Game Reviews (and other rated comments on Game pages)

Very good article! I really like this variant in this interpretation.

I like Cetran 3 more than the 8x8 versions. The piece variety makes it much more fun.

It's basically the idea of the piece Joker, invented by T.R.Dawson but with a lot more constraints. This might be better if there was motivation given for how the extra rules are beneficial. As it is, it occupies the term "Copycat" that might be given better meaning. Sorry.

As for myself, I’m not even sure this is a chess variant. Although it uses Chess equipment, it seems to be a very different sort of game than chess.

Though it’s rather good (at least at first glance). Idea is very interesting.

Astounding. I don't think I'll ever play something so complex, but the concept and work are awesome. The case, when reading about game rules and design, is almost as exciting, as the play itself.

That was a good review of the game. Thank you for your time. I have added the repetition rule. As for the territorial merging, it's hard enough to control a single territory and prevent it from invasion. On a bigger territory that will be even harder. You are right about the black King from e5 having the possibility to push the white bishop to c5 but that wouldn't win additional points for black. The "three of a kind" rule should also imply the same colour too. Also, the new territory created at e5 would give the white player even more points.

Suddenly seen 18.5 years after (so cool that I’ve first seen Russian language version via random game page!) and I have an idea. There’s stated that same pieces can merge, what if they can be upgraded this way? Like Knight to Nightrider, Rook/Bishop to ranger+hopper hybrids, Guard to Torch (slip Queen) or Lion (area mover) ah he can’t.

Really cool. Didn’t seen these compounds.
Resonates with my idea of pieces with hopping parts (e.g. for my rocket board as well as for normal one).

P. S. I have a better-quality setup image.

It is a very nice and creative take on the chess labyrinth kind of game. I tend to agree, that digital implementation could be the best way to make this game playable - cause it needs some algorithm that ensures that every starting position is solvable. Overall, I think it's a great minimalistic game that can be used in school tactical games clubs or as support material to teach the basics of chess.

I had not seen this page for a while. It is quite nice.

Just for information, I've seen 2 small typos: "sqaure" and "matnicore"

Hey, does anyone know where i can find an online version of this, i wanna play it online with friends

I love it. There are a lot of nice, sophisticated and interesting chess variants out there, but not many variants that I see myself actually playing. But Lighthouse will definitely be in my collection of mini-chess games I play with friends and colleagues. This game perfectly blends fast pace, simple and understandable rules, accessibility and an opportunity to enjoy the special spirit of Shogi.

Great work, Lev.

I have tried the game online, and it is really fun, especially on the normal version.

I don't think you need the word retainer in the sentence "Try to complete the King’s tour with the fewest retainer casualties as possible!".

Also, you should clarify that Pawns move upward, not downward, and that they can swap directly forward as well as diagonally forward.

Otherwise, this looks good enough to be approved.

No other differences.

Thank you for the clarification. It's obvious in the interactive diagram. Likely on the wording of the rules as given, but capable of being misundertood.

Now I'm certain this is the rule, let me give the game an excellent. The slashing rider moves deep into enemy territory and the defense against such should be a thing of beauty.

I have not played this game personally, but I must say, for a multi-move variant, this game was very well-made.

Also, the new circle symbol in GC for past moves is very nice. However, this functionality doesn't seem to work with hexagonal boards (like Hex Shogi 91's).

I think this piece caled Sissa is great, but I would remove acute angles (45 and 315 degrees) and only keep obtuse angles (135 and 225 degrees). 

I would also remove the rule that both moves have to be of the same length. This will create a new piece that can make an absolute mess on the chessboard. 

This is a fun design. I've made a rules enfrcing preset in case anyone wants to try it.

These are probably just a bunch of silly ideas. However, some of these variants might give somewhat nice strategic games. I hope I did not offend go players with my unusual description of their game.

This was a good attempt at mixing Chess with Go. However, in my humble opinion, in order to make this game work we need to keep the number of "liberties" to four, not eight, otherwise the game might become unecessarily messy and impossible to finish. 

A second rule should be to only keep pieces that move orthogonally only. This means that only  Rooks and restricted Kings (Kings that only move orthogonally) are allowed to join the game.

Alternativelly, we can also invent some pieces that move in zig-zag.

Knights can also be included with the restriction that they can only move along empty squares.