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One of the reasons I don't play Chess very much is that it is often less a
contest of skill and more a contest of learning, favoring those who have
studied Chess more. I'm a skilled player, but I have not studied openings
or past games, and I am normally at a disadvantage against someone who has.
What I appreciate about Chess is that it is largely a contest of skill, but
the depths to which people can master Chess further by studying its past
makes it less of a contest of skill. What I like about Chess variants is
that, being largely uncharted territory, it remains primarily a contest of
skill. Because of this, the matter of whether Chess will be succeeded by
another variant is a moot point for me. If Chess is succeeded, its
successor will eventually find itself in the same place as Chess, having an
extensive literature and opening theory that will allow people to gain in
mastery of the game without gaining in skill. Since the main problem I have
with Chess is that it holds this position, putting another game in the same
position isn't going to solve anything for me. For one thing, the
literature and opening theory for Chess would still exist. People would
still be mastering Chess by studying its past. Even if the literature of
Chess was eventually forgotten in time, being replaced by the literature
for the new game, it's highly unlikely to happen in my lifetime. Unless I
live much longer than the average person or travel far into the future with
a time machine, there is no chance of restoring Chess as purely a game of
skill in my lifetime. But even if this could happen, the price is that some
other game takes on the same burden as Chess, no longer being a contest of
skill alone. So I choose not to worry about whether there will be a Next
Chess. Like the planet Jupiter, whose immense gravity helps shield us from
comets, the immense popularity of Chess helps shield Chess variants from
carrying the same burden that Chess carries. I appreciate that Chess
variants are not as popular as Chess, because that helps them remain
contests of skill rather than contests of memorization. Still, I don't
think I need to worry about other games gaining the same popularity as
Chess. There will always remain more Chess variants that remain less
popular, and widespread interest in a new Chess variant would benefit from
a period of time when the game remained relatively uncharted territory. I
can understand the appeal this would have, though I think my interest will
remain with Chess variants in general rather than with the Jupiter-like
game whose popularity keeps the other games fresh and novel.