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Editor's Choice Software
Learn to Play Chess with Fritz & Chesster
Review by: Angie Kibiloski
Learn to Play Chess with Fritz & Chesster (Retail $29.99), and the sequel, Learn to Play Chess with Fritz & Chesster 2 (Retail $29.99), by Viva Media, are two great learning packages that teach kids to play chess in a fun and unique way. Chess skills develop while the player participates in practice exercises that explain the basics of the game. In the second installment of the series, once skills are established, the methods are used to teach hints and more advanced game play.
In the first Learn to Play Chess with Fritz & Chesster, you are Fritz and Bianca, a young prince and his cousin, who have been challenged to a chess duel by the evil Black King. Luckily, your jolly neighbor King Kaleidoscope knows just the places in the kingdom to take you to build your chess knowledge. You will learn how kings move with Sumo Wrestlers, see the course a knight can take by running a Show Jumping horse, play a nice game of tennis with the Pleasant Pawns of Pleasantville, and much more.
After you have toured the countryside and learned basic skills, you are handed off to Chesster, a chess playing rat, to get you in further shape in the Brain-Building IntelliGym. You are in excellent hands, as Chesster has trained many chess champs before. As you build your skills and earn trophies for your efforts, you prepare for the final duel with King Black. Beat him and you win the game, lose and play again.
When you move onto Learn to Play Chess with Fritz & Chesster 2, evil King Black has captured Chesster and you, as Fritz and Bianca, must venture to his castle to rescue your friend. Unfortunately, King Black is prepared and you get trapped too! You must use the chess skills you already have, and learn new skills and tricks, in order to find your way out of the dungeon. In this dungeon, King Black stores his intelligence building chess machines. Each machine teaches a different advanced skill, like the best opening moves, new ways to mate your opponent's king, how to put your opponent in double check, and more. These skills are learned by using either arcade style games, or repetitive exercises. When you master all the machines, you will be smart enough to leave the dungeon and free Chesster.
Children will find hours of fun learning chess in this new and exciting way. Even adults could benefit from these games. I have played chess for years and there were some hints and techniques that I enjoyed learning. This is also a game that rewards the player for their progress, with trophies in the first installment, and intelligence points in the second. Learn to Play Chess with Fritz & Chesster, and Learn to Play Chess with Fritz & Chesster 2, by Viva Media, are absolutely must haves for any child who truly wants to learn to play chess. Check it out!
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