Chess
Play chess against the computer or a friend on one screen
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Play chess against the computer, or take turns with another person on one device. All the rules are included: castling, en passant, promotion and the draw rules.
How to use
- Under "Opponent", choose "Computer" or "Two players, one screen". Against the computer, set "Your colour" and "Computer level" (1 to 4), then press "New game".
- Drag a piece, or tap it and then tap one of the marked squares. When a pawn reaches the last rank, choose the piece to promote it to.
- Press "Undo" to take back a move and "Flip board" to turn the board around. To play with time, choose a time under "Clock".
- To use the game in another program, press "Copy PGN" or "Copy FEN". To start from a given position, paste it under "Load a position (FEN)".
How it works
- Checkmate, stalemate, threefold repetition, the fifty-move rule and insufficient material are detected automatically. The move list uses standard algebraic notation (SAN).
- At lower levels the computer thinks for less time and makes deliberate mistakes more often. It runs in the background, so the page does not freeze.
- The game in progress and your settings are saved in this browser, so you can continue when you return.
Questions and answers
- When can you castle in chess?
- When the king and that rook have not moved, the squares between them are empty, and the king is not in check and does not pass through or land on an attacked square. Move the king two squares towards the rook.
- What is en passant?
- When an enemy pawn moves two squares from its starting square and lands next to your pawn, your pawn may capture it diagonally as if it had moved only one square. This is allowed only on the very next move.
- Why is stalemate a draw?
- If the side to move is not in check but has no legal move, the rules give no way to decide a winner, so the game ends in a draw.
- Which clock settings are available?
- No clock, 3 minutes plus 2 seconds per move, 5 minutes, 10 minutes, or 15 minutes plus 10 seconds per move. It applies from the next new game and starts after the first move.