286:
228:, the maximum without bank switching. The released version is 4KB at a time when most games were 2KB, and the bank switching technology from the prototype was later used for other Atari VCS games. It was one of six games labeled as "Special Edition" on the box, and some speculate that this designation on these games refers to a combination of the 4KB ROM size and other factors.
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210:, in which a sprite's horizontal position is alternated between two values at every scanline, while the hardware outputs video signal. This results in one sprite being displayed as two objects, each composed of horizontal stripes. This technique allowed to display eight chess pieces in each row while using only four sprites.
241:
magazine praised it as "a reward for Atari owners" which even basic chess players "should find rewarding for many hours of enjoyment". The reviewers were surprised that the gameplay was limited to a single player, and noted the high retail price of
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The box art of the first production run of the Atari Video
Computer System features a chess piece, though Atari was not yet contemplating designing a chess game. A man from Florida supposedly sued Atari over the box art.
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sets up the board for a regulation chess game. Eight different difficulty levels have the computer-player take a variable amount of time to determine its moves, ranging from a few seconds to ten hours.
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246: (equivalent to $ 170 in 2023), but they praised the programming which prevents illegal moves, and which includes more advanced chess concepts like
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206:) with the right programming. The eight-piece-wide chess board exceeds this limitation. Whitehead developed a technique he called
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At first, the console's strict hardware limitations seemed to preclude it hosting a chess program. The console's
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538:(April 1980). "Arcade Alley: Faster Than A Bullet - Atari's Super Game".
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147:. The player uses a cursor to select and move pieces, rather than using
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allows the board to be set as the player pleases, whereas selecting
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lets the player play as white. With the left switch, selecting
481:"The Giant List of 2600 Label Variations: Version 6.0"
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in 1979. Both programmers later developed games for
256:capturing which had not yet become standard in all
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82:
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26:
544:. Reese Communications. pp. 18, 76, and 77.
155:, the computer plays as white; setting it to
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507:"Special Edition carts - What's so special?"
345:"The Giant List of Classic Game Programmers"
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590:Video games developed in the United States
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185:said he was not aware of such a lawsuit.
115:in 1982) programmed by Larry Wagner and
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111:game for the Atari VCS (renamed
1:
432:"DP Interviews Bob Whitehead"
505:Are, Jay (August 29, 2020).
192:chip can only display three
190:Television Interface Adaptor
143:The game is played from an
139:A chess game is in progress
606:
224:prototypes to exceed four
31:
314:List of Atari 2600 games
359:"Venetian Blinds Demo"
140:
580:Atari 2600-only games
479:Earney, John (1997).
410:"Video Chess (Atari)"
200:, or six (such as in
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389:"Video Chess Manual"
145:overhead perspective
460:. November 30, 2006
220:cartridge to allow
278:Video games portal
213:Atari developed a
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258:chess video games
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575:Atari 2600 games
570:1979 video games
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39:Special Edition
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21:1979 video game
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16:1979 video game
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454:"Info on "K"s"
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343:Hague, James.
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320:Video Checkers
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203:Space Invaders
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149:chess notation
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536:Laney, Frank
532:Kunkel, Bill
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514:. Retrieved
511:atariage.com
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488:. Retrieved
485:gamespot.com
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474:
462:. Retrieved
458:atariage.com
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448:
436:. Retrieved
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414:. Retrieved
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371:. Retrieved
367:the original
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306:Chess portal
292:1980s portal
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60:Publisher(s)
48:Developer(s)
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393:archive.org
222:Video Chess
181:programmer
179:Video Chess
172:Development
104:Video Chess
72:Platform(s)
27:Video Chess
564:Categories
464:October 2,
438:August 28,
412:. AtariAge
327:References
253:en passant
125:Activision
113:Atari 2600
77:Atari 2600
550:0147-8907
416:April 28,
373:April 23,
232:Reception
226:kilobytes
516:April 1,
490:April 1,
363:AtariAge
264:See also
248:castling
198:scanline
196:in each
131:Gameplay
92:Genre(s)
395:. 1978.
194:sprites
83:Release
548:
244:US$ 40
541:Video
238:Video
121:Atari
109:chess
107:is a
96:Chess
65:Atari
41:cover
546:ISSN
518:2024
492:2024
466:2023
440:2007
418:2024
375:2017
250:and
86:1979
218:ROM
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534:;
509:.
483:.
456:.
401:^
391:.
361:.
335:^
260:.
127:.
552:.
520:.
494:.
468:.
442:.
420:.
377:.
347:.
165:B
161:A
157:B
153:A
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
