One Year of Jianghu: Relive Memories with the New Dama Qi Gameplay

A full year has passed in the blink of an eye. In this time, we have admired the pear blossoms of Qinghe, watched the dazzling dances at Fanlou, trekked through the falling snow of Liangzhou, and sought seclusion in the mountains. Whenever a festive season approaches, waves of nostalgia inevitably rise, making us look back at the path we traveled. Memories of ordinary days blend with dreamlike vistas, creating a constellation of emotions that is hard to suppress.

Just as your thoughts wander, an invitation to a game of chess in a dream arrives. Everything you see and miss enters this game. In the Anniversary Version, the brand-new Dama Qi gameplay is about to go online. Rangers can join the event "Heroes Meet on the Road" to personally enter the game of "Chess with Old Friends" and experience the fun of this duel for the first time. You can also pick up many memories of your journey in the "Jianghu Chess Encounter," reliving a year of Jianghu ups and downs between the moves!

Tactical Showdowns and Familiar Faces

This dream chess game is mysterious, blurring the lines between reality and illusion. Rangers can enter the game alone or transform into chess pieces with a few friends to secure victory. This game resembles traditional "Dama," where dice determine your movement steps, and the first to reach the finish line wins the round.

If victory relied solely on luck, it would be too plain. Therefore, this chess game incorporates Martial Arts and Unique Skills, adding layers of strategy and maneuvering fun. Before the game starts, Rangers can choose a sect's martial art to study, each offering unique skills. For instance, learning from the Nine Schools allows you to "beg" for good items from other players; mastering the Frenzied Waves style grants extra steps, potentially speeding up your run to the finish.

Beyond martial arts, there are various magic cards for Rangers to acquire. You can build a deck based on your strategy. Whether you choose to confront enemies head-on, crush strong rivals, or use buffs to steadily reach the end, the tactical fun waits for you to experience personally. When encountering a market on the board, use [Chess Treasures] to buy and sell cards, buffing yourself and seizing the initiative.

*Footage from pre-research; please refer to the actual in-game effects.*

Inside the chess game, alongside skills and arts, there are naturally old friends and past enemies. When landing on specific tiles, you might encounter former rivals. Successfully defeating them grants buffs, while failure might hinder your progress with debuffs.

The most lingering aspect of this game is the familiar places along the way. Walking through them, with pear blossoms falling and bamboo leaves fluttering, brings Rangers back to memories of past scenes. Revisiting these old grounds adds a few variables to the current state of the board.

Jianghu Encounters: A Realm of Dreams

Within the chess match, the urgency of the duel might prevent you from fully savoring the return to old places. When you have accumulated enough memories, you can open the encounter in the "Jianghu Chess Encounter" mode. Here, you can stitch together scattered recollections and return to those cherished moments. These fragments form your year-long journey in the Jianghu, recording every step of your transformation into a true hero.

You might return to a bamboo hut on a sunny afternoon to answer that person's question once more; step into Fanlou again amidst the scent of peonies and willow winds to bump into that familiar yet strange figure behind the screen; stand under the city walls of Baitou in the wind and sand with flags flying, recalling Chang'an with that person; or dive to the bottom of Mo Lake under the bright pine moonlight, bringing a token from an old friend to reunite with the one drinking alone.

Time flows like a river, waiting for no one. But in these chess encounters, the path you came from can be retraced, and past chapters may find new conclusions. Everything awaits the Ranger to open the chess encounter, reunite with old friends in memory, and pick up those unfinished stories of the Jianghu.

The road traveled in the chess game points to a vast future ahead. In the memories of this one-year journey, besides old friends and enemies, there are narrow escapes. Those moments of fighting fiercely against strong foes and growing braver with every battle are how Rangers truly bonded with the swords in their hands.

Thanks to your love and support, we have successfully been nominated for the 2025 Steam Awards in the "Best Game You Suck At" category. In the Anniversary Version, more formidable enemies will appear, and we hope to bring even more combat fun to all Rangers then.