PART 2 • The idea behind chess quests
Chess King's chess quests tackle both of these problems head on. In
Chess King's Quest Mode, your opponent is the Houdini 4 chess engine,
the strongest PC chess engine, and it's playing at full strength. You can't
afford to relax and be complacent when you're playing against Houdini
– one slip, a single lazy move or lapse on your part, and the engine can
easily turn the tables on you in a heartbeat. If you just play aimlessly, not
paying attention, you'll often be shocked when Houdini drops a bomb on
you; then you get that horrible sinking feeling when you realize you're in
serious trouble.
Chess King also helps you with the second problem. Since Houdini never gets tired and always plays at full bore, in many chess quests (especially those based on endgames) you will absolutely need to use proper
technique to complete the quest and gain a reward. When used in conjunction with “outside” training materials (such as the Chess King series
of chess training programs) which are designed to teach endgame techniques and strategic themes, Chess King makes the ideal practice partner – a chess opponent who's ready for a game any time, who doesn't
make mistakes, and who also never complains when you make it play
game after game in which it has a material disadvantage.
The kind of practice and training provided in the chess quests is important for players of any skill level. A beginning players can learn proper attack, defense, endgame, and mating techniques right from the start of his
or her chess career. The intermediate (club) player who is learning proper
play will face many interesting and instructive challenges in the quests. In
fact, you can often find out what you don't know by playing Chess King
in Quest Mode. That's happened to me several times, when I've been
suddenly surprised by how tough it can be to win a game with a particular material advantage. Several strong players who've written reviews of
Chess King have said the same thing, so I'm in good company. More advanced players will find the higher level Quest Mode challenges to be a
great workout for their own technical skills, practicing the often devilish
process of “winning a won game”.
A PEEK BEHIND THE CURTAIN: Many years ago I wrote a CD about
computer chess in which I praised a particular mass-market chess
program from the 1990's for having some great “hooks”, fun twists which
keep a user wanting to come back again and again to keep playing
and learning more about chess. Chess King's system of rewards provide
outstanding hooks (the best I've seen in more than a decade), and I'm
really surprised that no one ever thought of these particular hooks before
now.
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