Chex

Chex is a hexagonal chess variant that I developed many years ago. It must have been some time during the 1980s. The name is of course a frankenword made out of "chess" and "hex". It is an awful name, but that is what I called it.

The goal was to make a small chess-like game. Really, it was just creative exploration of an idea. The result might not be magnificent, but it is indeed small and quick to play. It can feel claustrophobic in a good way, and you easily get into some intense positions. At the time I thought it was a unique idea to play chess on a hexagonal board. But, as anyone can see on the internet now, chex is just one of many such variants.

The rules are very simple if you already know chess.

The idea is that you use the start position shown above while learning the game. But soon add three dice and start playing Chex72. It is the same game, but with random start positions. Similar to what Bobby Fischers Chess960 is to chess.

At the time chex was made, chess had become such a serious game. It was a game to analyze in depth, a game requiring education and lots of studying for one to even start playing for real. Chess had become part of the geopolitical rivalry between the two superpowers. It was also seen as the mental battleground where humans and computers should prove who were the smartest. Chess was serious stuff. Since then chess culture has reinvented itself, and chess is now a more approachable game.

The point of chex was to be both something new and something familiar. An opportunity for one to play chess-like moves with fresh eyes. A more casual game. No education or studying required, as there is nothing that you can read up on. I think it turned out interesting and not a bad game. But I would love to hear if anyone has any improvements.

For those that are curious and want to try the game, here are the necessary downloads.