Battle Chess II: Chinese Chess

Moby ID: 1301
DOS Specs
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Description official descriptions

A sequel to the original Battle Chess, this game takes on a more Chinese approach, both in the rules of the game and in the presentation.

Using a Chinese variation of the game of Chess, pieces like the Queen and Bishop are replaced by Counsellors, Ministers, and Cannons. Pieces behave differently than their European counterparts and even the board is set up differently. Two things remain the same: the ultimate goal of checkmating the opposing player's king and the Battlechess-style animated battles that occur when two pieces contend for the same spot on the board.

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12 People

Reviews

Critics

Average score: 71% (based on 17 ratings)

Players

Average score: 3.4 out of 5 (based on 14 ratings with 1 reviews)

Once the novelty wears off... It's not too bad, but one glaring rules omission ruins it

The Good
The cute animations, a decent Chinese chess engine, modem support.

The Bad
The animations are a bit too cute, especially after you've seen it a bazillion times. One glaring rule omission... Interplay did not implement the "the two generals may not face each other" rule (see http://www.chessvariants.com/xiangqi.html, scroll down to "King or General").

The Bottom Line
One of the few Chinese chess commercial programs ever published in the US, this introduced Chinese Chess to the masses.

The cute animations from original Battlechess remained, and even has even MORE gag-filled laughs (I won't ruin the surprises here). You can always turn off the cute stuff and stick with the regular 2D board, available both in Chinese and Roman versions.

The game engine don't make many mistakes that you can take advantage of, but you can confuse it by attacking on multiple fronts. It however, REALLY capitalize on your mistakes. On the other hand, you CAN trick AI into taking your sacrifices. All the proper Chinese Chess rules have been implemented with the exception of one: the "generals may not face each other" rule.

The game was great for its time, and still holds up today if you can stand the pixel-y graphics (only 320x200x256). With eight levels of difficulty the computer can keep you on your toes.

DOS · by Kasey Chang (4598) · 2001

Trivia

Chess rules

Battle Chess II: Chinese Chess actually did NOT implement one of the Chinese chess rules, which says the two kings may not face each other in the same file with no intervening pieces. This makes checkmating the king somewhat harder than it should be, especially in games with very few pieces left on the board.

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  • MobyGames ID: 1301
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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by Ray Soderlund.

Amiga added by Johnny "ThunderPeel2001" Walker. Linux added by Iggi. Antstream added by lights out party. Macintosh, Windows added by Koterminus.

Additional contributors: Kasey Chang, Patrick Bregger.

Game added April 12, 2000. Last modified March 15, 2024.