Nine easy ways to make fun of chess.

They said they were easy ways to make chess fun, not fun ways to make chess easy.

how about trying 5d chess with multi dimensional travel?

It does make chess fun. If by fun you mean brain melting. Which is pretty fun, when you play normally and then three timelines in the past you accidentally chekmated the king.

@@GygasDistruttore or when you successfully pull off a jurassic rook.

sounds great!

This sounds awesome. You should put the rules to this in pastebin so you can preserve it and link people to it. I’m sure lots of other people would have fun playing with it.

This here is what we call pure genius.

That's actually the first _cool_ crazy middle schoolers' chess variation I've seen! Did you guys name it?

jellyberg add to board game geek!

i agree.

I’m just a boring person I guess

I don't agree with the prefixed % nor with the double g.

I am very offended by the prefixed %, the doubled g, and the two capitalized h's.

I thought I recognised Kasparov!

@@StezzerLolz : I met him during an exhibition. Stumbled into the wrong building, but he was quite nice. You can see that Chess is fun for him, not just a job.

Chess seems to really be on the collective subconcious right now, between this, Queen's Gambit, and the Down the Rabbit Hole documentary on Deep Blue. All great stuff, btw.

This (also known as Sirlin's Chess) is my favourite variant. Different armies with new moves and powers? Sign me up! The midline rule is definitely what saves the game, though. I often include it when I'm playing regular chess.

@@tamijo- The bid rule is quite enjoyable as well

GM Hikaru Nakamura obviously prepared for the midline rule by working on bongcloud openings in blitz chess. That is a sentence that I thought would never make sense, and yet here we are.

What platform is Chess 2 on?

@@FatherTime89 It's available on Steam, but it was pretty dead the last time I checked, sadly. There might be a Discord or something where you can find game. I might be interested if you find one!

For about half a second, I thought he was going to be dressed up as Jonathan Ying and I ... had concerns....

@@camipco Wait, are you telling me he wasn't dressed up as Jonathan Ying ?

I wasn't sure if I'd misheard "chesticles" or not, but it is a stroke of genius...

This video is not the first time I have heard the word “chesticles,” and I must say it is one of the grossest-sounding words I've ever encountered.

@@Radien It's a properly grim word, certainly far more than the usual complaints about "moist".

It's sounds similar to chesticles, but I'm sure Quinns meant CHESSticles.

Pretty accurate description. As a player who has never, and I mean never won a single game of chess in my life i have aways left the board feeling frustrated. I have never really tried to get good with the game, only played from time to time, purely casually and as such I never stand a chance against other better players. The game has no luck element, so you're either better or worse than your opponent, corresponding to your defeat or victory. But i would love to try out these chess variants. They seem chaotic enough to level the playing field between a veteran and a newbie like myself.

I'm not sure I'd agree that their review was right, more that it was part right. To say you can't have fun losing a chess game or that it holds no surprises is just dead wrong. Losing can suck pretty hard, but if you aren't horribly mismatched with your opponent, it can be really fun to see unexpected combinations unfold.

I love this comment. I'm by no means a good player and I, for the most part, enjoy the game just as much when I lose as when I win. Seeing a great play unfold by your opponent can be just as good as unfolding it yourself, but I think it takes a little more appreciation of what has just transpired. I think that chess is seen to be an intellectual contest that losing to someone hurts the ego in a way that losing at monopoly or scrabble doesn't. There is a common misconception that to get good at chess you need to be able to think a million moves ahead but that just isn't the case. Sure, the toppest of top players do have great calculation abilities but for many to get good you need to learn and employ a few simple (ish) strategies to avoid making immediate mistakes.

I'd say chess is good often thanks to online matchmaking based on your rating. I never feel like I'm facing someone who is way too good or way too bad.

@Name Name That's my problem with chess, it's a game that I dont really feel like investing time with and only play because of the interactions with my friends, but that means that I don't get better and can't reach the level necessary to compete with them. Thanks for the tip though.

