Pure Chess: Grandmaster Edition review

Review Pure Chess: Grandmaster Edition | I’m very much aware that not many Xbox gamers are Chess masters. Neither am I, I know the basic game but skilled placement and thinking 10 moves a head is not something I can do, yet. If you want to start learning this mental game Pure Chess is the right game to start. Check out why in this review!

THE GOOD!

• You can start the game with a pretty deep and informative tutorial. It will explain the basics, how you control the game with your controller and some advanced movements. Beginners can learn the game but you’ll need dedication to become a good chess player.
• Making a chess game look beautiful isn’t the hardest thing in the world but VooFoo Studios really made some impressive efforts in turning it almost photorealistic. Pure Chess is a very stunning looking game with incredible detail on the chess pieces. Shadow effects, light that shines on the rooks or knights or all the different chess piece materials look gorgeous.
• Just started with chess? Or have you been playing it for years? The good thing about Pure Chess: Grandmaster Edition is that everyone can enjoy it. With ten AI difficulty levels I’m pretty sure that you will find a  skill level that matches your chess abilities. I had absolutely no chance against level five, so I can’t even imagine how much ill get owned against a level ten skill.
• I loved some of the other set pieces, for example the Park Animals or Roman themes. A nice touch to change some things up after playing with the same set for hours. The same can be said about the beautiful environments.

Mixed Feelings

• You should be able to bring up the name of a chess piece, if you are not using the standard chess pieces it’s sometimes hard to remember what the Queen or Knight is.

THE BAD!

• I was looking forward for some great online matches but playing against strangers is a real chore. You “kinda” play in real-time but opponents have unlimited time. You have multiple online slots so you can play different online matches at the same time, when its your move you get a Xbox Live notification.  That might get annoying but I actually really love this feature.

Score: 82% | Pure Chess: Grandmaster Edition is an excellent, fun and rewarding single player experience. Sadly, the game sets itself checkmate when it comes to online play, playing with friends will be a blast, but against strangers it can and will become frustrating because of the way online matches are set up. Luckily Pure Chess: Grandmaster Edition is totally worth it for the single player content alone.