If you decide to look at the sample game without first reading all the rules, it’s a good idea to keep in mind several distinctive features of the variant: 

     First, there are three sections of the board, each of which bestows a certain amount of sanctuary upon select pieces. These include the Court (the board’s perimeter) where the game’s novel piece, the Spy (or Cypher) dominates. Only major pieces, not pawns, can enter the Court. Such entry, always optional, must be triggered by the Spy’s exit from the area. The King enters the Court upon his own power, but he can only go there when the opposing Spy is not present. The Border is the middle row of the board. And all other squares are part of the Field. Major pieces cannot capture each other in the Field, on the Border (though the King can be checked by other major Border pieces), or within Court. Major pieces can attack major pieces in the Field from either the Border or Court. Pawns can can attack pieces anywhere but Court. Finally, the Spy can capture major pieces in Court.

     Second, when a major Border or Field piece captures a Field piece, it can be immediately retaken by another major piece in the Field. This is known as the Re-take rule.

     Third, the rule of Infiltration, similar to castling in the classical variant, stipulates that if the King lands on the Border, he has the option of sending any piece but himself and the Spy to square d0 or d10.

     And, fourth, the spatial dynamic of the game is in no small part defined by the rules governing Spy-King interaction. It is illegal for the Spy to land next to either King or the other Spy anywhere on the board. In Court, the Spy can defeat the opposing side by “flipping” the Court King if the former stays at least 1 empty square away and manages to line itself up with the latter along any straight trajectory— vertical, horizontal or diagonal, even from across the board. Anywhere outside of Court, the King can flip the opposing Spy by landing on the square adjacent to it. 

     These and the remaining rules make the variant appear a bit complicated but, arguably, it's not quite as complicated as some other major variants, like Shogi or Tamerlane.