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Review: 5D Chess with Multiverse Time Travel

At a Glance

ESRB Rating: NR - Not Rated
My Rating: Everyone
Genre: Board game
License: Commercial
Fun-O-Meter:
Release Year: 2020
Reviewed Version: 1.1.0.0f-7-16
Review Published On: February 16th, 2022
Played on: Thaddeus

Available on:

Windows
Linux
MacOS

Available from:

Steam

Areas of Concern:
  • Nothing of note


How to Save and Pause:

There is no way to save a game. You either play until checkmate, or choose to forfeit. Likewise, there isnt a pause feature.

Time needed per session:

How long a session lasts generally depends on your skill at Chess - assuming they dont make a mistake, your average player will likely finish a game in about 15 to 30 minutes.

Does this game pose issues for Christian players?

No - this is a great game for Christians
This video game is essentially an upgraded version of a very well known board game, so theres nothing remotely offensive to be found here.

Screenshots

[view screenshot]
A war on two fronts

[view screenshot]
Winning by not giving up

[view screenshot]
Things get complicated quickly



Game Overview

A lot of people believe that Chess is a confusing or difficult game to learn. Personally, I didnt have that much trouble learning it; perhaps thats because I never got into the crazy amount of detail some people enjoy - ie, the many different openings and fancy strategies. I just learned how the pieces move and play from there. But, if you thought normal chess was hard to follow, then this game probably isnt going to be for you.

5D Chess is a variation of regular chess. For the most part, its the same game chess lovers have been playing for centuries. You have your pawns, rooks, knights, bishops, queen, king, and the familiar 16x16 board. Whats new in this game is the ability to play pieces on previous boards, essentially sending pieces back in time to attack pieces in the past. Doing this also results in splitting the game into multiple timelines, as the original game still continues alongside the altered version of history. And, just in case that wasnt enough of a mindscrew, pieces can also travel between timelines when they are synchronized!

This results in some truly insane gameplay where you need to protect pieces from moves that havent happened yet. For example, a common mistake made by newcomers to this game is to move one of the three pawns next to your king too early on. This allows another piece, such as a bishop or queen, to travel back in time and put you in checkmate almost immediately.

In addition to these new movement possibilities, several new pieces are available for your games. These specialty pieces take advantage of the time travel mechanics to move around through time in unique ways. Along those same lines, there are also custom board sizes and alternate layouts to help keep things interesting.

Unfortunately, unless youre already a fan of regular computer chess, I dont see this game being one youd play for long. Once the novelty of it wears off, its not really that engaging compared to the plethora of other games out there. Still, its a clever idea, and one that might get more people interested in learning chess.

Points of Interest

Play against the CPU or with Friends

You can play with friends both locally and online, though I suspect most of us are going to enjoy challenging the computer to a game or two. There are four settings for the AI, allowing you to tailor your opponent to be as difficult as you want.

Both options allow you to set up the board using different presets, so you dont need to play the standard game if something else catches your fancy.

Puzzle mode offer unique challenges

The Puzzle mode provides 49 challenges, most of which revolve around using a specific piece to force a checkmate in just a few moves. This mode is especially useful for learning how to play with the new rules, as it gives you a hands on lesson about each piece.

Gets boring quickly

Much like regular chess, once youve played it a handful of times, youll have seen everything and will probably be ready to move on to something else.

Concerns and Issues

Nothing to complain about

Theres nothing remotely offensive about this title. At most, some of the new pieces, like the unicorn or dragon, are designed after fantasy creatures, and to be honest, I dont think its really worth worrying about that.