Chessmaster
Encyclopedia
Chessmaster is a chess
playing computer game series which is now owned and developed by Ubisoft
. It is the best-selling chess franchise in history, with more than five million units sold .
The Chessmaster chess engine is called The King, written by Johan de Koning of the Netherlands
. It was introduced in Chessmaster 4000; earlier releases featured a chess engine written by David Kittinger.
According to the September 2009 Swedish Chess Computer Association
(SSDF) rating list, Chessmaster 9000 has an estimated Elo rating
of 2718 on an Athlon
-1200 PC. If multiple versions of other engines are stripped out of their list, Chessmaster 9000 ranks 14th among all engines tested. , Chessmaster 9000 remains the most recent version rated by the SSDF. Another rating list, CCRL, places Chessmaster 11th Edition in 24th place on its December 2009 list.
The King engine allows users to create new playing styles, also called "personalities", by manipulating several dozen different settings, such as King Safety, Pawn Weakness, Randomness, Mobility and others. Individual piece values can also be adjusted. Chessmaster 9000, for example, features over 150 different personalities ranging from International Grandmaster
strength down to Stanley, who is described as a monkey and plays what are essentially random moves.
The personality feature has inspired many amateur computer chess
enthusiasts to attempt to find more optimum personalities.In Chessmaster 10th Edition, the creation of new personalities has been made easier than before.
Chessmaster 9000 defeated then U.S. Chess Champion International Grandmaster
Larry Christiansen in a four-game match held in September 2002. Chessmaster won the match 2.5-1.5. The Chessmaster program was operated by John Merlino, the Project Manager of Chessmaster at the time of the match. Four different personalities were used in the match, the first three of which were based on famous human Grandmasters: Alexander Alekhine
, Bobby Fischer
, and Mikhail Botvinnik
. The final game of the match used the default "Chessmaster" personality. Christiansen won the first game, lost the second and third games, and the fourth game resulted in a draw.
, Apple II
, Apple IIGS
, Atari 8-bit
, Atari ST
, Amstrad CPC
, ZX Spectrum
, Commodore 64
, DOS
, PC, Mac, Nintendo Entertainment System
, Super Nintendo Entertainment System
, Game Boy
, Game Boy Color
, Game Boy Advance
, Nintendo DS
, Sega Game Gear
, PlayStation, PlayStation 2
, Xbox
, and mobile phones. Early Macintosh versions Chessmaster 3000, 4000 and Multimedia were developed by Sebastian Rapport and Troy Heere that leveraged the Kittinger and de Koning engines respectively. Later Macintosh versions were ported by Feral Interactive
, and the latest Macintosh version available is Chessmaster 9000. Ubisoft also offers a downloadable version of the game: "Chessmaster Challenge differs from Chessmaster 10th Edition in its simplified interface, and scaled-down tutorials. It’s a non-retail product available for trial and purchase through download only."
The more recent editions of Chessmaster include both 2D and 3D designs, and a large number of different boards and themed chess piece designs. The interface was revised for Chessmaster 10th Edition and features animated 3D sets in which the pieces "walk" between squares and have simulated battles when a piece is taken, reminiscent of Battle Chess
and the Harry Potter
Wizards chess set. (Previous editions also feature fully 3D sets but are not animated and the pieces do not battle.) Chessmaster 10th Edition also comes packed with a pair of red and blue glasses to view the set in "enhanced 3D".
version with Xbox Live
multiplayer and Xbox Live Vision camera support for the Xbox 360
called Chessmaster Live was released on 30 January 2008 for 800 Microsoft Points
($10 USD).
This version of Chessmaster contained a bug allowing the white player to indefinitely hold up a match until a player resigned. The game was eventually patched so that neither player would gain or lose Elo points if they resign before the first move.
commented that "Chessmaster has remained the consummate standard in console chess games since the '80s." IGN
said that "the series itself remains the best way to play and learn about chess on the PC."
Chessmaster: Grandmaster Edition, the most recent PC edition of the series, scored positive reviews, with PC Gamer
saying: "this one-stop shop for an entire chess-playing and learning family should last until you're all grandmasters." Chessmaster 10th Edition holds an 84% rating on review aggregator site Game Rankings
. IGN gave Chessmaster 10th Edition a score of 8.4/10, calling it "the best chess game in town." GameSpot's review of Chessmaster 10th Edition said, "If you're looking for a good chess program that's packed with a plethora of features and all the bells and whistles, you'll be very happy with Chessmaster 10th Edition.
