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POSTED 15/4/14
PURE CHESS
Ripstone PS4/PSN (also on
PS3/PSN, Vita/PSN, Wii U/eShop, 3DS/eShop)
There’s
not really much that we can say about Chess. Well, there’s nothing
particularly constructive that we can add to any conversation about
it. Except, perhaps, to say that this PS4 outing of Pure Chess
looks pretty and doesn’t
break anything from the PS3 and Vita releases. Mind you, it also
doesn’t
add anything either, so those craving decent online head-to-head are
left wanting, still stuck with snail-like, staring contest you
move/I move play-by-mail. Still, ooh shiny!
The
sixth century comes alive! 64 squares! 32 champions! Mesmerising
battles! Mind-blowing strategy! Royalty at war! Horsies! Prawns!
Saturday, Saturday, Saturday!
Nope. No matter how much we try to hype it, Chess is never going to
be an eyeball-searing orgasm of scintillation. Not everything has to
be, either. Still, Pure Chess, from the clever VooFoo
croocroo (think shiny bally
Hustle Kings), adds much polish to something that’s rooted
in strategy rather than hoopla.
Solo players have three modes – one-off games, tournaments and
challenges where you’re plopped in mid-game, with deep doodoo to
plough through. Online multiplayer nods to pre-internet days in that
you can only ‘play by mail’ a turn at a time with PSN pals. Two can
go head-to-head locally though. It even records your ELO rating.
What the fuck Jeff Lynne has to do with Chess is beyond us...
It plays a challenging game on all ten levels – we’re poopoo, so the
basic one’s hard enough - and features a comprehensive tutorial that
goes into famous strategies and even tries to explain some bizarre
rule where castles and kings can switcheroonie. Snuh?
Seriously, we’ve been known to complain about game rules or controls
being convoluted, yet when you think about it the laws of Chess are
quite bonkerstastical. This piece goes this way, that one that way
and horsies can only do Tetris
‘L’ shape impersonations. Prawns can only move straight, but
diagonally to conquer other bits – it’s nuts! Yet it’s endured for
some 1,500 years. Maybe we’ll still be playing Defender come
the year 3512?
Meanwhile, whichever chess set you choose in whichever venue – with
more, such as
Pseudo Echo’s debut album, available separately - it looks
stunning. Full 1080p shiny-shininess, rotatable boards and even 3D
support for posh teev types.
Oh yeah, we know that they’re really pawns. We just like seafood –
and shit-stirring purists...
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CLICK
THIS!
CLICK
THIS!
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