National Chess Survey Reveals The Truth About Chess: Why People Play and What Scares Them Away

Fluent Entertainment, Developer of Hoyle® Majestic Chess™, Commissions

Revealing National Chess Survey

Novato, CA – December 2, 2003 – Do you think you know chess? According to a survey conducted for Fluent Entertainment, a leading developer and publisher of interactive entertainment software, you probably know the stereotypes, but not the reality of chess in the US today.

Over a two-day period at the end of October, men and women, old and young, rich and poor, chess players and non players, weighed in for a national survey on Chess, which according to the U.S Chess Federation is now played by 39 million people in the US.

Debunking popular assumptions about chess and the people who play the game, both revered and chastised for the last 1500 years, only 11 percent of chess players and non players associate the game with a “geeky pastime.” In fact, the vast majority of people – 81 percent – associate chess with strategic thinking.

Indeed, almost 60 percent of chess players believe that chess makes them better negotiators, while more than half of non chess-players believe they would be better negotiators if they played the game. Many older Americans believe chess improves their life, while younger Americans think it helps in school.

And while the competitive nature of chess tournaments grabs most of the headlines and makes for good Hollywood plotlines, it turns out only 26 percent of people play the game “to win.” Instead 80% of men and women cite “fun” as the number one reason they play chess.

So how do you get those fearful few who don’t play chess already to start? Not surprisingly, 68% of people believe that if chess were easier to learn even more people would play.

“Whether it’s creative versions of speed chess or stunning PC games, Chess is wildly popular these days. As demonstrated in our survey if there’s one barrier to getting everyone to play chess it’s the perceived difficulty in learning how to play," said Dominique Bourse, Fluent Entertainment’s Chief Executive Officer. “Our developers have created the industry’s best PC chess games for years. With Hoyle Majestic Chess they have delivered a visually stunning and exhilarating game, complete with a new adventure chess module that easily teaches players of all ages how to play the game in a fun engaging way that builds confidence in young and old players alike.”

The Survey Results

Chess is Huge! Today, according to the US Chess Federation, between 35 and 40 million people play chess in the US.

Developing a strategy  81 % of people associated chess with strategic thinking, while 43% associated it with intelligence.

Better than barter 57% of people surveyed believed that chess improved or would improve their ability to negotiate with people

A question of Intelligence 48% of men associated chess with intelligence while only 38% of women saw the association.

A competitive difference 32% of men play chess to win while only 18% of women play for this reason.

Intelligent choice 56% of those 24 and younger associated chess with intelligence 48% of those 25-44 and younger associated chess with intelligence 37% of those 45-54 and older associated chess with intelligence 29% of those 55 and older associated chess with intelligence

Easy as 1…2…3…Mate 65% of people surveyed believed the number one way to attract more chess players to the game would be making it easier to learn

Chess improves with age 20% of those 24 and younger that play chess believed it improved their life 30% of those 25-34 and younger that play chess believed it improved their life 35% of those 35-54 and younger that play chess believed it improved their life 38% of those 55 and older that play chess believed it improved their life

The biggest hero Bobby Fisher is seen by 61% of those surveyed to be the biggest hero in chess, followed by sixteen-time World Champion Anatoly Karpov.

The national survey of 1054 qualified respondents (525 male and 529 female) was conducted for Fluent Entertainment by Greenfield Online, in October 2003.

About Fluent Entertainment Fluent Entertainment is a leading developer and publisher of interactive entertainment software. Headquartered in Novato, California with offices in US, Europe and New Zealand the company's games are focused on the PC, console and wireless markets. For more information about Fluent or its products please visit www.fluententertainment.com .

HOYLE is a registered trademark of The United States Playing Card Company.

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