The Chessmaster 3000

The Good
Normally I don't like chess games for the simple reason that I'm a terrible chess player. But Chessmaster 3000, with its multiple play modes and windows, won me over. Not only does it work correctly on any machine, which can turn that old clunker in the basement into a worthy opponent, but the "War Room" mode offered an insight into how Chessmaster was thinking. The War Room actually improved my game, just by offering insight into how computers play chess games.

The Bad
Chessmaster 3000 has a nasty bug that prevents EGA modes from working correctly on many video cards. This is a shame, since the high-res EGA mode is the best mode to play the War Room in. Also, CM3000 has many sounds that are turned on by default, which only detract from gameplay until you turn them off.

The Bottom Line
Chessmaster 3000 was (and still is, by many counts) the PC chess game by which all others should be judged.