Gambonanza

Having loved playing both chess and Balatro, I was excited to give this a try; however, my opinions on several of the game’s mechanics are mixed. To start, gambits, which are equivalent to jokers or run items, feel uninspired overall. While many synergize well, a great number of them are simply chance-based. While RNG is not an issue by itself, being a staple of the roguelike genre, it feels out of place in a game as strategic as chess. Furthermore, there are a few areas where the RNG feels completely redundant. For instance, starting with three random pieces is avoidable by simply reloading. This matters because the game’s core balance is heavily skewed toward queens, and some pieces are simply not worth using unless you get a specific gambit early on. For me, its aspiration to be “Balatro but chess” holds it back. The experience would be more enjoyable if the game were simply a chess roguelike. Even the aesthetic clashes, as the trippy casino style does not really match chess. With that being said, the game overall is not bad. There is certainly fun to be had, especially if you enjoy these types of games. The music is fitting, and the gameplay is crisp. The bosses are actually more interesting than Balatro’s, but they are difficult to prepare for. All in all, the game is definitely worth a try; just don’t expect the long-lasting experience Balatro provides.

I saw a demo of this game and bought it. I love the art style and rogue dynamic. I love all the different upgrades you can get liken”gambits.” I love that it’s about chess. I want to believe in this game. I love everything about. Here’s some things I’d like to see in an update or sequel: 1) More real chess dynamics’s . If I move the king piece into check from another piece, check with the movement of the king should matter more. 2) slightly strong chess mechanics from the opponent enemy AI 3) more real chess positions. I want to learn how to learn both bishops or both knights, or the king, or the pawns, in a position of you know what I mean. Frame the puzzles after more realistic chess situations, teaching how to use the pieces as a whole 4) a mode where you ca just play real chess against opponents, preferably celebrities to the sport 5) a multiplayer option where you can play opponents with the unique deck build that you have earned and against opponents with similar skill levels 6) just a little more art work on the upgrades / gambits. Make it like other card games cough cough a little blizzard in there, if you know what i mean. You’ve done a great thing by innovating chess into a modern game play format. Keep updating, this could be big. I haven’t bought a game in years. But I bought this one. Please keep updating. Thanks for starting a great new game concept by combining chess with rogue and rpg qualities .

TL;DR: Amazing game that’s for anyone that plays chess AND for those that don’t. A basic Rogue-like with RNG elements and some skill expression that really puts the cherry on top of this game. From what I can tell, this game has been created by people who LOVE chess! From the references to the implementation of Chess into a rogue style game. If you’re a chess fan, you’ll love it; it has many of the elements needed to play chess like understanding sequencing, and a good knowledge of mental visualization; however, these are not necessary to enjoy the game. You could be a wood pusher and still enjoy this. If you’ve never even played chess, this can still be an enjoyable experience as not only does the game have an info page which names all the pieces in case you don’t know the Horsey’s name, it also gives informative moves like what piece can be taken (need that on normal chess ngl) plus the AI you play against can be very forgiving. Which brings me to the one thing I’m not the biggest fan of in this game: The AI difficulty. While I haven’t reached the last difficulty level, in the later levels I can still leave a piece hanging and not be punished for it. The strains (modifiers) definitely guarantee a challenge, it’s just I’d hope for more of a skill requirement in terms of game play rather than the skill gap being based on one’s resource management / luck with the shop. I do realize that this is probably more of a personal preference rather than an actual complaint and allows the inclusion of non-chess players to be able to still win the game. Overall, I have been having a blast playing this game and I feel that I’m close to finishing most of the content, if not all, which makes me sad. I really hope to see more to come. Plus I could so see this kind of game becoming a multiplayer experience