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Be VERY careful!

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 18 / 23
Date: May 18, 2005
Author: Amazon User

All of the warnings here are completely accurate, the "security" features on this thing are AWFUL. There is a good chance, esecially if you have a newer machine (which you need for the enormous amounts of memory this thing takes), that you won't be able to get the game to run at all. I was only able to get this product to work after reading the helpful reviews on this site--luckily, I do have a non-writable DVD drive I was able to install with. If you don't have a non-writable drive, you're completely out of luck. I also went through the supposedly optional registration process that appears to be not-so-optional.

I cannot tell you how frustrating it was trying to get Chessmaster to run--the "support" line is utterly useless. The guy I talked to didn't seem to know anything about the security device probelms this product has and didn't even hint that a writable drive or lack of on-line registration might be the problem.

I did eventually have success getting Chessmaster X working, and to be honest, I have been enjoying it. I have found one thing that really bothers, me, though: the 'personalites' play MUCH stronger chess in rated games than in training games. Really, really, REALLY, stronger. Personalities I'm beating with no problem (and no help from blunder alert, or chessmaster hints, or taking back moves) kick my butt soundly and quickly in rated games.

Dont even waste your time

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 18 / 23
Date: May 12, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I wonder what the hell UBI was thinking.

First of all you always need the cd in your drive to play...retarded. what if you have a tablet? are you going to carry that external cd drive with you everywhere just because you want to play chess? what if your running on battery power? are you gonna drain your laptop battery just cause you want to play chess?

secondly forget about even trying to backup this cd. the amount of copy protection on it ...

and upon all this the engine is faulty! a lot of times my opponent makes moves that are obviously wrong and that any chess amateur could see.. even when the ratings are in the 2000+ ration. This software is a total waste of time.

dont even bother to use the only gameplay... have to enter a 16 digit cd key everytime you login. get fritz instead!!!!

S-U-C-K-S

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 18 / 23
Date: May 14, 2005
Author: Amazon User

All the bad things other reviewers have said about this excremental fraud are true. Some of the good things said are true, too. But does the good outweigh the bad? Let me put it this way: If customers were allowed to test-drive this loser-program before paying for it, Ubisoft would be bankrupt in no time flat.

No, no, don't believe me....-- Go ahead. Buy it. Join the rest of us suckers. Misery loves company.

:)

Good learning tool

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 14 / 16
Date: January 09, 2006
Author: Amazon User

This is a very good learning tool. But its engine is not
as good as Fritz 9. I would recommend buying both of
them if you really want to improve. The problem with
needing a CD to run is solved with a new patch CMX 10.03
from the Chessmater website. It runs fine WITHOUT CD
disk in the CD drive NOW. All other good things mentioned
by other reviews are true. For me, I will add:

1. Unmatched learning tools, Chess Academy and others. This
alone worths the price for the software.

2. For rated game under 1500, it makes unrealistic mistakes,
not behave like a human player. For playing chess, get
Fritz. There is no match in playing ability.

Conclusions:

If you are below 1500, you will learn a lot from CMX's Chess
Academy. So, buy CMX for learning or training young kids.

If you are above 1500 or even 1300, need a chess partner,
get Fritz 9. You are not going to improve by playing with
CMX. Make no mistake, CMX will beat you even you are a master,
but the problem is non-human behaviors in low rating games.

A review based on the Demo (and Full version)

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 21 / 29
Date: August 04, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I bought CM9000 a year ago, and just recently downloaded the demo version of Chessmaster 10th Edition (CMX). The interface is much cleaner. Josh Waitzkin is actually talking to you in the tutorial. I've heard that online play is supposed to be improved, but I haven't tried it yet. I figure if I can't beat the computer when it is playing at a weaker 1200-1400, why should I go online and humiliate myself with some one who is just as strong?

I gave CM9000 away after a few months because on my XP Home laptop, the weaker players (<1000) were still bashing me around like I was playing against the Chessmaster [in tournament mode]. I know I'm a patzer, but I can also recognize when I'm losing badly. In training mode on CMX, I was able to beat the highest rated player they made available who wasn't the Chessmaster himself (Mona ~800). This indicated to me that they've fixed whatever problem they had in CM9000 with weaker play [DR: this might not be true - I haven't tried ranked play on CMX... yet].

But - that's not what really impressed me about CMX. Afterwards, it gave an analysis of my game - comparing both how well I moved (and the computer opponent) compared with what the Chessmaster would have moved. It also showed me how many moves in which I would have had Checkmate if I would have just gone in for the kill, but I didn't see it and went on pushing pawns, etc (the reason why I'm not playing real tournament chess yet).

Having CMX analyze my game in detail even further revealed many of my tactical faults. Afterwards, it recommended I play against one of the computer players that comes with CMX. Unfortunately, it stuck me back with Mona since she was the strongest player who wasn't the chessmaster in this Demo version I tried.

