Deep Fritz: Grand Master Deluxe [Old Version]

by Viva Media

Product Features

• Use Fritz as your coach, mentor, and opponent in this fun chess game
• 750,000+ games database; blazing-fast dual processor support
• Friend mode adjusts playing strength to yours; 4 true 3-D chessboards
• Introductory course for beginners; tactical advice for advanced players
• Bonus membership for 6 months to www.playchess.com chess server

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B000BTLYAU
• Item model number: 838639002184
• Date first available at Amazon.com: October 20, 2005
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,539 in Software (See Top 100 in Software)
  • #94 in Video Games > PC Games > Board Games

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Play better faster with Fritz as your coach, mentor, and opponent. Sporting blazing-fast dual processor support, stunning 3-D graphics, and a tremendous games database, Fritz has it all. Fritz can even adjust its playing strength to your own and provide detailed real-time game analysis. Experience the Game of Kings as King of the Game.

Bonus membership for six months to www.playchess.com, the hottest chess server in the world!

Features:

• 750,000+ games database, updated and fully searchable
• Friend mode adjusts playing strength to yours
• Four beautiful, true 3-D chessboards
• Complete introductory course for beginners
• Interactive opening-, middle-, and end-game training
• Comprehensive tactical advice for advanced players
• Let Fritz tell you (or click the "shut-up" button)
• 85-percent faster when using Deep Fritz 8 dual processor engine (fully compatible with single processor)

Product Description

Play better with Fritz as your coach, mentor and opponent. Sporting blazing fast dual processor support, stunning 3D graphics and a tremendous game database. Fritz has it all. Fritz can even adjust its playing strength to your own and provide detailed real-time game analysis. Experience the Game of Kings as King of the Game!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

52 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars DF8 engine for $20 = what are you waiting for?, June 28, 2006

By 

OverTheMoon ([e-mail]) - See all my reviews

= Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Deep Fritz: Grand Master Deluxe [Old Version] (Video Game)

You want a simple chess program? Go search for WinBoard. If you want to play 3D Chess just for the look, then I am sure you can find all sorts of swanky looking 3D chess boards out there. If I want to play on-line I can go on yahoo games and play any one of the thousands of chess games for free for as long as I want. If however you are interested in chess engines (the AI behind the chess software) then obviously you are considering getting a decent piece of chess software with some brains rather than just a ritzy looking chess board (why not actually spend on a ritzy look chess board instead!). Let's just cut to the chase and see what is in the top 10 chess engines and how much they cost.

1 Rybka $70
2 Hiarcs 10 $52.95
3 Fruit 2.2.1 $35
4 Shredder 9.0 $56.95
5 Fritz 9.0 $52.95
6 Shredder 8.0 (replaced by Shredder 9.0)
7 Shredder 7.04 (replaced by Shredder 9.0)
8 Junior 9.0 $46.95
9 Deep Fritz 8.0 $69.98
10 Spike 1.1 Free (beta)

The "Deep Fritz: Grand Master Deluxe" package costs $20 and comes with the Deep Fritz 8.0 engine and some other game engines to choose from. Apart from Spike, that makes Deep Fritz 8, if got the "Deep Fritz: Grand Master Deluxe" way, an excellent quality chess engine. Not only that but you get the whole chessbase software with it which is able to run game analysis and has too many features to describe in one review. It takes a few days to learn the package and how it works, but it is worth learning because this is precisely the kind of engine you need to learn how to improve your game. It could well be the best money you ever spent on chess. Unless you are GM (grandmaster) quality then DF8 is probably going to be on your machine for the next decade at least. If you are GM then spend a bit of that tournament winning cash on some of the super engines like Rybka, Hiarcs 10, Shredder 10, Toga II or Fruit.

*Note: There are a few analysis and play bugs that have been solved in the Fritz 9 Chessbase.

48 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Overly complicated... Only for the VERY advanced PC chess player, May 30, 2006

By 

Jeremy O'Bryan (Austin, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

= Fun:3.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Deep Fritz: Grand Master Deluxe [Old Version] (Video Game)

I am 25 years old, and an avid chess player and PC user. I recently purchased Deep Fritz: Grandmaster Deluxe, only to find that although the game advertises itself as fun for the beginner to the expert, only someone with extensive computer knoweldge and/or knowledge of this product line should consider purchasing this game. While installation, game setup, and play options are fairly easy to get the hang of, the more advanced options, such as loading saved games from other programs in .pgn format, are extremely difficult to understand. For some reason, I can't get the 'openings trainer' option of the game to display itself in English!

Furthermore, while the game does offer a free six month subscription to playchess.com, there is no human vs. human option in the game itself. You HAVE to play against the computer; which may be a problem for some potential buyers. Also, while not as strong a selling point for me, those players who enjoy chess games with multiple 2D and 3D board styles and/or animations should be advised to stay away from this game, as there are only four 3D board sets, and the graphics on these sets are mediocre.

I would recommend Deep Fritz: Grandmaster Deluxe for those experienced PC chess players who enjoy no-frills chess and do not wish to pay for some of the higher-end games which use the Fritz engine. For the rest of us, I would say to stay away from this particular game and instead purchase something like Ubisoft's Chessmaster: 10th Edition or Chessmaster 9000.

31 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Incredible Bargain On An Excellent Piece of Software, November 2, 2006

By 

Nobody Special (The Heartland) - See all my reviews

= Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars 

This review is from: Deep Fritz: Grand Master Deluxe [Old Version] (Video Game)

As another reviewer mentioned, this is, indeed, Deep Fritz 8 packaged under a different title. Whether you have a single processor or a dual-processor computer this is a super application.

If you do have a dual-processor machine then you've got a top 10 piece of chess software. Deep Fritz 8 is ranked 10th on both the CEGT site and the SSDF website with ratings of 2793 and 2783, respectively.

And contrary to another reviewer, Fritz 9 is almost twice the price of this product (comparing Amazon prices today). And for the extra dollars you really don't get any more power. Fritz 9 is ranked 11th (CEGT) and 6th (SSDF). Why pay more for essentially the same playing-strength? Not to mention the fact that some users have complained about the bugs in Fritz 9.