Game Reviews (and other rated comments on Game pages)

I think that EXISTENTIALIST CHESS is one of the most intriguing 
cv's I've ever come up with. Yes, it is complicated, but read 
through the rules a few times and eventually you'll get the hang
of it. One of the things that's fun about this game is all the
different combinations you can come up with from confabulating
the archer and zednick. Is the archer too powerful a piece?
Perhaps. One may be forced to give up one of their own powerful
pieces just to get rid of their opponent's archer. 

A few notes to add that I forgot to mention from the text:
A cannon's long jump move is done in a straight line either
horizontally or vertically but not diagonally. Though I didn't
intend it originally as such when I wrote it, so as to go along
with the literal description of the rule as stated, a dazzler
may not jump an enemy shield, either with the long cannon-like
jump (intended rule) or from 2 squares away (unintended rule).

There were a few typos in the text as originally posted, I've
sent in an email to the editors of this site pointing them out
asking them to correct them.

Captain Kirk, you're funny. I know what you mean, but I did not
set out to deliberately make a game that was overly complicated.
I just wanted to create a game with a lot of different pieces
and a lot of possibilities. I think that, by comparison, my game
is easier to follow than a game like THE GAME OF NEMOROTH 
which seems to me to be very hard to play and has pieces conflicting
each other all the time. 

Lastly I would like to add that I welcome anyone to email me
at DavidNYJfan@hotmail.com if you would like to play 
EXISTENTIALIST CHESS with me by email. We can submit an ASCII
diagram to each other with each move, though I would prefer to
play against people who have ZILLIONS OF GAMES and when a 
zrf file for this game is eventually posted to this page, use
it to record the positions of the game and only email each other
the moves, and not the diagram too.

Nice concept and very cleanly explained, however the example might be
flawed, since e1-d2 should be illeagal for it moves white king into
check, because the black king has the backing of a queen so it can
move as a queen and take take the white king in the next move. a
black bishop instead of queen would work.

Sometimes a random search can come up with amazing things, I was
searching for some material for an variant of mine when I came across
this item. It is very well illustrated and strait forward and provides
a good blueprint for how intergrid peice should work. very nice work
indeed.

This would ofcourse mean that you won't promote into a queen if you take
your pawn to the 8th rank. That would gain you nothing and your opponent
get another Queen possibillity.
The strategies behind this game is rather fun to think about.
You don't want to take all your opponents pieces 'cause you'll loose
easier.
I think I'll like it when I get around to play test it.

Regards

Tomas

Does anyone play Carrera's Chess please?

I like the idea of playing this game simply because it is so old.

I have seen the note in the older feedback which leads to mention of a 19th
Century translation of his book.  Does that book deal with ordinary chess
or with Carrera's Chess, or both, please?

Are there any documented games of Carrera's Chess please, in particular
from the 17th Century?

William Overington

19 June 2002

WOverington@ngo.globalnet.co.uk

Looking at http://www.chessvariants.com/historic.dir/carrera.html which is
the Carrera's Chess page I notice that both Queens are on a square of their
own colour at the start of play.

Looking at the start up position in the Java applet of
http://chessvariants.com/play/erf/CarreraC.htm I notice that neither Queen
is on a square of her own colour at the start of play.

Does anyone by any chance have access to reproductions of any illustrations
from the 1617 book please so that the matter may be determined historically
please?

I have recently been devising some code point and illustration pairings of
Unicode code points and chess symbols. 

I have now added some more code points so as to include the Champion and
the Centaur of Carrera's Chess.

I have published these in the hope that that might lead to some Unicode
compatible chess founts being produced, perhaps including the Carrera
pieces.

The first document is at the following address.

http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~ngo/chess.htm

The second document is at the following address.

http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~ngo/chess2.htm

Both documents are available from the index at the following address.

http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~ngo/golden.htm

The index page of the webspace is as follows.

http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~ngo

As I am interested in typography I am interested to know what designs the
1617 book suggested for the Champion and the Centaur (if indeed any).  Does
anyone know please?

William Overington

20 June 2002

I would suggest that at the beginning of the game only allow the black
player to spinnach, this would balance the first move advantage.

You have everything but pink elephants! (And is there not a Drunken
Elephant in one of the Oriental variants?)

I like the way you start with the simple theme of the five-limbed elephant
and extend on the idea to develop bunches and bunches of new pieces and
armies.