Anyone For a Game of Lego Robo-Chess?

Logan Westbrook

Transform, Roll Out, Etc
Feb 21, 2008
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Anyone For a Game of Lego Robo-Chess?

Ever wished chess was just a little bit more exciting? How does playing with Lego robots instead of regular pieces grab you?


A team of nearly two dozen people has created a huge Lego chess set. That would be cool enough, but the pieces are also robots, and move themselves around the board. Called "Monster Chess", the set is over 150 square feet and made up of over 100,000 Lego pieces. The pieces are controlled by Lego NXTs [http://www.amazon.com/Lego-4544091-Mindstorms-NXT-2-0/dp/B001USHRYI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=toys-and-games&qid=1276508271&sr=8-1] - programmable blocks designed with robots in mind - and moves are relayed via Bluetooth. Some pieces, like the knight and the king have additional moving parts, like the knight's legs moving or the king banging his scepter.

The video, which is a replay of a previous match, is oddly hypnotic, and it's pretty cool to see the robots get out of each other's way as they move around. The Monster Chess set will be at Brickworld [http://www.brickworld.us/bw2010/] in Chicago this weekend, so if you're in the neighborhood, you can go see it for yourself. If you want to read more about the project, including some of the more technical details, click here [http://www.teamhassenplug.org/monsterchess/] to visit the project page.

Source: The Brothers Brick [http://www.brothers-brick.com/2010/06/13/massive-chess-set-is-playing-for-keeps]



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Lizardon

Robot in Disguise
Mar 22, 2010
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Wow that's incredible
And here I am using carved wood like a primitive cave man
 

PurpleLeafRave

Hyaaaa!
Feb 22, 2009
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I want one so badly in my garden, I wonder how much I could buy that for. :)
The Knight is by far the coolest piece.

I know what you mean by the video being hypnotic.
 

PurpleSky

New member
Apr 20, 2010
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This is awesome.I want that robot horse for myself.I am still waiting for this chess table though

 

Jonluw

New member
May 23, 2010
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What's up with the recent increase in Lego inventions?

Minigun, Sniper rifle, Chess.

It's awesome though, and the video is indeed hypnotic: The pieces are so polite.
 

SonOfIkaros

New member
Oct 6, 2009
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Absolutely amazing. I love the design of the pieces, and the game is indeed hypnotic... I sat down, intending just to watch the first few minutes, and ended up seeing the whole damn thing!

It's so great that there are people out there doing these kind of things. Really cheers you up.
 

Glamorgan

Seer of Light
Aug 16, 2009
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That. Is. Awesome.
Though I worry a bit about the amount of time those people would have put into those pieces.
 

brunothepig

New member
May 18, 2009
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Very cool, if a bit slow. Am I only one who, when they read the headline, thought "there is no fucking way we have robots sophisticated enough to play chess reactively?" I was right lol, but now I feel kinda disappointed. And I look forward to the day I get to play chess against a robot.
 

Rainboq

Elite Member
Nov 19, 2009
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Hook that up to one of those chess computers and you have yourself a tourney winner >.>
 

Ninja Tank

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May 19, 2009
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This is what people define as a win but i define it as awesome. I'm going to make my own set or try to find a set to buy/build
 

WaysideMaze

The Butcher On Your Back
Apr 25, 2010
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Maybe they should fit each piece with that guys lego weapons from the other day.

Would be funny watching pawns open fire on each other with them lego miniguns
 

Logan Westbrook

Transform, Roll Out, Etc
Feb 21, 2008
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WaysideMaze said:
Maybe they should fit each piece with that guys lego weapons from the other day.

Would be funny watching pawns open fire on each other with them lego miniguns
Ok, that's probably the best idea I've ever heard.
 

Keepitclean

New member
Sep 16, 2009
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I think the awesomest bit about this is that somewhere along the line someone thought "let's make some massive chess pieces out of lego!" and other people were like "Fuck yeah!"

Awesome.
 

Jared

The British Paladin
Jul 14, 2009
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An original twist on a classic! I certainly wouldnt mind a game of this version of chess!
 

pyrus7

New member
Mar 16, 2010
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What boggles my mind is that chess board is seemingly made entirely of 1x1 plate tiles.