Chessarama (Nintendo Switch) 🎮 Game Review! | Chess Chats #11

#chessarama #nintendoswitch #gamereview #chesschats 

Do you like puzzle games? If so, you might like Chessarama, a cute and very slick production by Minimol Games, a Brazilian indie game development studio with expertise in making chess-inspired games!

I was first approached by Minimol Games back in November 2023 prior to the original launch of Chessarama with an offer of an advanced copy for review. However, as the original release was only for Xbox (I don't own one) and Steam (apart from Chess.com, I play no PC games!), it all seemed just a bit too hard.

Fast forward to 2025, Chessarama has also been recently released (on April 17) on the Nintendo Switch and Playstation 5, and I was again contacted by Minimol Games' community manager with an offer to review the game on these new platforms. Now, I'm quite invested in the Switch, and am an avid collector of physical copies of JRPGs. I've actually been toying with the idea of running a JRPG game streaming channel on Twitch and YouTube as an excuse (😅) to get through my back catalogue, and have all the recording equipment. And so, I acquiesced, and here we are with this review! 🤩👍

Note: Minimol Games gave me a free copy of Chessarama. This invitation was otherwise free of obligation, but to be clear, I didn't pay for the game. Minimol Games did not see this review prior to publication, had no editorial input, and all thoughts and opinions are my own.

* * *

A very short review

It's probably best to watch my video review, which includes footage of me bumbling through some of the puzzles. What should be clear is that I'm not especially good at puzzles, and nor are they a game genre that I normally enjoy or play. So, I'm not going to critique the quality of the puzzles: they seem to be cleverly designed, and I suspect that if you like puzzles, you'll enjoy these ones.

The key features (from Chessarama's website):

• Play 8 exclusive chess-inspired games available in Chessarama
• Puzzle campaigns featuring 100+ levels and 100+ unique challenges
• 24 exclusive Chess Figures to unlock and collect
• Unique art style, with beautiful dioramas
• Daily and Weekly Challenges
• Compete against each other on the leaderboards
• Learn chess movements, tactics and strategies through a modern video game experience
• Also includes “Classic Chess” for you to put your learnings into practice!

PROS:

• The game is quite beautiful and the visual design is excellent.
• Similarly, the sound design and the music are wonderful.
• If you like playing puzzles to relax and unwind, then Chessarama has an excellent vibe.
• The game is relatively inexpensive. It's USD 14.99, or the equivalent in your local currency. There seems to be a 25% discount promotion currently on Steam.

CONS:

• In handheld mode on the Switch, some of the figures are a little too small, making differentiating pieces more difficult than it should be.
• Although the design of the pieces are beautiful, you can still occasionally mistake pieces due to their non-standard designs. There's a reason we use the Staunton design in over-the-board chess! As in the video, I mistook a bishop for a rook in one of the puzzles.
• Will these puzzles improve your "normal" chess? Probably not...

The bottom line: should you buy this?

At the price of USD 14.99, this game isn't expensive, but it's also not in the range of being an impulse purchase. It is aesthetically a beautiful game, delightfully so both visually and aurally. If you enjoy puzzle games, I give it an emphatic recommendation.

However, if you're not a person who normally plays puzzle games, then I don't think Chessarama will be compelling enough to change your mind.