Agreed, though I'd prefer a variant where there's some comeback mechanic to keep things interesting until the very end, but it must be used wisely so it doesn't feel cheap like passive rubberbanding

Yes but then, in the asymmetrical variants you can blame it on the "inferior" side you had to play! 😉😅

I love the feeling of being forced into a corner and coming up with a move that my opponent didn't expect. I can admit, however, that these unexpected moves are only possible because all my friends and I are bad.

2020-2021 will be a period of time remembered by historians as "The Long Month"

You didn't get the memo? www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/heres-how-time-works-now

@@thainesmith What a gem, glad I read it!

@@thainesmith oh, I didn't. Sorry about that.

Also, as everyone who used the "academia only" internet back in the 1980s, we are now in the "endless September" after the floodgates for the masses opened.

There is a real version of Discworld's THUD! It takes a special board but it's easily made from cardboard.

@@dickreckard5026 Link please?

@@dickreckard5026 PLEASE oh god PLEASE link

@@keepermovin5906 Google.com/lookitupyourself.

@@keepermovin5906 Unlike him, I'm not going to be rude so here you go! www.discworldemporium.com/games-activities/229-thud

Is there any way to play Chesh other than through the iOS appstore? It sounds really cool, but I don't own an iPhone

@@squashyhex9818 same park here. Would love to see a regular ol' windows version or someodd.

@@squashyhex9818 unfortunately there's no plans for it. It was a small project I made in my spare time. Got another project in the works now, but I hope one day I can make Chesh Deluxe a reality on PC/Mac.

Hey I cant find the game anywhere in the Appstore :/ is it not available in Mexico?

Yes! Onitama is great. The card-passing to determine how you can move is my favorite mechanic in any abstract strategy game.

Onitama is a delight, I might also suggest Shobu

I bought Onitama and loved it. It also has a great free app.

Thank you for telling me this!! A friend and I often play it at lunch!

@@millerh4500 bonus points for generating 100x more setup possibilities than chess960, with less total component count

I knew this variant as suicide. IT's good fun.

Conventionally it is called "antichess" and it is weakly solved (that is, it is known how to play few perfect games if players don't deviate)

True but for Quinns I don't think Arimaa fixes the problems he has with chess, it just changes those problems into different problems

I thought it took less than a decade for humans to lose to the computer.

I actually love arimaa a lot. I play it weekly, sometimes daily.

There's a real problem in general with games that have huge breadth in that the better you get, the less likely you are to be able to play viable opponents. Let's just say you were okay with that and wanted to get competitive--your practices are hamstrung by the opponents you play against. I have a friend who I play backgammon against, and we've created our own microcosm of skill because we only play with eachother--and both avoid researching too much about the game to learn more mathematically sound approaches to the game. Because we appreciate that we know the same things and learned them from playing eachother almost exclusively. The thing is, he's more naturally talented at games, but I'm more capable of understanding whatever complex degenerate strategy I find online. It feels cheap when I do this, because even though he could do it, that'd cheapen the game for him, and ultimately does for me too when I do it. So I end up having a weird relationship with games that have this level of complexity and long skill curve, where the more I engage with the game the less I like it? That's so counter-intuitive, and mostly a modern problem, since before I'd only be able to play with fellow bumpkins in my small town, and maybe pick up a book at the library to study, which would just put me in the second tier of slightly better read bumpkins in my town. Now I've got access to everyone's brains, and AI that can train me to dominate at chess, and the "contest" is who's memorized the most degenerate strategies.

I would just say abstract strategy games without variable setup and/or random chance would eventually lose their replay value.

@@hermanisthemungeman8262 Besides Go. Of course, Go has the unfair advantage that if it ever does feel like its losing its replay value, you just increase the board space and it becomes hyper-exponentially more complex

@@z-beeblebrox Good point. Another game I like with variable setup is Onitama. Backgammon is good to if you like rolling dice.

@@hermanisthemungeman8262 Oh yeah I tried Onitama on my phone and was really impressed by it!

Yes...i agree but you can consolidate and if your opponent isnt carefull you could win..and that is a beauty of chess...for example if i am behind 50pts in terra mystica by the final round i am not winning it... But 40 good moves in chess are sometimes trumped by one horrible move....

You must be a bottom

Lol chess nerd. *proceeds to go play go fish like a real epic gamer*

And forcing a stalemate against the player who is about to win, is as good as a win.

