Really Bad Chess

Noodlecake

Contains adsIn-app purchases

About this game

Really Bad Chess is just like chess, but with totally random pieces. Try 8 Knights, 4 Bishops, and 3 pawns — why not?

As heard on NPR's Weekend Edition

5 out of 5 Stars "An essential puzzle experience for anyone even remotely interested in strategy games" - TouchArcade

Whether you play chess daily, or quit just after learning the rules, this small twist will open the door to an entire new world of chess.

------WHATS IN THE “BOX”?
The free version of Really Bad Chess lets you compete vs. an AI in Ranked, Daily, or Weekly Challenges. Improve your skills using the included Freeplay mode. A single in-app purchase unlocks Versus Mode so you can compete against your friends locally! It also removes ads, displays captured pieces, and adds soothing alternate color-palettes to choose from.

------REALLY BAD PRESS

"Makes chess fun even if you’re really bad" - The Verge

"Feels more modern than chess has ever felt" - Applenapps

"Really Bad Chess takes a really bad idea and somehow manages to make it a lot of fun." - Pocket Gamer


------A WORD FROM THE DEVELOPER
Chess is one of those games I always wished I enjoyed, but its commitment to beauty, elegance, and perfect balance always turned me away. Really Bad Chess removes these boring restrictions and flips chess on its head.

As much as random pieces change the game in some ways, I was really surprised to notice how much the game remains the same, and how powerful some pieces are — you've never truly struggled against a pawn until you've struggled against a pawn in the back row.

For chess pros, Really Bad Chess will give you a new type of challenge — the pieces & the moves are the same, but you'll have to throw out your openings and your understanding of normal patterns of play.

For novice chess players (like most of us), Really Bad Chess greatly opens up the game. Instead of starting by studying openings, in your first games you'll get to discover the joy (and challenge!) of learning how to checkmate.

I hope you have as much fun with Really Bad Chess as much as I did making it.

-zach

Ratings and reviews

Really cranked up the ads in the last update. Used to just be an unskippable ad if you needed some undos but now it's one after every game, I usually close out of the app after a game to avoid them. Funny that now I only play one or two games a day because of this, when before I'd play a lot and watch more ads to get the undos. Aside from this ad situation it's a great game for thinking and killing time. I see a lot of people complaining about moves AI shouldn't be able to make but I haven't experienced it. It's when you're Rank 100+ and it has better pieces than you when you start to get frustrated lol but keep at it. True, the AI sometimes takes a little while but it's a chess game people. Give the computer some time to think :)

I've had this game for years. Always loved and have played every day. A long time ago I paid for ad-free. Now suddenly today I open the app and it tells me I need to sign up for play pass in order to continue ad-free and keep my "undo's"? It took away every undo I had and it won't let me watch an ad to get more, only purchase some. Screw that, this is theft! You took away something I already paid for, and are now asking me to join a subscription to get it again. Uninstalling, good riddance!!

I was very excited to try out this fun twist on a tried and true game... but it refuses to start! I tap it, it loads for a second or two, then closes out. I have a somewhat old device (Samsung Galaxy 7 I believe) but it should be able to run a game like really bad chess. I will try reinstalling it, and if it works I will certainly rate higher. Edit: I guess a late reply is better than none, but sorry anyways. First, I was completely wrong, the device I was using was a Samsung galaxy tablet 2, and now, all this time layer, I played the game! The gameplay is really great, and the controls work just fine, but something that really drags down the whole experience is how painfully slow the AI is. It just totally breaks the pace of an already pretty sluggish game, and i'd love to try it again if you fix this issue.

What’s new

Bug fixes and performance improvements.