Wii Chess, unsurprisingly, is chess for the Wii. Nothing more, nothing less.
Once you've given your player a nickname (maximum of 4 stored players per Wii). There are two main choices of gameplay. Either you play the computer-controlled opponent or you play another person.
The computer-controlled opponent has 10 difficulty levels, with a basic understanding of chess rules anyone should be able to beat the level 1 setting. I don't consider myself a great chess player, rather unpracticed even, but level 5 is starting to become a challenge for me. Of course, the option to cancel your last move and ask for a hint can make things easier if you're learning. And there is the option to analyse or replay saved games. Optionally the game can also show you the possible moves for any piece on board simply by selecting it.
If you prefer playing a real life opponent there are a couple of possibilities. You can play a friend if you have a second remote or don't have a internet connection... But in that case I think a real chessboard would be more fun.
But if you do have an internet connection (and WiFi Connection set up on your Wii) you can ask someone you know who also has Wii Chess for their 'Friend Code', register that and play your friend over the internet. The other option is that you can play a random online player or one that has been matched to your rating.
Rating is based on the usual system that when you beat a player you earn some of his points or loose them if you're beaten.
Online games are limited to 5 or 20 minutes games.
Playing online seems to work reasonably well, although I have had the occasional error when searching for opponents. Maybe there were no opponents? It was unclear.
The whole game, even the menus, are controlled by the d-pad. Which is, I guess, a wise choice. Constantly having to point out your move with the remote could get a bit tedious. I wonder though, how many raised eyebrows this has caused at Nintendo; Launching a Nintendo branded game for their own platform, without full support for what is supposed to be revolutionary for their latest platform. But then again, maybe that just proves that they do think about what they are doing quite carefully.
All in all a solid game, nothing exciting, pity about the time limits. Worth the 30 euro? I would have preferred seeing this as an extra downloadable channel for more like 10-15 euro. But if you like a good challenge from the comfort of your sofa and don't forget it's not the type of game that your ever going to complete... so I think it's not an unreasonable price.