Customer Reviews

Microsoft Classic Board Games (featuring 12 all-time favorites)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I expected more from a Microsoft product. You can find better features on shareware and freeware games than what is offered here.

The graphics are all dingy earth tones. The chess pieces appear squashed, and all the pieces look dirty and worn, as if the models for the pieces were taken out of a garbage bin. There is no option to change the look of the pieces or the boards.

The games don't seem to have been programmed by someone that actually played games. Backgammon has no doubling cube. You can't take back a move after the final move. Shogi uses traditional Japanese characters instead of the international symbols. You can not copy the moves of any of the games to the clipboard, and the games are not saved in the accepted game standards that would allow the moves to be copied to other platforms. There are only three play levels per game.

You have several choices for background music, all bad.

The game takes up a tremendous amount of disk space, and gives very little in return. Overall, a waste of money.

I agree with the "A Disappointment" review. Their chess game is not even in the same order magnitude as ChessMaster 8000. Their other games will also fail in comparison with their full-blown 95 / 98 / ME counterparts. But ChessMaster 8000 wouldn't run on my Windows 2000 computer and neither will many of those counterparts. 95 / 98 / ME users have an abundance of game software. This is not true for NT / Windows 2000 users. I am going Classic Board Games three stars and recommend it for NT / Windows 2000 users for two reasons: it will run, and a full Classic Board Games install does not require a CD to initiate it. This is convenient for gamers who simply want to play off their hard disk. If you are a 95 / 98 / ME user, skip Classic Board Games, and buy those counterparts.

Yes, it's true these games don't have alot of graphics and there are a few glitches. But it fun! If you just want to play basic games this is great!!

When I first found this set I was happy that it had two games that (at the time) I could not find readily available. These being Shogi and Go. However, freeware versions of these games are easy enough to find.

However, the more I play them the more annoyed I get at some glitches. In shogi, if you play as black you cannot promote your rook to a Dragon King. If you play as white you can't drop soldiers. This leads to some frustrating developments.

In Go the scoring system also has a glitch. If black has a final score of 11 and white of 2.5, White did not win the game by 4.5. This is minor compared to the Shogi flaw, but I have now begun tallying final scores myself.

The chess feature is probably the weakest engine I have found, the computer routinely blunders within 5 moves by placing its queen in direct jeopardy without even taking a piece. In the past I have ignored it because I am curious what it could possibly be attempting, but it just leaves it there. If you want a chess program find another one.

The other games have similar problems. It is a good introduction but better programs exist. I will play a quick game in the grad office every now and again, but if you want a challenge you should probably keep looking