Street Pass Chess

I've had a Nintendo 3DS since the end of April, and I must say that I've been quite pleased with it.  One of the brightest design decisions they had was the Street Pass mechanics.  I wasn't at all excited for it when I got the 3DS, in fact I thought it was kind of silly.  However, the inclusion of Street Pass and a few internal games that use it makes the player more likely to keep their system on them.  With the competition of modern day cell phones (an item most anyone keeps on them 24-7), it's dire that a handheld player remember to play your system rather than reach for their Android or iPhone - and if they keep your system on them as well as their cell phone, then the player is more likely to continue playing their $40 game than Angry Birds.

Basically, because of Street Pass, I always have my 3DS with me, even though I've already finished all the included Street Pass games.  I'm hoping they'll add more games to the Nintendo eShop, but I'm still looking for a job - thus, no spare $8 for one of my favorite games of days long past, let alone $1 for a new Street Pass game (an assumed price).   One such game that would be awesome would be Chess.

About a week ago, I had one of those light bulb moments - the type where an idea just strikes you as brilliant.  Why not have Street Pass Chess?  It could be a fun interface, where you Mii is used as the king, and you could even pick other Mii's to fill the rest of field - as long as each piece is clearly represented with a hat or such.  I Street Pass my roommate about three times per day, so it'd be entirely viable for people you see daily.  Unfortunately, Nintendo hasn't released such a title.

However, you don't need to wait, you could play right now if you wanted to.  Chess has long had a system of describing moves.  Thus, all you need is a chess board for each player to update and an understanding of algebraic notation.  When you Street Pass someone, you've got 16 characters for a short personal message, which is more than enough for chess moves.  All in all, you spend a miniscule amount of time playing chess each day, but still be able to play complete games from start to finish - a task that some have trouble finding time for these days.

If Nintendo were to implement Street Pass Chess, why stop there?  Checkers, Backgammon, and all sorts of classic games could be created.  Considering how many times these games have been created in electronic forms, it would likely require little cost in development.  If released for just $1, this could pull a nice little profit.  If  released for free, it would continue to encourage players to keep their 3DS on them - and continue to fight the Android invasion (or iPhone, if you're of that persuasion).