@@republikadugave420 you rely on that horrible move being made by the opponent though, as opposed to your own clever use of balancing/comeback mechanic like found in some modern games

I don't even play Chess and it annoyed ME

Much as his examples in the review of GO were all completely wrong. I wonder if it's all a clever joke on us. Hmmmmm . . . . .

And also not being ✔ Pretty sure it's a joke. Every chess setup where the bishop and knight were swapped irked me hard.

@@fcohex6148 my friend once accidentally swapped bishop and knight. we didnt notice until I realized that bishops protecting each other was rather sus...

Or a chessboard where the A1 square is white... stuff of nightmares.

is that the one with a deck of cards to change the rules?

There’s a much more fun, less horror grim dark motif, card powered version out now. Ironically it’s called Devil’s Chess, but I love it. You rotate the board, explode pawns, jump with your Queen. It’s fun.

Knightmare Chess is way better than standard, especially with a common draw pile rather than deck building!

Came here to suggest it. I have both Knightmare Chess 1 and 2 (not sure if there are more?) and it's the only way I want to play chess, really.

@@Drubnubjagr This generally how I play it.

It is a game, and if it isn't fun, then there is nothing beautiful in it for the one playing it. Thus new varriants of the game are much better if you actually enjoy them.

@@_sky_3123 actually it is fun if you try out new strategies and don't play every game same

@@user-vh7yo5cg7t I am 27 now, and have been playing for fun since I was 6. And it always seemed stupid to me that a game that is supposed to be some simulation of warfare doesn't allow you to arrange your armies in a formation before the battle. Ever since I changed the rules so that both players secretly rearange their figures before match, I had so much fun. No opening strategy, just a lot of wow moments

@@_sky_3123 Why do you think chess is supposed to be a simulation of warfare? It's just a visual theme.

@@EmperorFishFinger Well, it is obviously inspired by warfare (Knights, pawns, kings), so why not add some elements of warfare to it too.

I mean it sounds awfully similar to Chesticles, which is slang for breasts...

I would love to hear your rebuttal.

@@timdood3 Okay, for you, random internet guy, I'll rewatch the video and put out my thoughts :) I don't have too many things I think they were WRONG on, just of a different opinion, mostly. It's not religion or something, it's opinion on a board game. For my perspective, I'm someone who's very good at the game, but not tournament good. I can have an intense, close match with many people, but I destroy newcomers and wouldn't probably stand a chance against a pro. I was in a chess class in my homeschool co-op, then when the teacher left, I took over and I was a 14 year old teaching chess class to 12 year olds. I wasn't a good teacher, but I learned a lot. "It is often devoid of surprise, charm, and even sometimes reward." I have fairly often played 3-5 games back to back with the same opponent and every game somehow ends up surprising and different. In my experience, something happens fairly early to take us down another trail and I constantly learn more ways to react and control the game. There is a beauty to it. And an art. I love the feeling of figuring out a way to pin or fork a pair of pieces, then trying to find a distraction to get to that point unnoticed. "Charm" and "Reward" are somewhat abstract, especially charm, but I'd say the game is both to me. "Chess is two things. One: planning as far into the future as possible by examining all the counterintuitive movements of these discrete movements. And that's simply hard work!" I learned the game young enough that I can't comment on counterintuitive, but at this point I instantly know what each piece does and, from teaching the game, I don't think it takes that long. But the joy of the game is that you are constantly getting slightly better at picturing it. It doesn't take that steep a skill curve to be able to push pieces around and play a game, but there is an incredible skill ceiling to keep the game interesting for a lifetime with the right opponents. But I do see where to a newcomer, memorizing how six pieces move and how to see the board as a series of potential traps to set and avoid could be intimidating. I find it fun, sometimes mentally tiring in a satisfying way, but not hard work. "It is a particularly cruel fight to the death for two players that makes no attempt to hide who's winning and losing. Unless you're particularly well matched, [one will have no chance of winning and will know it the whole time.]" (Longer quote than I felt like typing) This IS true between a good player and a beginner. If I play against someone who just knows vaguely how the pieces move, I will win every time. But every game you lose is a new perspective on better play. When I was little, I played with my Dad some and he showed me the game, then beat me till I got to his level. Then I have gotten more into playing with my Uncle and have risen to his level. Now I would probably beat Dad 9/10 times, but everyone else I know who is not a basic beginner (so like five people) are at a level that I sometimes win, sometimes lose. And often it's hard to tell who's winning on a particularly good game. And often one is winning, then a mistake or a good pin or fork allows a comeback. So yeah, I understand his argument from a beginner's perspective and maybe I'm just lucky, but I've found that most people that invest the time get to a good level against each other. And the better ones beating the weaker players just teaches them how to rise to the higher level (so I guess we're all Saiyans?). [It's horribly dispiriting how one side will gradually steamroll the other to utter destruction. Someone's losing terribly which isn't fun and when I'm the steamroller, I feel bad for my opponent.] (Again, longer quote than I felt like typing). See 3:57 - 4:29 Sounds to me like Quinn's just had some really lopsided games. I guess I have too, but maybe I'm just crueler and enjoy destroying :) . But yeah, the tighter matches, especially at a moderate level of play are so intense. Or the realization that you're a piece or two behind and need to find some trick to come back or surprise checkmate before it's too late. The thrill when it works out. It's an intensely competitive game. And I guess I just don't mind losing either. I want to win, but seeing some cool trick or different strategy can be fascinating and beautiful in its own right. And next time I'll be ready. That was too long :)

