I love standard shogi: the 9×9 board, the quiet tension, and the “wait… you can drop THAT?!” moments.
But sometimes I want something faster. Or something I can teach in minutes. Or a shogi‑flavored game that works with kids and friends who don’t know the pieces.
Japan has a whole world of “casual shogi” (カジュアル将棋) and shogi-inspired games. I dug up these five modern variants that show up again and again as popular, selling well, or widely played shogi variants. (more…)