Play Grand Master (Japan) Online

The CPU plays brutal chess on NES—those chunky pixel pieces clunk into place right before it demolishes you. Medium difficulty wrecked me fast, but lower settings help shake off the rust.

File size: 384 bytes

Game Overview

Ever played chess on an NES? Grand Master (Japan) is one of those rare cartridges that makes you forget you're on an 8-bit system—until the charmingly blocky knight animations remind you. The AI doesn’t mess around, especially if you crank up the difficulty, and there’s something satisfying about the way the pieces clunk into place with that classic NES sound effect.

It’s just chess, no gimmicks, but the presentation is weirdly polished for its time. I got wrecked by the CPU’s queen sacrifice within five minutes on medium difficulty, so maybe don’t start there if you’re rusty. The lower settings are way more forgiving while you relearn how bishops move.

If you dig retro games that hold up purely on gameplay, this one’s a quiet winner. Just don’t expect the computer to go easy on you.