Quarterback King, where football and chess collide

Football is a life in our house. Which offensive has the most points or which defense has the most sacks, all the stats are rattled off in great precision.

Once we tried to introduce the boys to chess, but they didn’t understand the players. Bishops, pawns, and rooks just are not  in their vocabulary. Luckily, Quarterback King converts chess into football terms that my boys understand.

All the standard chess pieces are turned into football positions, i.e. pawns are lineman, rooks are wide receivers, and, of course, the quarterback is king.  The goal of the game is to advance the quarterback to the other end of the board without being captured.

Quarterback King is an interesting way for kids, or football enthusiasts, to develop their knowledge of chess. Each of the offensive and defensive players moves across the board by chess directional moves. While you capture and remove pieces, the players are scoring touchdowns, field goals, or safeties. A score occurs by offensively advancing the Quarterback king for a touchdown or field or by defensively capturing the Quarterback King in its own end zone.  To simulate the fast pace of football, there are time limits on offensive and defensive moves. The players, i.e. head coaches, alternate moves while managing their strategic positions.

Our family liked Quarterback King because it was a great way to introduce the strategic concept of chess through a familiar sport, football. The kids could relate to moving the football players across the board toward the ultimate goal, scoring. I would recommend Quarterback King for beginning to learn how to play chess.

Quarterback King can be purchased on-line at www.quarterbackking.com. It retails for $29.99, but currently, there is a Christmas special for $24.99. Shipping and handling are at an additional cost.

Also, for those who are ready to compete in Quarterback King, there will be a tournament on January 27 & 28 in St. Louis, Missouri. For more information on the tournament, please see http://quarterbackking.com/?page_id=127.



Disclosure: I was given a copy of Quarterback King to review. All opinions are 100% mine and are not influenced by any person or entity. For my complete disclosure policy, please see www.more4momsbuck.com/disclosure.