Hon Shougi on Game Boy is one of those rare ports that actually gets shogi right—no watered-down rules, just pure, punishing strategy. The pieces look like tiny pixel art warriors, and that satisfying *click* when you drop a captured piece back into play never gets old.

First few minutes? You’ll fumble hard if you’re new to shogi (promoting pawns still trips me up sometimes), but the AI has this sneaky way of teaching you through brutal losses. The medium difficulty opponent loves sacrificing lances early, which I still fall for. Classic Game Boy chiptune battle music kicks in when you’re down to 10 pieces—nice touch.

It’s definitely not for quick sessions. I’ve lost half an hour just staring at the board trying to counter a well-placed silver general. If you’ve got a Game Boy and a masochistic streak for chess-like games, this one’s a gem.