Martian Chess

About this board game

Martian Chess is a 2–4 player capture game played on a chessboard, with a typical play time of 20 minutes. Released in 1995, it uses Icehouse pieces and requires one stash per player.

Like chess, Martian Chess is turn-based and centers on moving and capturing individual pieces. Each type of piece has its own distinct moving rules, giving every move a specific role within the game.

Its most important difference from chess is that piece ownership is determined by location rather than color. As pieces move around the board, control is tied to where they are, creating a fundamentally different way to approach captures and positioning.

Winning is also determined by points, not by capturing a particular piece. This means a player can force the game to end and still win even when they have no pieces left in their control.

• Turn-based play on a chessboard
• Individual pieces with distinct movement rules
• Ownership determined by location, not color
• Point-based victory instead of a specific capture objective
• Supports 2–4 players with the standard setup

Martian Chess easily supports four players as well as two. With geomorphic chessboard sections, it can also be played with three, five, or six players, expanding the format beyond a traditional two-player chessboard game.

Included in Icehouse: The Martian Chess Set and Pyramid Arcade, Martian Chess offers a compact game built around movement, captures, changing control, and point-based scoring.