REVIEW: Star Trek Tridimensional Chess Set from The Noble Collection

Alison Pitt and Dakota Pitt unboxing the Star Trek Tridimensional Chess Set from The Noble Collection

FEBRUARY 8, 2021 - The Noble Collection very kindly sent me one of their Star Trek Tridimensional Chess Sets to review, and I was only too happy to oblige! I’m a sucker for functional prop replicas, especially the ones that, to an outside observer, just look like something cool you have for your home! I’ve always wanted to learn to play tridimensional chess, and this was a great opportunity.

I’ll spoil the ending and say that this chess set from The Noble Collection is definitely something I’m proud to have in my home. Not only is it screen-accurate to the early versions of 3D chess on Star Trek, but it’s also really well made, solid, and beautiful to look at. While it’ll be a considered purchase for many fans (it’s currently $145 with free shipping on The Noble Collection’s website), it’s well worth the investment. I anticipate handing this piece down to my kids when I’m no longer able to play it!

Now, for the details…

SPECIFICATIONS

The Star Trek Tridimensional Chess Set measures about 13 inches high, a perfect size to keep on display on a side table. That’s a good thing, because unlike a traditional chess board, you’re probably not going to want to put it away after every game. Not only because it’s pretty, and you’ll want to stare at it lovingly, but also because it does take a bit of setup.

The pieces are die-cast, and measure about 1.5 inches tall. For this set, they’re perfectly-sized. Neither too big nor too small for the board, heavy enough so they feel solid even on the upper attack boards, but not so heavy that they make the board feel in danger of tipping. When you pick them up, they feel solid and smooth in your hand.

The box the pieces come in is lined in foam with a spot for each piece. While the box is just board, it’s solid, and covered with soft-touch paper and a nice silver Star Trek logo. It’s also got a protective sleeve so you can be confident the box won’t spill open.

The board itself consists of a metal base with delta insignia, plus three stationary boards (which are pre-assembled) and four movable “attack” boards. Each board is made of thick acrylic. The stationary boards each measure about 5” x 5” and the attack boards each measure about 2.5” x 2.5”.

AESTHETICS

Everything about The Noble Collection’s Star Trek Tridimensional Chess Set is beautiful. From the base to the boards and the pieces, each element works incredibly well with the others. The boards are particularly impressive: their thickness, color and pattern are mesmerizing, particularly as you move around the board in a game. The entire set is well-finished and looks more expensive than it is.

The chess pieces are screen-accurate, as much as they can be, given that they seem to change frequently on screen! Given that, they’re a nice coherent design that looks futuristic. If there’s one downside here, it’s that some of the pieces may be easily confused: the pawns and bishops are nearly identical except for height, and it’s not immediately obvious which piece is the king and which is the queen. Once you figure it out the first time, though, you won’t have any more trouble.

GAMEPLAY

For the most part, tridimensional chess is the same as normal chess. The pieces are the same, and they move around the board with roughly the same rules. Gameplay differs (as you would expect) in how the pieces interact with the multiple levels of the boards.

There are instructions in the box that explain how to move your pieces and the attack boards. One important thing to note in the instructions is how the board’s grid is set up. The boards overlap one another, so the three stationary boards have ranks going from 1 to 8 and file b to e. The attack boards, in their starting positions, extend the board to 0 - 9 and a - f. Black starts on the top level, and white starts on the bottom level.

The board layout from The Noble Collection’s Star Trek Tridimensional Chess Set

Pieces can move up and down because the squares that overlap are effectively the same square. When your piece moves, you can choose on what level to land.

I had two issues with the gameplay on this board:

1. The instructions can be a little ambiguous, especially for using the attack boards. After playing a game or two, I felt like I understood the attack boards better, but I still don’t feel like I “get” what they’re for or how to use them.

2. When the board is fully set up and pieces in motion, it can actually be a little difficult to reach your pieces, particularly when the attack boards are deployed on the neutral board and there are pieces on the lower overlapping parts.

I will say that the gameplay issues that I had don’t detract from my enjoyment of the game. After all, this is space chess.

FINAL VERDICT

Overall, the Star Trek Tridimensional Chess Set from The Noble Collection is a piece that’s well worth its $145 price tag. It’s a faithful screen replica, it’s wonderfully well-made, and it’s a functional game, to boot.

If you’d like to see it in a little more in-depth, please watch my unboxing video, in which my daughter and I put it together and talk about our thoughts. Enjoy!