I've tried Fritz 8, Chessmaster 9000, and Kasparov Chessmate. Kasparov has been my faithful standby when I've needed a weaker opponent (and I'm still trying to get through the Bronze tournament - I told you I am a patzer). Fritz clobbers me even when he is put into "slobbering fool mode". Fritz is great for analysis, but CMX puts into words what I did (or didn't do) and tells me if my move was a 'pretty good' or 'great' or 'poor' move, and what I could have done that would have been better.

Chessmaster 10th edition is definately on my list to buy. Although I've studied tactics off and on, and continue to play against Kasparov Chessmate on the palm, I think CMX is THE program that will definately address my beginner deficiencies and hopefully strengthen me to the point of Class D/E and beyond.

=====
Aug 23, 2004

Now I own the full version of CMX. Here's a few things I've learned in about 4-6 hours of non-online play.

I enjoy playing in 'training' mode so far. I haven't tried ranked play or tournament mode. Ctrl-H is really great in training mode ... press it once, it shows you a square on the board you should move to. Press it again - it shows you both where to move, and which piece to move. Press it a third time, and it spells it out for you in a dialogue box on your screen.

Post-game analysis is good ... but I found after my first couple games that I was getting annoyed with... "Here was a Mate-in-9" or "...Mate-in-7 that you missed". I have enough problems with Mate-in-2! How do you fix this? It is simple. Don't give chessmaster 10 seconds to analyze each move. Give it 1 or, at most, 2 seconds (this is on a Celeron 1.2 GHz with 256MB/Win XP). I don't think I had it show anything more than Mate-in-4 or 5 moves. It dramatically reduced much of the heavy (IMHO superfluous) analysis, and got at the meat of basic tactical play. It also means that most of your games will be analyzed in a few minutes instead of half an hour or longer.

One small annoyance... I notice that there are times when I'm going through the post-analysis comments that CMX is utilizing 90+% of my CPU. I think it tries to continue to calculate positions even when it is unnecessary. This might be due to the 'visual lines' window which is running in the background, even when the window is not activated.

Ubisoft gets Checkmated by their own Chess Program

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 21 / 29
Date: April 08, 2005
Author: Amazon User

It seems to me that Ubisoft has made a classic blunder in the software industry: They assumed that without air-tight copy protection they would lose great gobs of money to rampant software pirates in such countries as Russia and China. (perhaps this is akin to the classic blunder of getting involved in a land war in Asia? Hmmmm....)

This assumption lacks foresight in two areas:
1) Many people in these countries would never actually BUY a Chessmaster program in the first place. Just because someone obtains an illegal copy for free doesn't mean that Ubisoft has "lost" money. One cannot lose something one never had and never will obtain.
2) By building an Iron Curtain of copy protection on their software, they have angered their most important market of all: The US. As a result, I believe they have actually lost more earnings potential than if there were no copy protection at all.

Way to go Ubisoft. Check and Mate, Holmes.
You might want to re-think things for the next version...

Not for a serius chessplayer.

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 23 / 33
Date: June 21, 2005
Author: Amazon User

First of all, let me tell you that this is not the best chess program available in the market. For some profesional or tournaments players, chess master 10 is not a very strong program, if you compare it with names like Fritz, Tiger, Shreder, etc.
In my opinion, chess master is a very goog program, but not the best. It's weak in some areas, like bas opening's, weak in the enda game, an a huge diferen in the style of play.
The cons are:
1.- Academy.- this part is for me, the best one. Is a MUST for the beginers or the amateur player's. In it, chess master explain to you how to move your pices, and the basis of chess, like the principles of the opening, midel game and enda game. In this part you can learn the best move to open a game, the tactis in the midle game (forks, pins, doble atack ), and the basis of the endgame ( how to mate whit the queen, rok, bishops, the oposition). All of this is covered in a very instructive ways, and a lot of examples, and test that you have to pas if you whant to advance a litle further. This area is dedicated for the beginers.
2.- Kid section.- As this name indicated, ypou have acces to play against kids whit diferent ages and strenghts. Some are 7, 8, 9 or 10 years old. Each and every one, having diferent playing style. Also in this section you can chose ches boards in 3-D. This section is fun for the litle ones and don't represent any oposition for themore sesoned players.
3.- Players.- There are many players you can chosse. Fron grand masters like Alekhine, Tal, Fisher, Karpov, to kids who are very easy to defet. You can play against any one if you decide to try a casual and no rated game.
4.- Time.- After you select your oponetn you decide the time (Blitz, Normal, Tournament, Suden death, any one you ewant), 5.- 5.- Chess sets.- after this you have to chose your chess set (there are a lot of chess sets to chose, and all are very well done. If you are not a beginer there are a lot of sets you can chosse, whit no sofisticated figures. I preferd this one, because tehre are some chess sets when is very dificult to see the diference betwen the quen and the king, the pawns and the bishops.
6.- Tournaments and rated games.- For starting your "carrer", you hace to enter your rating, mine in real life is abour 1880, fron then you have the posibility to participate in diferent tournaments, al depending on your rating. The ones whit a rating of 900 to 1200 are very easy. I recomend to you that start your rating as low as you can, in this way you can participate in all tournaments, win more rting points, and unlock a lot of ches sets. The only way to unlock a very beatiful chess sets in wining tournaments.
If you don't want to participate in tournaments, there is other way to gain rating points. Is playing a rated game. To star you decide your rating and then chosse an oponent you want. You can't chosse any one, only the one's who are close to your rating. Then is presentend tou yo a table, saying how many ponits you're gona a win if you defet your oponent, how many if you draw and how many your gone a lost if you lose. If you start your rating for 800 or 900 the oponets are some times kids or player whit a litle strength. In this model of play you can chose the time and the chess sets. For me is beter to play a 5 or 10 minutes game (blitz), that way the game is more shorter, because, as in the real life, some players take huge time to think about his move, and for me is not very confortable to spend time in front a computer when the position is totaly won for me. I aready played more than 150 games and in all NONE OF MY OPONENTS HAVE RESIGNED!!!!, you have to mate them to win the game or win by time, that's the reason i gave you the advice to play in shorten time, in one ocasion i decide to played a game in 2 hours, in the firts 25 moves, and 30 minutes of play, my oponet lost the queen and never resingned, after 1 hour, mine 20 minutes, 40 the computer, i won the game.
7.- Base.- the chess master 10 have a big database whit many games you can reproduce. This section is ideal for the ones who are starting the game, because it shows you the way the grand master and the beter chess players in the world played their games.
In all, i recomend this program to all the beginers, but not for a tournament player, because your not have a very good oposition.

