Chessformer

Chessformer (2021) is a running and jumping game where you are trying to capture the king. The twist is that it's turn based and you move around obstacles using chess pieces that can only behave as they do in the game of chess.

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It sounds simple, but quickly gets complex, forcing you to think ahead and try and find solutions for overcoming seemingly impossible obstacles. It's this combination of core chess gameplay and these more novel platform game mechanics that make it unique.

In each of the 48 levels, you begin with a few set pieces, located in specific positions on the screen. You then can move them in any way you could in regular chess. If they end up somewhere without a platform, they fall to the ground. This means you have to think carefully about how to get to the king, perhaps stacking pieces one on top of each other to reach a high up ledge, or leaving one piece on a button to clear the path for other pieces to get through. Later levels introduce new mechanics, such as letting you choose your starting pieces, allowing for multiple ways to beat the levels.

It's a novel take on chess, offering up the classic movement mechanics of the ancient game while blending it with platforming elements that add an extra layer of strategy, tactics and forethought to the game.

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Our examiner, Ben Kendall, first checked Chessformer 2 years ago. It was re-examined by Jo Robertson and updated 19 months ago.