Last week, Kickstarter decided to play a game of chess and promptly called “checkmate” on a campaign that was almost as controversial as a pawn being promoted to a queen. The campaign? A cutting-edge robotic chessboard that turned out to be more about bluffing than actual strategy.
According to Vice, the mastermind behind this peculiar piece of tech, REGIUM, promised a revolutionary internet-connected chessboard. Players could take turns launching their pawns—actual, physical pawns—at their online opponents using the spirit of electromagnetism (sure, why not?). A promotional video showcased the bishops from Team Black performing self-directed choreography, making every middle school dance class look like child’s play.
The experts were not amused
Turns out, chess aficionados—often armed with algorithms sharper than their wits—quickly pointed out discrepancies. They suspected the pieces in the promotional video were being manipulated through good ol’ stop-motion animation instead of those flashy magnets. What a twist! The plot thickened much like a good chess match.
Lichess, a community-driven chess platform, broke out the popcorn and conducted a detailed analysis that could rival any director’s cut of a Spielberg film. They methodically dissected REGIUM’s claims like a well-placed knight, rendering the campy promo video as unbelievable as a cat playing a grandmaster-level game.
And the intrigue only escalated
As it turns out, an “army of online investigators” sprung into action, raising concerns about REGIUM that were as sensational as they were absurd. One of the more outlandish claims suggested that the company’s engineers were mere stock photos from a site named thispersondoesnotexist.com. Yes, you read that right—real people were becoming real fake!
REGIUM, however, was not taking this sort of news lightly. In a statement that could only be described as defensive and delirious, the company denied the claims, urging everyone to check their sanity along with their chessboard mechanics. Their retort must have left many scratching their heads—after all, chess is supposed to be about clear strategy, not unpredictable drama.
In conclusion, Kickstarter’s decision to suspend this campaign is less of a surprise than a well-placed queen on an unguarded king. When it comes to chess (or crowdfunding), the only checkmate you want is one you can actually believe in!
