''Chessmaster 5000'' is a 1996 chess video game developed and published by Mindscape for

Windows Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...

. It is part of the ''

Chessmaster ''Chessmaster'' (originally ''The Chessmaster'') is a chess video game series, currently owned and developed by Ubisoft. It is the best-selling chess video game series, with more than five million units sold . The same cover art image featuring ...

'' series. An upgraded version, ''Chessmaster 5500'', was released in 1997. An online game, ''Chessmaster Live'', was included with ''5500''. The chess engine was designed by Tasc ChessSystem.

Gameplay

''Chessmaster 5000'' uses a 32-bit chess engine and can be optimized for stronger play if used with a

Pentium Pentium is a series of x86 architecture-compatible microprocessors produced by Intel from 1993 to 2023. The Pentium (original), original Pentium was Intel's fifth generation processor, succeeding the i486; Pentium was Intel's flagship proce ...

chip. The computer opponent can adopt over 70 different styles of famous grandmasters. The player can also design their own style for the computer. The multiplayer supports hotseat, network, and online play. Included with the game are 20 tutorials and a 27,000-game chess database. ''Chessmaster 5500'' added voice instruction to the game. Included with the purchase of ''5500'' was a copy and free subscription to ''Chessmaster Live'', an online game that was also available separately on the chessmaster.com website.

Reception

''Chessmaster 5000'' received generally positive reviews. In a 1995 comparison between 11 chess programs, ''

Computer Gaming World ''Computer Gaming World'' (CGW) was an American Video game journalism, computer game magazine that was published between 1981 and 2006. One of the few magazines of the era to survive the video game crash of 1983, it was sold to Ziff Davis in 199 ...

'' rated a pre-release version of ''Chessmaster 5000'' the highest. In a 1996 review, ''Computer Gaming World'' liked the quality of the computer opponents and the tutorials but disliked the

MIDI Musical Instrument Digital Interface (; MIDI) is an American-Japanese technical standard that describes a communication protocol, digital interface, and electrical connectors that connect a wide variety of electronic musical instruments, ...

music and the rating system. It was called "simply the best program ever designed for the mainstream chess player". ''

GameSpot ''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady, and Jon Epstein. In addition ...

'' called ''Chessmaster 5000'' "the finest chess software I have ever used." Reviewing ''Chessmaster 5500'', ''GameSpot'' said: "The worst thing you can say about Chessmaster 5500 is that you might not want to spend the bucks on it if you already own Chessmaster 5000 - but that's more of a comment on how outstanding the Chessmaster series is rather than a slam against the latest installment." In a comparison between four chess programs, ''

PC Joker ''PC Joker'' was the first German-language video gaming magazine for IBM PC-compatible computers. It was published by Joker-Verlag alongside Amiga Joker. References Computer magazines published in Germany Video game magazines published in G ...

'' rated ''Chessmaster 5000'' third behind ''

Power Chess ''Power Chess'' is a chess-playing video game originally released in September 1996 by Sierra On-Line for the Microsoft Windows 95 operating system. Later revisions of the software were released as ''Power Chess 98'' (1997) and ''Power Chess 2. ...

'' and ''Mephisto Genius 3.5''. ''

Computer Games Strategy Plus ''Computer Games Magazine'' was a monthly computer and console gaming print magazine, founded in October 1988 as the United Kingdom publication ''Games International''. During its history, it was known variously as ''Strategy Plus'' (October 1 ...

'' criticized the lack of PGN support and described the database as "broken". The game was summarized: "If you just want a good chess playing program with lots of eye candy, Chessmaster 5000 will suit you fine. If you need a serious training partner, skip it and buy Rebel 8 or

Fritz Fritz is a common German language, German male name. The name originated as a German diminutive of Friedrich (given name), Friedrich or Frederick (given name), Frederick (''Der Alte Fritz'', and ''Stary Fryc'' were common nicknames for King Fred ...

." ''Computer Games Strategy Plus'' gave a more positive review for ''Chessmaster 5500'', which was said to fix bugs from the previous version although a few issues still remained. ''Computer Games Strategy Plus'' also reviewed ''Chessmaster Live'', an online game included with ''5500''. It was said that "The program is simple to use and contains all the features needed to enjoy an on-line chess session."

References

External links

* (archived) * * {{Chessmaster 1996 video games Chess software Chessmaster Mindscape games Multiplayer and single-player video games Multiplayer hotseat games Multiplayer online games Video game sequels Video games developed in the United States Windows games Windows-only games