The mobile phone version of Chessmaster received a score of 9/10 from IGN, who called it "an absolutely superlative product that will be enjoyed for week after week by fans of the mental contest." IGN criticized the Nintendo DS version of Chessmaster: The Art of Learning for its lack of multiplayer, but gave it an overall positive review, with a score of 7.8/10. IGN criticized the "boring" presentation of the PlayStation Portable version of Chessmaster: The Art of Learning, but added that "there's no doubt that the information is valuable and can teach you the finer points of the game."
Although the Chessmaster chess engine is generally not as strong as the engines of other commercially-available chess programs such as Fritz
, critics have praised the Chessmaster series for its comprehensive tutorials aimed at players of amateur and moderate skill levels. In its review of Chessmaster 9000, IGN said that "the series has always distinguished itself with first-rate chess teaching tools," and welcomed the game's "appeal towards inexperienced and mid-level players. With all manner of tutorials, detailed analysis and exercises, the game helps ease newbies into the experience." GameSpot's review of Chessmaster 10th Edition commented positively on the game's "huge bundle of features aimed at everyone from the neophyte who's looking to learn the basics to the advanced wood pusher who may need practice for tournament play."
A common criticism of the series has been the lack of new features in successive installments. IGN's review of Chessmaster 10th Edition commented, "it simply doesn't add enough over any of the last two versions to make it a necessary upgrade."
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...
playing computer game series which is now owned and developed by Ubisoft
Ubisoft
Ubisoft Entertainment S.A. is a major French video game publisher and developer, with headquarters in Montreuil, France. The company has a worldwide presence with 25 studios in 17 countries and subsidiaries in 26 countries....
. It is the best-selling chess franchise in history, with more than five million units sold .
Timeline
- 1986: The Chessmaster series started with The Chessmaster 2000 by The Software Toolworks. It was published for AmigaAmigaThe Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
, Apple IIApple IIThe Apple II is an 8-bit home computer, one of the first highly successful mass-produced microcomputer products, designed primarily by Steve Wozniak, manufactured by Apple Computer and introduced in 1977...
, Atari 8-bitAtari 8-bit familyThe Atari 8-bit family is a series of 8-bit home computers manufactured from 1979 to 1992. All are based on the MOS Technology 6502 CPU and were the first home computers designed with custom coprocessor chips...
, Atari STAtari STThe 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...
, ZX SpectrumZX SpectrumThe ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit personal home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research Ltd...
, Commodore 64Commodore 64The 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...
, Amstrad CPCAmstrad CPCThe Amstrad CPC is a series of 8-bit home computers produced by Amstrad between 1984 and 1990. It was designed to compete in the mid-1980s home computer market dominated by the Commodore 64 and the Sinclair ZX Spectrum, where it successfully established itself primarily in the United Kingdom,...
, MSXMSXMSX was the name of a standardized home computer architecture in the 1980s conceived by Kazuhiko Nishi, then Vice-president at Microsoft Japan and Director at ASCII Corporation...
, MacintoshMacintoshThe Macintosh , or Mac, is a series of several lines of personal computers designed, developed, and marketed by Apple Inc. The first Macintosh was introduced by Apple's then-chairman Steve Jobs on January 24, 1984; it was the first commercially successful personal computer to feature a mouse and a...
, and DOSDOSDOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
; the game had a chess engine written by David Kittinger, and the manufacturer rated the game at 2000 Elo USCF, in reality it plays at approximately 1550-1600 Elo (1750-1800 USCF). - 1988: Chessmaster 2100 was published for the Apple IIGSApple IIGSThe 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...
. - 1989: Chessmaster 2100 was published for DOSDOSDOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
. - 1990 The Chessmaster was published for the NESNes-Localities:In Norway:* Nes, Akershus, a municipality in the county of Akershus in Norway* Nes, Buskerud, a municipality in the county of Buskerud in Norway* Nes, Hedmark, a former municipality in the county of Hedmark in Norway...
. - 1991: The Chessmaster was published for the SNES.
