I love my 4 year-old daughter more than I can say but, in all honesty, she's no chess prodigy.Daddy has all these different chess sets around the house, so that's where the interest began (an interest I was more than happy to encourage). We made a game of learning the names of the various pieces and how to set up the board. I thought our next step would involve learning how the pieces move and maybe even playing 'games' with some of the pieces' movements (bishops and rooks versus bishop and rooks, etc.), it was then that we discovered "No Stress Chess."
What the folks at Winning Moves Games have provided is something you'd imagine some clever teacher would have thought of centuries ago, namely; drawing from a shuffled deck of cards to determine which chess piece is to be moved.
Players draw from a face-down pile of 56 cards which each show a picture, the name, and movement of a particular chess piece; if they are able to move that piece, that is what they must do. The card is then placed face-up on their discard pile (each player has their own separate discard pile). In addition to 'chess piece movement' cards, there are also 'move same type of piece again' cards; this card allows the player to move the same type of piece last moved by themselves or their opponent. Believe it or not, that's just about all there is to it!
Needless to say (if you already know how to play chess), the game that results from this type of play is a whole different experience, for the most part based on the luck of the draw. There is no such thing as being in "check," and a "checkmate" is achieved by actually taking your opponent's king! Accordingly, there is "no stress" in placing an unprotected queen next to your opponent's king unless, of course, your opponent proceeds to draw a "king" card.
Once this basic form of the game is mastered (referred to as "Level One"), players may progress to the next level. In "Level Two" each player is dealt 3 cards at a time and may choose which of those cards they wish to play for their move. In "Level Three" each player is dealt 5 cards. Finally, the instructions suggest an "Advanced Game" where the rules of pawn promotion, castling, checking, and en passant are employed.
In addition to the playing cards a two-sided board is included. The squares on one side of the board show how to set up the game, with the name and picture of each piece on their appropriate square. The included plastic chess pieces are "heavy-duty" and virtually indestructible (with the noteworthy exception of the cross on top of the king). Lastly, in addition to the rules and variations of "No Stress Chess," a very adequate explanation of "Standard Chess Rules" and basic strategy are provided.
Okay, back to the title of my review...much to my amazement, I have a 4 year-old who moves her knight around the board like a seasoned grand master. What more can I say?
-Thom Shanken
"But, Aunt Cynthia," she said, "It's No-Stress Chess. You don't have to know how!"
"But chess is very confusing to my poor brain, dear," I told her.
She sighed and said, very patiently, "But it is NO STRESS. I can teach you!"
Far be it from me to let down my niece! With a little bit of encouragement from my sister, the next thing I knew, I was sitting on the floor (more comfortably than I have in years!), taking instruction in No-Stress Chess.
Long story short -I am buying this game! Within 10 minutes, I had overcome the long-ago trauma of my one and only chess lesson (35 years ago), and I was getting the hang of which pieces moved which directions and how far. My niece did win, but not by much, and not because I let her -she's just had more practice! By the next time we visit, in a couple of weeks, I intend to be able to play her to a draw, and maybe by our birthdays this summer, I'll be able to play "real" chess! This is not a "dumbed down kids' game" -it's a super teaching tool, and I highly recommend it!
Read Best Reviews of No Stress Chess Here
UPDATE: March 4, 2007
When we bought the No Stress Chess for our seven year old grandson as a Christmas gift it was because his older sister was complaining that she needed someone to play chess with. Since she and her brother enjoyed playing other games together, the 'No Stress Chess' game seemed the ideal way to satisfy two grandchildren with one gift! Our granddaughter would have a chess partner and our grandson would be able to understand and play chess without being frustrated. I read the reviews, selected this one and hoped for the best. It was a great choice!
I can't believe how much our grandson, age 7, and his sister, age 5 have learned about chess by playing this game! I am impressed. I rate the No Stress Chess an amazing success! CheckMate! ~ The Boss
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Apprehensive about introducing our smart yet perfectionist (hates making a mistake)to chess, because I wanted him to learn to play without being turned off to the game forever because of its complexity, I bought no stress chess to ease him into an appreciation of chess.He loves it, hisbrother loves it, my husband loves it, and I love it!While making moves you would NEVER make in real chess, and abandoning strategy for luck of the draw, games can be won or lost BY ANYONE moving the pieces correctly in as little as 3 minutes!We have replaced tv watching with a nightly family chess tournament during the one-half hour before bedtime!
The pieces have a nice feel and the board has 2 sides one marked with the correct location of piece set-up and the other a plain board for when we get to "yes stress" chess...
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