GoChess Wizard Mini Review – Get Schooled
I never managed to quite pick up how to play chess, despite the copious amount of other board and card games I’ve spent hours learning and relearning rules to. The GoChess Wizard Mini board from Particula has turned that around, offering a range of play modes that integrates with existing online options for competitive players and can teach newcomers like me the basics and beyond. I can safely say that through persistence and perseverance and the rigid patience of the LED equipped board, I now know more than “horsey goes L” and “pawn go forward”. It’s a minor miracle, but one that has a few caveats for those wanting to go from chess zero to hero.
Aesthetically, the GoChess Mini Harry Potter themed board evokes the key sequence from Philosopher’s Stone wherein Ron Weasley plays Wizards Chess, which it turns out is just like regular chess with the word Wizard in front of it – pretty magical. The pieces are weighty with slight magnetic adhesion and made of a flexible plastic material that will stand up to drops and bumps without breaking while looking impressive thanks to quality sculpts and a wash applied. The LED lighting around the board exterior gives just a hint of ambiance, while each square can light up several colours. Of course, it’s entirely possible to play chess using this set without the app or any of the functions, but that seems to miss the point of the board entirely. The included packaging with its magnetic triangular covers is a joy to open the first time but soon becomes burdensome as it wants each piece secured back in a bespoke well for both white and black. The included soft pouches for player pieces don’t always sit nicely in the box once filled, so it’s the sort of situation where the best outcome would be having somewhere to leave it all setup as a functional showpiece. The outer slip-cover slides over from the top and thus I often found myself carrying the whole thing upside down to prevent it falling out of the bottom, but the packaging is secure enough that I felt comfortable transporting it for games on the go. Rounding out the package is a USB-C charging cable and a universal phone stand which are handy but non-essential.
Syncing with the GoChess app wirelessly over Bluetooth, I had no connecting with the GoChess board across multiple devices, the app automatically switching to the Harry Potter theme after detecting the board variant. The app is very straightforward with a few settings for the board itself as well as the many play modes. For example, the LED lights on the board can be brightened or dimmed, while the ambient “torch” lights that run around the outside can be enabled or disabled – it’s also possible to have pawns auto-promote to Queens, a common strategy apparently – and after playing a number of games, I now understand why. The Online Challenge option runs through Lichess or Chess.com and reintegrates the tactile aspects of Chess thanks to the GoChess board. For someone as Chess backwards as myself though, the Play vs The Board option was my go-to when not being destroyed by my eldest (8).
This mode provides thirty-two bot difficulty levels, scaled from 400 to 3200 ELO and a number of match timer settings. Built into each mode is the LED based hints system, which colour codes potential moves from each piece and lets the player know which pieces are available to them on their turn (green), if a move is legal (blue), if something is a ‘good move’ (purple) or a terrible idea (red). This system is both the most impressive part of the GoChess Mini Board and also something that could benefit from some more detail and depth of strategy in the app itself. You see, it shows the what, but not the why – the board will help break down initial barriers like knowing where pieces can move and, in some situations, why a move might be a bad idea when ringed in red, but more guided and in-depth lessons would further strategic and tactical understanding. Switching all these assists off at the start feels like the right choice, as it helps focus on the simple mechanics of where pieces can go, while playing against the included bot opponent requires the player to be self-analyzing and assessing move choices. It might be a bit much to be asking for a full feedback course, but even a post-mortem or on screen explanation of why a move is bad and the ramifications of an error are crucial to the learning process – the board can tell me which moves are the best, but I’m unlikely to retain such strategic information unless the underlying reasons why become part of my decision making process. In this way I think there is a curve to how best use the assistive tech – starting with very little until there is enough understanding to begin forming basic strategy, then ramping up before eventually shifting it back down again.
Face to Face lets two players go head to head with asymmetric assist options like Best piece pick, Best Moves and Blunder alerts, something that can level the playing field provided the higher skilled player has a good idea as to what their ELO level is, as these options link back to this setting which in this mode ranges from 1000 to 3200. Unfortunately, the ELO based hint system can’t be made different between players, meaning it can be frustrating when playing against someone being given moves and strategy beyond your own skill level, every choice a purple ringed piece or move. Finding the right balance of assists might take a few games and some players might prefer an ‘all or nothing’ approach to the LED elements in these situations – again, there’s little difference between playing Face to Face with a fully assisted opponent following every recommendation and the included bots, so players themselves will have to find what works best for them. It’s important to let the board register each move, as moving too quickly or changing your mind mid-move can sometimes throw the board off. There’s no individual piece recognition, so while the app knows a piece is there, it can’t distinguish if pieces get mixed up.
The final option in-app is the Daily Puzzle which asks players to find the best move in an ELO rated puzzle, switching between White and Black to play. It provides hints, can be reset and even states how many others have solved the puzzle that day. While previous puzzles can be played through, the current UI only allows moving through past days individually which is a bit of a pain but easily fixed if the devs have the inclination. Sadly, I will be relying on hints for the foreseeable future while developing my skill and understanding unless they really drop the ELO on some future days.
The GoChess Wizard Mini is a luxury product, there’s no doubt about it – priced at $599AU from Zing and other retailers, it’s ideally suited to those already fully committed to developing their chess abilities or would like to start from scratch and go the distance. Even better, an aversion to online play and a preference for the tactility of physical products makes for a convincing argument, with the Harry Potter theming perhaps make or break for some buyers, as there is an alternate GoChess Mini board with a more traditional theme at a lower price. Most importantly, it does help with some of the inherent skill imbalance when facing more experienced opponents like a cocky eight year old and can help bring new novices into the fold.
