Chess is arguably the ultimate strategy game and has been around for hundreds of years, and now the worlds most famous board game has come to Xbox One. Pure Chess has been available for a while on other formats but for the Xbox release it comes as the Grandmaster Edition which basically gives you some extra themes when it comes to picking your pieces. As the name suggests there's not much in the way of extra bells and whistles but then it doesn't really need much else when you have such a tried and tested game.
The look of Pure Chess is beautiful, you can pick photorealistic rooms to play in, such as a library or a penthouse, and choose from a laid back soundtrack ranging from smooth jazz to classical or maybe sounds of nature if that's your thing. The are different sets of chess pieces in a range of designs and materials which was handy as when I used the glass pieces they tended to merge into one another on screen. Some of the sets while looking great can be confusing until you've used them a few times, as its easy to forget which piece is which, so I tended to stick to the more traditional looking sets.
For players that are complete strangers to Chess, there's a tutorial that is split into lots of modules that will start you off with the complete basics by introducing you to each piece on the board in turn and get you to make moves to familiarise yourself. It may be a bit long winded if you trawl through the whole thing but players who have some idea what they are doing but are still not sure about their "en passant" or "castling" may still find the latter stages useful that deal with basic tactics, plus giving you some tips on how to open a game.
On to the game itself and there are different skill levels of AI to pit your wits against, the lowest being Monkey, perhaps implying it's the equivalent of playing against a chess playing chimp. A good level to give a confidence boost to newbies but most players should be able to find a challenge at a higher level. The Grandmaster level was way too advanced for this reviewer but I found a level that was challenging for me at around the halfway mark, so plenty of scope to advance as you improve as a player.
As well as playing versus the computer there is a local player game so can play against the person sitting next to you, but if there's no one available you can try an online game. You get an ELO rating on the online ladder depending on how well you do in your games, so you will rise faster if you beat an opponent of a higher standing. When I played it seemed to be pot luck if you got to play someone in real time, or whether you had to make your move, and then have the game alert you when your opponent has responded, which could be seconds, minutes, hours or longer. It was like a game of correspondence chess, which is a good thing as with there not being a massive pool of players, at least you still get a game, albeit prolonged. The only trouble is you may be sat there like a lemon waiting for an online opponent to make a move when they aren't even there, but at least you can have more than one online game on the go at time to switch between.
If you desire more than a single game, you can play in tournaments of 3 different levels of AI, and while most wont have much trouble winning the Beginners tournament, the Challengers and Masters levels will be much more of a personal test. Another extra feature which I enjoyed was the Challenges, very handy if you don't have the time for a full game. There are 10 Challenges in each category, in which you have to get checkmate in 1 to 5 moves, so they are taxing without being particularly time consuming.
Pure Chess is a game that gives you exactly what it says on the box, not much added or taken away, but when it isn't broken, don't try and fix it. Maybe not a title with mass appeal, but for existing fans of Chess its a worthy addition to your game collection.
Developer/Publisher: Ripstone Ltd
Genre: Strategy
Price: £9.99
Many Thanks to XCN for the review copy.