@@rdh288 First thanks for your comment, it was really instructing, and I mostly feel the same. However, what I would like to point out is that, as the multiples examples in your rebuttal show, Chess is and will always be a personal experience, meaning that a counter argument against it, while it can be sad to hear, will never be *cringe*, just another point of view. Learn to respect what others are thinking without being condescending. Have a nice day A fellow shitty chess player

@@celeste1727 Yep, it's not that important, just opinion on a pastime.

Secret queen sounds awesome

@@DeBear91 its weirdly stressful, especially if you accidentally lose your secret queen right at the start! Best part is if you're playing fast you might lose track of your opponents queen after it's been moved and it gets crazy

we called that "french chess" XD

I've heard it called antichess

@@oliviapg Certainly a more kind name than either I or Dániel knew.

Sure, chess is easier to set up than most games, but I *don't* find it particularly rewarding. For me, chess is very much a game that feels very hard to grasp without a lot of deliberate study after which it becomes one of mostly rote strategy for all very high-level players. Is this subjective? Sure, but I'm certainly not alone in my feelings towards it. Of course, no-one should be discouraged from trying it, but they also shouldn't be judged for disliking it. I feel like there are some chess enthusiasts who regard chess as being a class apart from 'modern' strategy games, and I just don't think that's true.

​I recently tried chess 960 and prefer it over the classic since you don't have to study openings. What other modern strategy games have you found that are comparable? Hive is on my list to play but I usually play go when I don't feel like chess. I also like pc strategy games.

Even though you might need some opening theory, Caro-Kann + London is enough for me. I recommend GothamChess' 10 minute opening videos

Wow, I hadn't noticed. He toatally reversed the knight and bishop!

is that supposed to be like a chess variant of the COIN counter Insurgency games? if so, cool!

Nice to see this variant mentioned here!

... or your own piece... or your own king. Whoops.

I think the releases (Knightmare Chess 1 and 2) weren't a huge success for Steve Jackson Games, but someone else can licence them - it was originally a French product.

Yes, that was a French product. You can google "Tempête sur l'échiquier" (Storm on the chessboard), fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temp%C3%AAte_sur_l%27%C3%A9chiquier. The original product had cartoon-like drawing, which I find match better with the feel of playing such a game.

Wow, I do have a set of Paco Ŝako, I really enjoy playing it with my kids, so nice to stumble upon a comment about it!

They also created Tile Chess, where pieces create the board as they go along by moving into empty space, and another version whose name I forget in which each piece is a cube with a different chess piece on each face (plus an immovable untakeable pyramid) and you can change what a piece is as you go along.

It's a mod showcase

Hostage Chess is a variant where you can drop captured pieces.

Racing Kings is very different, so interesting. So is Horde. So different I would say more than variants.