Shogi is commonly referred to in English as "Japanese
Chess" because Shogi and Chess share some common
characteristics and are both thought to have derived from
the Indian game of Chaturanga.
The first couple of things Chess players are likely to
notice about Shogi are the size of the board and the number
of pieces. Chess players who are used to playing with
sixteen pieces each on an 8 x 8 board may be surprised to
find that Shogi is played on a 9x9 board and that each
player starts with twenty pieces.
Also, whereas in Chess the pieces stand upright like
soldiers, in Shogi they lie flat on the board and are wedge
shaped, with the sharp end of the wedge pointing forwards
so that the players can tell at a glance whose side each
piece is on!
The rank of a piece is indicated by its size and by one or
two Japanese characters painted on its upper face.
When a player advances a piece to the 7th, 8th or 9th row
of the board it may be possible to promote it by turning it
over, depending on which piece it was that the player moved.
Chess players will be surprised to learn that in Shogi
captured pieces may be "dropped" back on the board and used
by the player who captured them! This is a unique feature
of the Japanese game. When a player captures a piece he
puts it to one side (or places it on a special tray). Then,
when it is his turn he can either move a piece on the board
or "drop" one of the captured pieces onto a vacant space on
the board. Because of this innovation the pieces are not
distinguished by colour as they are in Chess, Igo, or other
games.
A game of Shogi tends to take longer to get going than a
game of Chess as some of the pieces have limited movement
ranges and also because players commonly prefer to build a
defensive organization around the King before attacking.
Nevertheless, Shogi has an opening, middle and end phase as
does Chess, but the "drop" rule gives Shogi a more
open-ended character as the board can suddenly fill up with
pieces again if the players engage in a battle of "drop"
and "counter-drop".
The drop rule allows for the truth that captured soldiers
may be turned against their former masters. The sudden
appearance of a Shogi piece "dropped" behind enemy lines
may be likened to the unwelcome appearance of a Ninja
warrior breaking into the Daimyo's castle!
Shogi offers an early example of how a foreign invention is
introduced into Japan and modified and refined to become
something unique to the Japanese.
In recent years Shogi has begun to attract a following
outside of Japan, in China, Europe and America. If you
enjoy playing Chess, I recommend that you try playing Shogi
and experience something of the unique spirit the Japanese
have imparted to this ancient family of games.
----------------------------------------------------
David Hurley lives in Japan and runs a website supplying
Japanese Shogi sets, exclusive hand crafted Shogi pieces,
Shogi boards and koma trays direct to customers all over
the world. Visit =>
http://japanese-games-shop.com/shogi.html for more
information about Shogi and other Japanese games.
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