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Very nice, but could use some updates

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 6 / 6
Date: February 01, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I bought this a few weeks ago to use with my notebook computer. It's a great chess game with very nice graphics and is quite comprehensive in that it also has mentoring elements where you can play different levels, learn some of the various chess moves, and study some famous games. Definitely go to the Ubisoft site and get the patch so you don't have to keep the CD in the drive while you play. The patch is a free download. My only gripe about this game is that it drains my laptop battery like crazy. I can't even get through a whole game before the battery is gone, so I have to keep it plugged in for playing chess. Switching to 2-D mode helps, but it still drains pretty fast. Other than that I think this is a really nice game and I've been playing it a lot. My five year is learning how to play chess and it's been fun teaching him using some of the animated chess boards. I haven't tried any of the other popular chess games out there so I can't comment on how they compare to this game, though I have tried some of the shareware/freeware ones and while some or not bad, none of them can even touch this and I'm glad I finally decided to buy it.

Stick with Chessmaster 9000

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 6 / 6
Date: October 02, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I upgraded from Chessmaster 9000 to Chessmaster 10 expecting better graphic and tutorials, although they tried unfortunately neither is realized.

The 3D Graphics in Chessmaster 10 are fuzzy and not even close to the sharpness of Chessmaster 9000. It is very annoying to look at the 3D set on a PC with a good graphics card and see red outlines and fuzzy graphics. This alone is enough of a reason to buy the less expensive and very functional Chessmaster 9000. The graphics upgrade was definitely a failure.

The new tutorials are wordy and possibly interesting to people who want to hear Josh Waitzkin of "Looking for Bobby Fisher" fame babble on about how great he is. I prefer the Chessmaster 9000 version.

I haven't tried it but the word seems to be that most folks can't get Online Play to work in Chessmaster 10.

The Chessmaster Series is an excellent tool for most of us, players rated under 2200, and highly recommended. But I'd recommend Chessmaster 9000 or 7000. These versions work just fine with the patches and are less expensive.

Heed Warnings on this Program

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 10 / 14
Date: November 25, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I bought an earlier version of ChessMaster and it still sits in the box since it won't load on my computer. I have XP OS and when I try to load the software, it says I need administrative rights. I've contacted the company and they claim it's my computer set up. I spent hours changing the settings on my computer to accept this program. I've never had problems loading other software. Now that I read the other reviews, it seems that the company still hasn't worked out the bugs.

A Great Chess Package That Has It All

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 7 / 8
Date: January 30, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Chessmaster 10 really is for chess players of all levels. People who have never played chess before can find multiple tutorials designed by different professional chess players that will walk you through (with real recorded voice audio even) not just the basics of the game, but even beginners' strategies. And whether you're new, a pro, or somewhere in between, CMX can help you improve you game from suggesting strategies, catching terrible moves (via the "blunder alert") and even analyze games you finish to tell you what your moves did and how you could have played better. While I haven't tried the online play yet, it appears from the Ubisoft forums that there is a healthy community of CMX players gathering online and competing even 3 years after the game's release.

The game is beautiful too. The 3D pieces and boards are rendered quite nicely (and can look especially good if you have the hardware to support the anti-aliasing, bump-mapping, and other graphical technologies that the game takes advantage of). And since it's 3D, you can change angles and zoom levels on the fly to get the best view of the board when you need it.

Older reviews here (why are the two spotlight reviews from 2004?!) complain about technical issues related to copy-protection in the game. It appears that Ubisoft has fixed all of these problems with their latest patch (if not in an earlier patch) which is free to download. As long as you have an internet connection to download the patch (and a computer that meets the recommended system requirements), you should be able to buy the came with confidence.

CMX is a great chess program. Lots of fun for anyone who enjoys chess, or for people who'd like to start.

Cool, but needs a polishing

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 7 / 8
Date: February 14, 2008
Author: Amazon User

Great program that sharpens up your game & schools you on the finer points. There are a few minor bugs, but nothing that affects the gameplay. Having worked as a game tester, these bits jump out at me. Bottom line: I trample my opponent much more often since getting this program.

