No Stress Chess
by Winning Moves
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List Price: Our Price: $12.27 You Save: $5.72 (32%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Toy See more product details |
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Toys and Games Reviews of No Stress Chess
Customer Review: Ages 7 and WAY up!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
I am 51 years old. This afternoon, after my 19-year-old finished a game of "real" chess with his 6-year-old cousin, Cousin's twin sister challenged me to a game. "Sorry, sweetie," I said. "I don't know how to play chess."
"But, Aunt Cynthia," she said, "It's No-Stress Chess. You don't have to know how!"
"But chess is very confusing to my poor brain, dear," I told her.
She sighed and said, very patiently, "But it is NO STRESS. I can teach you!"
Far be it from me to let down my niece! With a little bit of encouragement from my sister, the next thing I knew, I was sitting on the floor (more comfortably than I have in years!), taking instruction in No-Stress Chess.
Long story short -- I am buying this game! Within 10 minutes, I had overcome the long-ago trauma of my one and only chess lesson (35 years ago), and I was getting the hang of which pieces moved which directions and how far. My niece did win, but not by much, and not because I let her -- she's just had more practice! By the next time we visit, in a couple of weeks, I intend to be able to play her to a draw, and maybe by our birthdays this summer, I'll be able to play "real" chess! This is not a "dumbed down kids' game" -- it's a super teaching tool, and I highly recommend it!
Customer Review: Chess-o-phobes rejoice!
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought this to tie in to our homeschool unit on the Middle Ages. This is brilliant! I am one of the few non-chess players in my family and for years I wanted to learn but was intimidated by their greatness. My husband, father and two brothers all played at tournament level and one brother is master class. I felt like such a dope when I tried to learn. For years I knew how the pieces moved and how to set up the board and that was all. NO MORE! Tonight I BEAT my husband at our very first game! HAH! It was so fun. This levels the playing field completely but remains fun for both players. I then played against our ten year old daughter and again claimed a narrow victory. Great fun for everyone!
When I played against my daughter, a total novice, it was just as much fun as playing against my husband. My daughter didn't know a thing about the game - not how to set up the board or how to move - but the cards explain it all!
I recommend this to anyone who has an interest in learning or teaching chess. Good chess players could do well to keep the set of cards with their set for a fun variant or to have as a teaching tool anywhere, as the cards work with any standard chess set.
In closing this may be the best family purchase we have made in years!
Customer Review: Fantastic Set for New & Intermediate Chess Players
Summary: 5 Stars
My son received this for his 6th birthday, and didn't want to stop playing it the next day, even to go to his party! He had been learning some basics of Chess but was not able to really play. This game uses cards that tell you which piece to move, so even children (and adults) who have never played the game can jump right in. The moves for each piece are on the card. You have to move the piece shown if you can, but you decide which/how. It really changes the game since being in check does not apply -- even if you can threaten your opponent's piece, you can't necessarily get it on your next turn. There are also a few cards that let you move your choice of either of the last two cards shown, which is helpful if you just got in a position to strike! One side of the board shows where the pieces go and the other is a standard chess board so when your child is comfortable, he can play the 'regular' way. We love both ways! My son actually began playing 'real' Chess after only a few weeks. I think this is the best possible way to teach Chess quickly and accurately, and as an experienced player, I really enjoy the game with the cards too -- it is faster and more of a game of chance, but still fun! Definitely pick this up for anyone learning or previously intimidated by Chess.Customer Review: Great for kids who are learning the sportsmanship thing....
Summary: 5 Stars
The benefit of this game is not really the fact the moves are printed on the cards. It takes kids very little time to remember the moves. The advantage of this game is that it brings luck and chance into the game, so it is not SOLELY about one's skill level.
My kids belonged to a homeschool chess club, and, to my dismay, my daughter (then 5 and 6) really did not have the emotional maturity to handle LOSING as a direct consequence of her chess abilities. The problem though, is that it is really by LOSING at chess that you start learning how to win. She was actually a pretty good chess player, but she refused to play anyone she suspected might beat her, and eventually quit altogether and would read a book while her brothers played.
This game got her to play chess again. There is still strategizing involved, particularly if you start playing the more advanced levels, but the fact that it is luck and chance that dictates which piece you must move somehow makes her feel better if she loses.
So I give this game an A++++ for the perfectionist child in particular.
Customer Review: The Perfect Solution
Summary: 5 Stars
Ever wanted to figure out how to teach your pre-teens how to play chess? And younger? All they need to do is know how to read, or you can help them read the cards. Even our 5 year old learned to play chess, something I don't think I could have known how to do on my own. The cards make it easy and fun, and they transition to full chess pretty fast. My five year old now plays regular chess against the computer after only a month with this game! (To be complete, my seven year old is not as interested in either reading or games. He does play this game but has not shown an interest in regular chess yet.) All of my older children tried this a couple of times and are now playing regular chess. We will probably introduce our toddler next year. When they are ready to move on from this game to regular chess, you just have to show castling and en passant--easy. And if needed, you can always delay those rules if they feel too advanced for your child. They will still have a lot of fun and learning with the strategy of chess.