Great for training shame about the interface

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 12 / 13
Date: April 15, 2005
Author: Amazon User

The 10th edition(V10) has packed a lot more training options and player statistics tracking than the old CM 8000 which I still use on my older dinosaur computer.

The good:
1)V10 has more personalities and the engine seems to be stronger.
2)There is MUCH more training. The Psychology of Chess and Attacking Chess additions are worth the upgrade price on their own if you want more training.
3)You can now track your elo rating and win ratio by graphs, colour, opponent etc etc.
4)The annotated game feature is very useful for studying a game after you have played. The voice over means you can watch the moves without having to stop and read the commentary.
5)Heaps more stuff in the games sections for kids with their own tailored training package.

The bad:
1)Personalities below say 2000 elo play all over the shop. They will give you a tough game and then for no reason make a dumb move that no human player of even a much lower rating would ever make. If you want to win all you need to do is hold on until the computer makes really dumb mistakes then pounce.
2)It take up heaps of memory and speed. I use a 3 year old Dell desktop with 256 Mb RAM &1 GHz chip and the system will crash after an hour of playing, and I need to shut down everything else before I play. You probably need 512Mb or more to stop your machine groaning under V10.In comparison CM8000 runs very happily (without video)on my ancient Win 95 machine with only 96Mb RAM and a 200 MHz chip.

The Ugly:
The INTERFACE. The old CM8000 is quite classically beautiful and you can select from many skins and boards. it has that old world confortable feel to it. V10 by comparison is star trek gone minimalist with dark surfaces, grids, and all the appeal of a stainless steel sink. You need to play 20, 40 or more games before this fascist will even consider letting you change skins one by one. There are many more 3D options consuming lots of resources and even a gimmicky 3D set of glasses but who needs that to play chess. The 2D options are much reduced on those in CM8000 and most serious chess players much prefer 2D anyway.

Summary:
Well worth getting for the training and tracking options and the extras for kids especially if you don't have a previous version. Just don't expect it to look classically pretty. If you have an older system it may not run properly or at all in which case CM8000 is available at bargain bin prices.

Very disappointing

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 12 / 13
Date: July 09, 2006
Author: Amazon User

There are so many things wrong with this that I don't know where to begin. I am so unhappy with the product I purchases 2 weeks back that I returned it back. Here's the list:

1. This crashes constantly on my new, fairly powerful Windows XP machine.

2. The software requires you to have the install CD in the CD-ROM drive all the time!!!!!

3. The game takes 10 seconds to load because the start-up sequence and other crap on the screen can not be disabled.

4. If you leave the game on in the background, after a couple of hours the game becomes very, very unresponsive. And slowly your computer comes to a halt.

The manufacturer of this software should be penalized for releasing this buggy piece of crap. Their customer service sucks and they have absolutely no clue on how to be helpful to a customer.

Not Windows 2000 compatible!

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 13 / 15
Date: January 10, 2005
Author: Amazon User

For all of you that have had bugs with this program running, you need to know that it is not compatible with Windows 2000. Furthermore, UBI has not in the past and will not in the future make it's Chessmasters 2000 compatible. You are better off with Fritz.
Others have already mentioned the install problems due to the copy protection of the CDs.

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