- 1991: Chessmaster 3000 was published for DOSDOSDOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
, Windows 3.xWindows 3.1xWindows 3.1x is a series of 16-bit operating systems produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers. The series began with Windows 3.1, which was first sold during March 1992 as a successor to Windows 3.0...
. - 1993: Chessmaster 4000 was published for Windows 3.xWindows 3.1xWindows 3.1x is a series of 16-bit operating systems produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers. The series began with Windows 3.1, which was first sold during March 1992 as a successor to Windows 3.0...
- 1995: Chessmaster 3d for PlayStation had the chessmaster 4000 engine.
- 30 October 2007: The current version, Chessmaster XI, was released for PC (titled Chessmaster: Grandmaster Edition) and Nintendo DS (titled Chessmaster: The Art of Learning), and 12 February 2008 for PlayStation Portable (also titled Chessmaster: The Art of Learning). It includes numerous tutorials by International Master Joshua WaitzkinJoshua WaitzkinJoshua Waitzkin is an American chess player, martial arts competitor, and author. As a child, he was recognized as a prodigy, and won the U.S. Junior Chess championship in 1993 and 1994. He is the only person to have won the National Primary, Elementary, Junior High School, High School, U.S....
for players of all skill levels.
Chess engine
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
. It was introduced in Chessmaster 4000; earlier releases featured a chess engine written by David Kittinger.
According to the September 2009 Swedish Chess Computer Association
Swedish Chess Computer Association
The Swedish Chess Computer Association is an organization that tests computer chess software by playing chess programs against one another and producing a rating list. On September 26, 2008, the list was released with Deep Rybka 3 leading with an estimated Elo rating of 3238. Rybka's listing in...
(SSDF) rating list, Chessmaster 9000 has an estimated Elo rating
Elo rating system
The Elo rating system is a method for calculating the relative skill levels of players in two-player games such as chess. It is named after its creator Arpad Elo, a Hungarian-born American physics professor....
of 2718 on an Athlon
Athlon
Athlon is the brand name applied to a series of x86-compatible microprocessors designed and manufactured by Advanced Micro Devices . The original Athlon was the first seventh-generation x86 processor and, in a first, retained the initial performance lead it had over Intel's competing processors...
-1200 PC. If multiple versions of other engines are stripped out of their list, Chessmaster 9000 ranks 14th among all engines tested. , Chessmaster 9000 remains the most recent version rated by the SSDF. Another rating list, CCRL, places Chessmaster 11th Edition in 24th place on its December 2009 list.
The King engine allows users to create new playing styles, also called "personalities", by manipulating several dozen different settings, such as King Safety, Pawn Weakness, Randomness, Mobility and others. Individual piece values can also be adjusted. Chessmaster 9000, for example, features over 150 different personalities ranging from International Grandmaster
International Grandmaster
The title Grandmaster is awarded to strong chess players by the world chess organization FIDE. Apart from World Champion, Grandmaster is the highest title a chess player can attain....
strength down to Stanley, who is described as a monkey and plays what are essentially random moves.
The personality feature has inspired many amateur computer chess
Computer chess
Computer chess is computer architecture encompassing hardware and software capable of playing chess autonomously without human guidance. Computer chess acts as solo entertainment , as aids to chess analysis, for computer chess competitions, and as research to provide insights into human...
enthusiasts to attempt to find more optimum personalities.In Chessmaster 10th Edition, the creation of new personalities has been made easier than before.
Chessmaster 9000 defeated then U.S. Chess Champion International Grandmaster
International Grandmaster
The title Grandmaster is awarded to strong chess players by the world chess organization FIDE. Apart from World Champion, Grandmaster is the highest title a chess player can attain....
Larry Christiansen in a four-game match held in September 2002. Chessmaster won the match 2.5-1.5. The Chessmaster program was operated by John Merlino, the Project Manager of Chessmaster at the time of the match. Four different personalities were used in the match, the first three of which were based on famous human Grandmasters: Alexander Alekhine
Alexander Alekhine
Alexander Alexandrovich Alekhine was the fourth World Chess Champion. He is often considered one of the greatest chess players ever.By the age of twenty-two, he was already among the strongest chess players in the world. During the 1920s, he won most of the tournaments in which he played...
