| Introduction
Garry Kasparov is considered the most brilliant human
chess player currently resident on our little planet.
I say human because only a few years ago he was beaten
by IBM's 'Deep Blue' computer and herein lies the problem
with most computer based Chess Simulators - they're
just too clever. It is still one of the most popular
board games in the world and has at some time made appearances
on every console, computer and handheld ever produced.
This is its first outing on the GBA though and mobile
chess fans everywhere will be holding their breath to
see if this is a Chess Sim they have a chance of beating
past the 'novice' setting.
GamePlay
Chess is a turn based, two player game of strategy
where different pieces have various powers and movement
properties. After that there's not a great deal to explain
because if you're unfamiliar with, or have never even
played, chess before I'm not about to explain it here.
Fortunately, Virtual Kasparov will. One thing to note
though is that playing chess can be very time consuming
and finding someone to play against is not always that
easy. People have played by mail, e-mail, with the numerous
PC versions and now, most importantly, we have a GBA
title.
As with all console games now you can't simply knock
out a game with a single mode of play so we've recently
seen titles such as Columns Crown and Driven which have
expanded on their standard gameplay. Virtual Kasparov
has embraced this trend and in addition to the classic
chess game you can also choose Quick Start which allows
you to set the duration of a game and play instantly
without a drawn out set-up and also lets you customize
player profiles. Then there's 'Story Mode' which is
possibly the most entertaining and takes you around
the world battling it out with 31 unique opponents with
individual personalities. Success in this mode features
bonuses which can unlock areas, more opponents and even
more games.
There are a huge amount of resources : technical
chess knowledge as well as history of the game. These
are all presented by Kasparov and chess afficionados
will love these sections as Gary takes you through,
step by step, some of the most famous games ever. Others
however may find all this a little... well, boring although
if you can't exercise a little patience then you probably
shouldn't be playing this. It must also be pointed out
that the chess engine has been designed by the authors
of the renowned PC program Virtual Chess which can only
be a good thing for a handheld version.
Controls
The interface here has been made very easy for even
the novice player and the select, move and de-select
works very well. There's also a huge tutorial section
which runs from the basic rules and the chess pieces
to advanced play and even Kasprov narrating classic
games. Absolute chess novices can choose the 'Beginners
Mode' which really is excellent. It not only monitors
all your moves but gives constant guidance whilst indicating
all the legal moves for you.
Graphics
Let's face it the graphics on any board game conversion
are never exactly cutting edge and Virtual Kasparov
is no exception. This is not to say that they're bad
however, as the presentation throughout is very pleasing
to the eye without detracting from the most important
aspect - the gameplay. The complicated nature of chess
may put some players off but the menus and interface
have been cleverly designed so as to make this handheld
version self-explanatory and a pleasurable experience.
Sound & Music
As with the graphics the audio doesn't have to be
outstanding and to be honest it would probably just
be distracting to the overall gameplay. There are some
pleasing music tracks to accompany most menu systems
and the intro but the sound effects are kept to a minimum
in-game.
Final Comments
This is an incredibly impressive Chess Sim and the
range of options on offer add to what is already an
outstanding GBA conversion. The unique feature here
though is the tutorial so if you've never even thought
of playing this classic board game before you now have
the chance to learn with Gary Kasparov as your teacher!
Experts are not overlooked either as the story and more
advanced modes will keep them occupied for quite some
time. Chess fans everywhere will adore this game. The
developers have done an outstanding job although the
only thing it taught me is that I'm no good at chess.
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