Personal Computer News


Kensington

Author: Bob Chappell
Publisher: Leisure Genius
Machine: BBC Model B

 
Published in Personal Computer News #083

KENSINGTON

About a year or so ago, a new board game, Kensington, was a runaway success. It has now been converted for playing on your BBC B or Commodore 64.

Chess and Scrabble apart, board game conversions have not always fared well. Kensington is a happy exception, not least because the game itself is so engaging.

It is simple to pick up but can make high demands of the players' strategic skills.

Kensington

The board consists of a series of triangles and squares, so arranged that they interconnect to form several hexagons. Each hexagon is either red, blue or white.

The contest is between two players, each of whom has 15 counters, blue or red.

The counters are placed in turn on the points of the shapes and thereafter slid along to adjoining points.

Kensington

Capturing a square or triangle allows you to put the boot in by shifting one of your opponent's counters to any point on the board.

The winner is the first player to capture all points of either a white hexagon or one of their own colour.

It may not sound much but in practice the game is gripping.

Kensington

The board is attractively represented on screen, the counters being fairly large blobs of colour.

You can use the program to play against another player or pit your wits against the computer on any one of three skill levels. It plays a mean game.

Placing of your counters can only be accomplished using a set of keys as cursor controls - joystick movement would have been better. There are a variety of options including sound effects and being able to watch the computer 'thinking' at any of ten speeds.

Kensington is an excellent game, extremely easy to learn but not one to tire of easily. There are hidden depths to this apparently simple game. If you want to give those grey cells a shake out, this is the one to go for.

Bob Chappell

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