I am super excited to be sharing a new review product from Brain Blox with you! I have used the actual Brain Blox wooden plank set before, and they are amazing, so when I was given the opportunity to review Fun Family Chess I was stoked!
Now, I do not know how to play chess! I've honestly always thought it was a really hard game, but with the way that Fun Family Chess teaches you how to play, it was actually really easy! My 14 year old son does know how to play so I had someone to play the game with.
OK, first let me tell you what all comes with the set and how it all works, and then I will get back to telling you my experience with it.
As you can see in the picture above, it comes it a nice, colorful, attractive box. The box is very thick and sturdy and will hold up to use. When you take the set out of the box you will see that it is made out of a nice quality wood and it closes and locks together. It has the images of the pieces right on the board so that you know exactly how to set it up. For me, this is extremely helpful, as I previously knew nothing about chess.
When you open the chess board up you will see that it is nicely lined in a black velvet lining. It also doubles as a place to hold all of the components of the game.
This is what the board looks like all folded out. It is a very beautiful board.
This set includes two soft, black bags to hold each team's pieces. The colors used in this set are a dark brown and a bright white.
Here is an up close look at the quality of the pieces. They are very light weight and are really well made. I took a picture of the chess board all set up so that you can see how it looks all ready to go.
The main thing about this chess set that is different than other chess sets is that it has a chess cube.
Fun Family Chess is a different way of playing chess. It comes with several things that normal chess sets don't come with. Like I just mentioned, it comes with a chess cube, but is also comes with reference cards and a very informative reference guide.
The cube has images of all of the game pieces, plus a star on it.
The reference cards show you how to move each individual game piece. This is the most helpful component of this set to me. I had absolutely no idea what any of these pieces did and they are complicated. I can't imagine having to remember how each one moves without a reference card. Thank goodness I didn't have to! I love these!
The guide shows you how to play Fun Family Chess vs standard chess, as well as gives plenty of other useful tips. It is written so well that I knew exactly how to play both versions of chess. It makes it really easy to understand.
There is more to the guide than the pictures shown.
So now that I have shown you what all this set comes with, let me explain to you exactly how this works. The Fun Family Chess version is super simple. Instead of having to know HOW to play, all you need to know how to do is roll a dice and read your reference card. First, you roll the dice and see what game piece you land on. If you roll a star you get to choose which piece to move. Then you will go to your reference card and see which ways you can move that piece. Finally, you go the game board and move your piece.
My son already knew how to play so he didn't want to use the dice, but since I did not know how to play, I had him use it with me until I understood how to play. It only took one round of using the dice for me to get it and I didn't want to use the dice anymore because I realized the benefit to choosing which piece you wanted to move. That being said it is a wonderful way to teach someone how to play. Without the dice, I would not have known what I was doing, and I may never have understood, and given up.
Once you grasp the concept you can move on without the dice, however, you may still want to use the reference cards. I still use the cards even though I don't use the dice anymore. I honestly feel that I will be using them for a while longer, but that's OK! At least I can play now!
I love being able to play chess. It is something new that I can do with my teenage son. He really likes to play chess, and I didn't even know that he knew how to play!
Overall, I think this chess set is very well made. It is a great quality and will hold up to plenty of use. I think the Fun Family Chess way of learning is INGENIOUS!!! Anyone can learn with this concept.
I will absolutely being sharing this game with all of my friends and family so that they can learn too! If you can't tell, I am in love with this game and the way that I was taught how to play it. I 100 % recommend this chess set to your family. Let me know if you guys purchase a set for yourselves and let me know if you like it as much as I do!
The chess set is $34.95, but Amazon has it on sale right now for $24.99, so I would go on over there and get it for that price for sure!
Also, don't forget that other members of The Old Schoolhouse Review Crew also reviewed this chess set, so be sure to go over to the website and read their reviews as well!
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