Chessmaster 10th edition

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 8 / 10
Date: August 28, 2004
Author: Amazon User

My son is 10 years old and has been competing in scholastic chess tournaments for the last three years. I have previously used chessmaster 7000, 8000, and 9000 to teach him the game. It has been a great help. I have purchased other chess software and have allowed him to use the one that he likes best for chess lessons. He always chooses the chessmaster. Now that we have Chessmaster 10th edition, I have introduced it to him. He has been using it for a a week now and he really enjoys it. He says that he likes it better than Chessmaster 9000. I asked him why and he stated he just likes the graphics better. He also likes the "attacking chess lessons" that comes with Chessmaster 10th edition.

Impressive learning tool

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 8 / 10
Date: September 09, 2004
Author: Amazon User

First off, I'd like to point out that I have "burning software" installed on my PC... the game installed and ran with no problem. Maybe I was just lucky with that.

Anyway, I've thoroughly enjoyed this game. The tutorial section is very useful, especially for those relatively new to the game (like me). I've definitely learnt a few things I didn't know, and I've still got most of the tutorial sections to go through. The auto-analysis, blunder alerts etc. have made me re-evaluate the way I approach situations during games. Perhaps if I were a much stronger player (1900+) I'd be disappointed, since I've heard that the Fritz analysis is better. Anyway, the reality is that I'm not a chess genius (yet?) and I've found this to be an amazingly useful tool for improving my chess.

Other big pluses, for me, are the opening training database, the database of games (HUGE!) and the very wide range of personalities to play against. I know some people have complained that there aren't enough boards to choose from etc, but frankly I didn't buy the game for eye-candy. The 3D boards I've looked at are pretty good, but I use 2D boards personally.

If you want to improve you chess, and you're not already a highly skilled player, this will do the job very nicely. If you are a serious tournament level, perhaps a package more suited to that level of play would be appropriate. The only real concern I have is that documentation does not explain all the features... I've had to post my questions on the Ubi forums to understand some of the tools.

Bringing Chess to the Masses

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 10 / 15
Date: February 18, 2006
Author: Amazon User

It bothers me that so many people have given this game poor reviews due to the copyright protection issue. It offsets the average rating of a game that deserves much more. I understand they're frustrated by their experience, but how can you rate a game that you've never played?

I'm new to chess. Previous to buying this game, I would play online, read tutorials on random web pages, and usually end up frustrated and overwhelmed by the complexities of chess. This game really changed all that. That's not to say that it instantly made me a great or even good player. But it is demystifying chess and giving me a clear path to serious improvement.

The tutorials, especially the ones by Josh Waitzkin, are very good. They're informative, challenging, and really a lot of fun. That's what I love about this game; it takes something so potentially frustrating as chess and makes it fascinating and addictive. I finally get why everyone loves this game so much.

The simulated players offer a wide range of challenge levels. Pretty much anyone will find somebody they can beat, somebody that will beat them, and that one opponent who inevitably becomes your arch nemesis (Eddie, I shake my fist at you!!). I also like how you can play against Josh Waitzkin as he was throughout the various stages of his childhood career. He was about as good at age 6 as I am at age 28.

This game isn't just a chess engine; it's a learning tool that makes the intimidating world of chess accessible and enjoyable for everyone. I couldn't recommend it more.

Stay away from this rubbish

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 9 / 13
Date: March 08, 2006
Author: Amazon User

I tried it on Windows 2000 with a cheap graphics card and it wouln't start: "can not initialize 3D engine"
In Windows XP with an expensive card it does start, but it is buggy and you need to have the CD in all the time.
It can be funny, but if you play against one of the characters with a lower ranking they'll make silly mistakes and spoil your fun.

I recommend to everybody to buy one of the Fritz series, especially one with the Fritz 9 interface: they are quite funny as well, you can play against many engines and there are many learning possibilities.

If you are desperate to buy Chessmaster, see if you can get the 9000 version: it is better from many points of view.

Crashing piece of dung

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 8 / 11
Date: January 01, 2006
Author: Amazon User

very simple.... I have spent 2 days getting crashed out of numerous games, patching and crashing more then re-installing and crashing some more. ubi-soft has NO help on their web-site for these problems and i have tried everything i can think of, changing the compatibility mode, new drivers, reinstalling, BLAH BLAH BLAH. in a nut shell DON'T BUY THIS GAME. I know microsoft is pissed at me, every time it crashes i send them the report, HA HA like they read those!

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