If you were expecting a version of Battle Chess tweaked for the N64, think again. Virtual Chess 64 doesn’t offer more than a challenging game of chess accented by brief cartoony, odd battles when a piece is taken.
There are two views of the chess board, 2D and 3D. The 3D view isn't that impressive, and the graphical distinctions between some of the pieces aren't as pronounced as they should be. Confusing the pieces isn't common, but once or twice I did mistake a Bishop placed towards the back of the board for a Queen. It’s also a little more difficult to get the whole picture of the game board using the 3D view. While the board can be rotated, the controls to do so are spotty, and the view rarely improves.
	The 2D view will be the one most players will want to play with and it offers a few different color schemes to choose from. There are no battle scenes when playing with the 2D board.

Unfortunately, the control using the analog Control Stick is a little unwieldy, and the control using the digital pad is often a little jumpy, making the cursor go one space too far. This jumpiness is especially pronounced on the menu screens.

Virtual Chess 64’s computer plays very well, maybe too well for beginner or intermediate players. There are tutorials and scenarios built into the game that may help players improve, but it will take considerable time and effort. I consider myself a beginner (I haven’t played seriously for years), and I was unable to beat the computer at all on the easiest difficulty setting. Because I'm not an expert, I can’t really make an assessment on how difficult the game is for more experienced players.

While checking Nintendo's site for the size of Virtual Chess 64's cartridge, I discovered that Virtual Chess 64 has a mode to play four games at once against the computer. This allows four players to play the CPU in four separate simultaneous games. I was not aware of this when I evaluated the game, and nothing in the game itself indicated that such a mode existed (perhaps because I only had two controllers plugged in). As a result, I cannot comment on this feature.

Overall, if you don’t own another computer chess program or board, Virtual Chess could possibly be worth purchasing if you can get it at the right price (definitely not close to $50). Under any other circumstances, Virtual Chess merely offers the novelty of chess on your TV, which may be fun to rent if you and your friends would enjoy having some friendly matches without picking up a piece.