, Bobby Fischer
Bobby Fischer
Robert James "Bobby" Fischer was an American chess Grandmaster and the 11th World Chess Champion. He is widely considered one of the greatest chess players of all time. Fischer was also a best-selling chess author...
, and Mikhail Botvinnik
Mikhail Botvinnik
Mikhail Moiseyevich Botvinnik, Ph.D. was a Soviet and Russian International Grandmaster and three-time World Chess Champion. Working as an electrical engineer and computer scientist at the same time, he was one of the very few famous chess players who achieved distinction in another career while...
. The final game of the match used the default "Chessmaster" personality. Christiansen won the first game, lost the second and third games, and the fourth game resulted in a draw.
Platforms
To date, various versions of Chessmaster have appeared on AmigaAmiga
The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
, Apple II
Apple II
The Apple II is an 8-bit home computer, one of the first highly successful mass-produced microcomputer products, designed primarily by Steve Wozniak, manufactured by Apple Computer and introduced in 1977...
, 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...
, Atari 8-bit
Atari 8-bit family
The Atari 8-bit family is a series of 8-bit home computers manufactured from 1979 to 1992. All are based on the MOS Technology 6502 CPU and were the first home computers designed with custom coprocessor chips...
, 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...
, Amstrad CPC
Amstrad CPC
The Amstrad CPC is a series of 8-bit home computers produced by Amstrad between 1984 and 1990. It was designed to compete in the mid-1980s home computer market dominated by the Commodore 64 and the Sinclair ZX Spectrum, where it successfully established itself primarily in the United Kingdom,...
, ZX Spectrum
ZX Spectrum
The ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit personal home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research Ltd...
, 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...
, DOS
DOS
DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
, PC, Mac, 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...
, Super Nintendo Entertainment System
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...
, Game Boy
Game Boy
The , is an 8-bit handheld video game device developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on , in North America in , and in Europe on...
, Game Boy Color
Game Boy Color
The is Nintendo's successor to the 8-bit Game Boy handheld game console, and was released on October 21, 1998 in Japan, November 19, 1998 in North America, November 23, 1998 in Europe and November 27, 1998 in the United Kingdom. It features a color screen and is slightly thicker and taller than...
, Game Boy Advance
Game Boy Advance
The is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed, manufactured, and marketed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001; and in the People's Republic of China...
, Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
, Sega Game Gear
Sega Game Gear
The was Sega's first handheld game console. It was the third commercially available color handheld console, after the Atari Lynx and the TurboExpress....
, PlayStation, PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
, Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
, and mobile phones. Early Macintosh versions Chessmaster 3000, 4000 and Multimedia were developed by Sebastian Rapport and Troy Heere that leveraged the Kittinger and de Koning engines respectively. Later Macintosh versions were ported by Feral Interactive
Feral Interactive
Feral Interactive is a publishing company founded in 1999 that publishes games and other software that did not fit in with the release programs of the large established publishers. It publishes Macintosh games and has relationships with publishers such as Electronic Arts, Eidos Interactive,...
, and the latest Macintosh version available is Chessmaster 9000. Ubisoft also offers a downloadable version of the game: "Chessmaster Challenge differs from Chessmaster 10th Edition in its simplified interface, and scaled-down tutorials. It’s a non-retail product available for trial and purchase through download only."
Interface
Battle Chess
Battle Chess is a computer game version of chess in which the chess pieces 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...
and the Harry Potter
Harry Potter
Harry Potter is a series of seven fantasy novels written by the British author J. K. Rowling. The books chronicle the adventures of the adolescent wizard Harry Potter and his best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, all of whom are students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry...
Wizards chess set. (Previous editions also feature fully 3D sets but are not animated and the pieces do not battle.) Chessmaster 10th Edition also comes packed with a pair of red and blue glasses to view the set in "enhanced 3D".
Xbox Live Arcade
An Xbox Live ArcadeXbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
version with Xbox Live
Xbox Live
Xbox Live is an online multiplayer gaming and digital media delivery service created and operated by Microsoft Corporation. It is currently the only online gaming service on consoles that charges users a fee to play multiplayer gaming. It was first made available to the Xbox system in 2002...
multiplayer and Xbox Live Vision camera support for the Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
called Chessmaster Live was released on 30 January 2008 for 800 Microsoft Points
Microsoft Points
Microsoft Points are the currency of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Games for Windows - Live Marketplace, Windows Live Gallery, and Zune online stores. The points allow users to purchase content without a credit card and to reduce the number of small credit card transaction fees, which Microsoft would...
