Kung-Fu Chess is a

chess variant A chess variant is a game related to, derived from, or inspired by chess. Such variants can differ from chess in many different ways. "International" or "Western" chess itself is one of a family of games which have related origins and could be c ...

that removes the concept of turns and allows multiple pieces to move simultaneously. It was created by Shizmoo Games as a "real-time" in the early 2000s and remained on the company's website until the website shut down in 2008. Other online servers have since appeared.

Background

The game was conceptualized in the early 2000s by Dan Goldstein as a "real-time" version of chess; it was later developed by him and his brother Joshua Goldstein under the name "Ultra Speed Chess". The name was later changed to "Kung-Fu Chess" to reflect the

martial-arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the preserv ...

themed sound effects that would play during the players' moves. The game was published by Shizmoo Games on the company's website and it won the Audience Choice award in the 2002

Independent Games Festival The Independent Games Festival (IGF) is an annual festival at the Game Developers Conference (GDC), the largest annual gathering of the independent video game industry. Originally founded in 1998 to promote independent video game developers, ...

. Following with the martial arts theme, the game also featured a rating system categorized by belt colors. It was later supplemented with additional variants (such as

Four-player chess Four-player chess (also known as four-handed chess) is a family of chess variants played with four people. The game features a special board typically made of a standard 8×8 square, with 3 rows of 8 cells each extending from each side, and requi ...

Crazyhouse Crazyhouse (also known as drop chess, mad chess, reinforcement chess, turnabout chess and schizo-chess) is a chess variant in which captured enemy pieces can be reintroduced, or ''dropped'', into the game as one's own. The drop rule resembles tha ...

, and

Bughouse chess Bughouse chess (also known as exchange chess, Siamese chess (but not to be confused with Thai chess), tandem chess, transfer chess, double bughouse, cross chess, swap chess or simply bughouse, bugsy, or bug) is a popular chess variant played on t ...

) before the website shut down in 2008. The original version was added to the ICQ

instant messaging Instant messaging (IM) technology is a type of online chat allowing real-time text transmission over the Internet or another computer network. Messages are typically transmitted between two or more parties, when each user inputs text and trigge ...

program in 2005. The app Chezz is based on Kung-Fu Chess, adding concepts such as an adventure mode that allows for upgrading pieces to allow them to move more often.

Rules

In Kung-Fu Chess, either player can move any available piece at any given moment, though only one piece can be moved at a time. After a piece is moved, a predefined delay prevents it from moving again for a short period of time. This, plus piece movements not being instantaneous, means that speed and timing are crucial aspects of the game, as any delay could determine whether a piece is captured or not. In addition to this, the game's "real-time" aspect leads to essential differences between Kung-Fu Chess and standard

chess Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to dist ...

. For instance, checks and

pins A pin is a device used for fastening objects or material together. Pin or PIN may also refer to: Computers and technology * Personal identification number (PIN), to access a secured system ** PIN pad, a PIN entry device * PIN, a former Dutch de ...

do not exist in the game, since players are not bound to one move at a time and thus could respond to threats with multiple piece movements.

Checkmate Checkmate (often shortened to mate) is any game position in chess and other chess-like games in which a player's king is in check (threatened with ) and there is no possible escape. Checkmating the opponent wins the game. In chess, the king is ...

and

stalemate Stalemate is a situation in the game of chess where the player whose turn it is to move is not in check and has no legal move. Stalemate results in a draw. During the endgame, stalemate is a resource that can enable the player with the inferi ...

were similarly both impossible to achieve; as such, the game only ended when one's king was physically captured or if one's opponent resigned.

References

External links

GameSpy articleGameDev.net article
{{Chess variants Chess variants