Yes, I played a couple of games of Bosworth at ConQuest over the Labor Day weekend. The first game was two player, the second a full four player.

"Bosworth" "The game you already know how to play"

Turns out, that the reason you already know how to play, is that all the cards represent chess playing pieces, with their respective moves and captures. There are some slight changes to the movement and capture with the pawn, which I'll cover below.

The board consists of a 4X4 playing field and each of the four sides has a four space field camp. Starting position for all players is with pawns in each of the four camp spaces. The four corner locations are not used.

Note that in a two player game, you would play opposite sides, and the two side camps would be off limits to play. In a three player game, the third player would play the center two camp spaces of both side camps.

In addition to moving forward, pawns can move to either side, and can capture in any of the four diagonal directions. Each player's deck has the equivalent of a full chess set in cards. As you move pieces out of the field camp, you must replace all empty spaces in your camp with cards from your hand (only four cards in the hand, the rest in a draw pile), and then draw to refill your hand to four cards. When you run out of cards, and are unable to fill a space, captured cards are placed downside on the open space in your camp and that space is no longer valid for play.

There are a few chess related moves that are not supported: check, castling, en passant, and pawn promotion. Otherwise, pieces move as they normally would. What we found in the games played was that pawns are more powerful than they are in a normal chess game, due to the smaller playing field, and due to the additional move and capture capabilities.

In the two player game, I didn't think too much of the game, however, the four player game proved to be anything but easy. Fact is, we became very impressed with the game, though I think we all had low expectations of the game from the artwork if nothing else. (and I from the previous two-player game). The artwork is from a comic strip artist.

Looking back at the diagram above, note that the right and left most pawns for each player, can capture the like piece from their opponent on the first move. This seems a likely course, and all save one of us did so on the first turn.

Another interesting rule concerns capture of an opponents King. When you do so, you gain control of that players Queen, and all other pieces are removed from play, and their empty camp spaces are then covered. I used this to my advantage in the four player game as one player had an easy shot at an opponents king. I moved to threaten his King on my turn, and he had to move his king, or his minor victory in defeating one person would have been immediately lost.

I have only one qualification to my recommendation for "Bosworth", that being that you should only play it with three or four players, not with two. In that case, you may as well play chess. As for QPR, it's a single deck of cards (64 cards) and the playing field. Montgolfiere has more cards, a playing field and six game pieces for the same money and supports two to six players. Of course, "Bosworth" is not the beer and pretzel game I first thought it was...