($10 USD).
This version of Chessmaster contained a bug allowing the white player to indefinitely hold up a match until a player resigned. The game was eventually patched so that neither player would gain or lose Elo points if they resign before the first move.
Reception
Critical reaction to the Chessmaster series has been mostly positive. GameSpotGameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
commented that "Chessmaster has remained the consummate standard in console chess games since the '80s." IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
said that "the series itself remains the best way to play and learn about chess on the PC."
Chessmaster: Grandmaster Edition, the most recent PC edition of the series, scored positive reviews, with PC Gamer
PC Gamer
PC Gamer is a magazine founded in Britain in 1993 devoted to PC gaming and published monthly by Future Publishing. The magazine has several regional editions, with the UK and US editions becoming the best selling PC games magazines in their respective countries...
saying: "this one-stop shop for an entire chess-playing and learning family should last until you're all grandmasters." Chessmaster 10th Edition holds an 84% rating on review aggregator site Game Rankings
Game Rankings
GameRankings is a website that collects review scores from both offline and online sources to give an average rating. It indexes over 315,000 articles relating to more than 14,500 games.GameRankings is owned by CBS Interactive...
. IGN gave Chessmaster 10th Edition a score of 8.4/10, calling it "the best chess game in town." GameSpot's review of Chessmaster 10th Edition said, "If you're looking for a good chess program that's packed with a plethora of features and all the bells and whistles, you'll be very happy with Chessmaster 10th Edition.
The mobile phone version of Chessmaster received a score of 9/10 from IGN, who called it "an absolutely superlative product that will be enjoyed for week after week by fans of the mental contest." IGN criticized the Nintendo DS version of Chessmaster: The Art of Learning for its lack of multiplayer, but gave it an overall positive review, with a score of 7.8/10. IGN criticized the "boring" presentation of the PlayStation Portable version of Chessmaster: The Art of Learning, but added that "there's no doubt that the information is valuable and can teach you the finer points of the game."
Although the Chessmaster chess engine is generally not as strong as the engines of other commercially-available chess programs such as Fritz
Fritz (chess)
Fritz is a German chess program developed by Frans Morsch and Mathias Feist and published by ChessBase. There is also a version called Deep Fritz that is designed for multiprocessing....
, critics have praised the Chessmaster series for its comprehensive tutorials aimed at players of amateur and moderate skill levels. In its review of Chessmaster 9000, IGN said that "the series has always distinguished itself with first-rate chess teaching tools," and welcomed the game's "appeal towards inexperienced and mid-level players. With all manner of tutorials, detailed analysis and exercises, the game helps ease newbies into the experience." GameSpot's review of Chessmaster 10th Edition commented positively on the game's "huge bundle of features aimed at everyone from the neophyte who's looking to learn the basics to the advanced wood pusher who may need practice for tournament play."
A common criticism of the series has been the lack of new features in successive installments. IGN's review of Chessmaster 10th Edition commented, "it simply doesn't add enough over any of the last two versions to make it a necessary upgrade."
Notable games
- Larry Christiansen vs. Chessmaster 9000 (September 2002), annotated at GameKnotGameknotGameKnot is an Internet chess server featuring both correspondence chess and real-time chess, along with Java single-player games, without the need to download additional software. GameKnot has been in business since June 2000, with has over 1 million registered players who have completed over 19...
:
External links
- Chessmaster XI website
- http://www.feralinteractive.com/game/chessmaster9kChessmaster 9000 at Feral InteractiveFeral InteractiveFeral Interactive is a publishing company founded in 1999 that publishes games and other software that did not fit in with the release programs of the large established publishers. It publishes Macintosh games and has relationships with publishers such as Electronic Arts, Eidos Interactive,...
] - The Chessmaster 2000 review @ The DOS Spirit (Norwegian)
- Chessmaster Live XBLA page http://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/Product/Chessmaster-Live/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d80258410866