Shogi for You and Me

I recently had the opportunity to play and review Shogi, a Japanese version of chess. It's important to note that Shogi and chess are essentially two versions of the same game, invented centuries ago. Shogi differs from chess in a few ways, but the most significant difference is that the pieces that are captured can be used by the player who captures them. Therefore, the typical "end game" scenario that occurs in chess is not applicable to Shogi.

Shogi also has a larger 9 x 9 playing board, as opposed to the 8 x 8 board used in chess. The pieces used in Shogi include the king, knight, pawn, bishop, rook, gold general, silver general, and lance. While these are not the Japanese names for the pieces themselves, they are commonly used in Shogi.

One of the challenges that new Shogi players face is that the traditionally used Kanji characters on the pieces can be difficult for English speakers to understand. Fortunately, the version of the game that I reviewed offered the option of using either Kanji or pictures that are easier to comprehend for English speakers. Additionally, I found that there were several levels of gameplay available that made it possible for even young children to find a level they can win against. This is especially helpful for those who may be new to Shogi.

Overall, I found Shogi to be a fun and exciting game that anyone who enjoys chess will surely love. In addition to the traditional Kanji style tokens, the game also included a beautiful icon style view that I referred to as the "Davis Style" tokens. The game requires Java 1.4.2 or later to run on your device.