Shotest Shogi
Encyclopedia
Shotest Shogi is a shogi AI engine made by Jeff Rollason made into a video game for the PC
and Xbox Live Arcade
developed by AI Factory and Rubicon Development. It is based on the Japanese version of chess Shogi
, and provides a 3D
environment designed to recreate a traditional Japanese room. The Xbox version will include a tutorial system, and all versions include a 'Western
style' piece set option for players who are unfamiliar with Japanese characters
.
The AI engine has been competing in the Computer Shogi Championships since 1997, and got 20th out of 40 in the 2008 championship. A game running Shotest was released on July 23, 2008 for Xbox Live Arcade in Japan. It was released in the United States on September 10, 2008. Although the game is playable entirely in English, Chinese, Korean and EMEA languages, there is currently no announced release date for other territories, but this will be in the fall period.
The Japanese unannounced release on 28 July 2008 has seen Shotest Shogi immediately top of the current Japanese Xbox live chart, and still there (as of 08 Aug 2008 - see "Xbox Live Japan" below).
Two PC versions are already on release, one in Japan and one in the UK (see "Shotest Shogi Official Website" below). These do not include the advanced teaching system used by the Xbox version.
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
and Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
developed by AI Factory and Rubicon Development. It is based on the Japanese version of chess Shogi
Shogi
, also known as Japanese chess, is a two-player board game in the same family as Western chess, chaturanga, and Chinese Xiangqi, and is the most popular of a family of chess variants native to Japan...
, and provides a 3D
3D computer graphics
3D computer graphics are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images...
environment designed to recreate a traditional Japanese room. The Xbox version will include a tutorial system, and all versions include a 'Western
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
style' piece set option for players who are unfamiliar with Japanese characters
Kanji
Kanji are the adopted logographic Chinese characters hanzi that are used in the modern Japanese writing system along with hiragana , katakana , Indo Arabic numerals, and the occasional use of the Latin alphabet...
.
The Japanese unannounced release on 28 July 2008 has seen Shotest Shogi immediately top of the current Japanese Xbox live chart, and still there (as of 08 Aug 2008 - see "Xbox Live Japan" below).
Two PC versions are already on release, one in Japan and one in the UK (see "Shotest Shogi Official Website" below). These do not include the advanced teaching system used by the Xbox version.