and later ported to Mega Drive/Genesis in 1994. It has been re-released on Nintendo's Virtual Console along with the two Earthworm Jim games and Boogerman, which are also by Interplay....
.
The game was featured in the 1992 film Knight Moves
Knight Moves
Knight Moves is a 1992 American thriller film, directed by Carl Schenkel and written by Brad Mirman, about a chess grandmaster who is accused of several grisly murders.-Synopsis:...
starring Christopher Lambert
Christopher Lambert
Christophe Guy Denis "Christopher" Lambert is an American-born French actor who has appeared in French, European and American productions. He is best known for his role as Connor MacLeod, or simply "The Highlander", from the movie and subsequent movie franchise series of the same name...
and Diane Lane
Diane Lane
Diane Lane is an American film actress.Born and raised in New York City, Lane made her screen debut at the age of 13 in George Roy Hill's 1979 film A Little Romance, starring opposite Sir Laurence Olivier. Soon after, she was featured on the cover of Time magazine...
, about a chess grandmaster who is accused of several murders.
A similar game, titled Battle VS Chess, was developed by TopWare Interactive
TopWare Interactive
TopWare Interactive is a video game publisher and developer located in Paradise, Nevada.TopWare Interactive started out in 1995 as a video game publishing subsidiary of the TopWare CD Service AG based in Mannheim, Germany— which included a inhouse development studio based in Poland. In...
. Interplay filed and won an injunction for copyright infringement in 2010. TopWare was prevented from releasing Battle vs Chess in the United States, trial is set for the Summer of 2012.