I grew up playing “Chess”, as most of you regular readers / viewers already know. I’ve played in countless tournaments as a child and dabbled in a game or two as an adult. When I was 12 I believe my FICO rating was somewhere around 1400…I did okay. As an adult I’ve come to appreciate the crazy amount of “Chess” variants out on the market. One of them is “Martian Chess” by Looney Labs and I’d like to quickly thank them for sending me a copy for review purposes.
The game supports four players (along with odd numbered players) with the right sized board and adapted rules. On its own, it supports 2 players, ages 8+, and plays in about 20 minutes.
“Martian Chess” doesn’t have standard pieces or a regular 8×8 squared board. Instead, it features pyramid pieces of three difference sizes and a 4×8 squared board. The sixteen squares on one side is known as a player’s “Zone”, with the “Canal” being the imaginary line that separates each player’s zone.
The smallest pyramid piece, the Pawn, has a pip value of one and can move one space in any direction (like a King from standard “Chess”). The Drone is the middle sized pyramid piece with a pip value of two and can move one or two spaces orthogonally (kind of like a Rook but with limitations). Finally the Queen is the largest with a pip value of three and can move any direction as many spaces as it wants (like an actual Queen).
The kicker here is that there are no white/black colored pieces. They are all red. Pieces in a player’s zone belongs to them. The second it crosses over the canal to the other player’s zone it belongs to the other player. The strategy to this game becomes a bit different. I mean, in “Chess”, exchanges happen all the time. Here, you’re trying to take something without that same piece (or another piece) being able to take you right back. You’re also trying to take high valued pieces (based on their pip value) to earn the most points and win the game.
Field Promotions are possible but not in the standard “Chess” way. If you have no Queens, you can combine a Drone and Pawn to form one. Likewise, you can combine two Pawns to make a Drone assuming you have none left. The combined pieces are removed from play.
Since the endgame can lead to a bit of stagnation, players can agree to simply call it if no captures occur within seven moves. A player ahead on points could try to force the game’s end simply by moving their own remaining pieces across the canal. Position doesn’t matter when the game ends…only those pieces that were captured are considered for points. That took some getting used to as “Chess” is the complete opposite, hence why sacrifices are a tried and tested way of winning.
“Martian Chess” may be a lighter take on the game of “Chess”, but it’s no less refreshing to play. I don’t think it’s a better game than “Chess” but it does have curb appeal. It’s different and light enough to be great alternative for when you’re pressed for time. The small box makes it ideal for traveling, though the pieces are not magnetized for car play. You can find it on Amazon for about $20 and at that price, I do recommend it to fans of light-moderate strategy games.
Final Verdict: 8/10 (Excellent)