Video Chess

Video Chess is a video game in the strategy genre developed by Atari, Inc. and published by Atari, Inc. originally released in 1979. It is currently playable on Atari 8-bit.

This is an early home chess game. Standard American chess rules are used in this game. To move a piece, place the X on the board over the piece to be moved and then press the red button. Next, move the X to where you want the piece to go and press the button again. If the move is illegal, the 2600 will emit a warning sound and will not make the move.

To castle your king, the king and rook must not have been moved. Move your king two squares in the direction of the rook you wish to castle. The 2600 will automatically move your rook around your king, completing the move. You cannot castle out of check and you cannot castle to the king's side if any square between the king and the rook is threatened.

Another maneuver is called 'en passant'. This move is used to counter the initial double move of the enemy pawn on an adjacent square. To carry out the en passant, you must advance your pawn to the fifth rank. Your opponent then has the option of moving his pawn one square (where it would be under attack) or two squares. If your opponent chooses to move two squares, the en passant move allows you to take that pawn by diagonally moving your pawn to the square that has been jumped.

Skill levels
These determine how long the computer will think about your move. These times are approximate and may vary slightly, depending on the move you have made.
Level 1=15 seconds
Level 2=30 seconds
Level 3=45 seconds
Level 4=2 minutes, 45 seconds
Level 5=3 minutes, 15 seconds
Level 6=12 minutes
Level 7=10 hours
Level 8=10 seconds

Level 8 is a beginner level.

It is possible that we have multiple downloads available when different versions exist.