onlinegamesbrowser.comHow to play
Every rule of chess is built in, including castling, en passant, promotion and the draw rules, so the board only lets you make legal moves. Checkmate the other king to win.
- Under Play, choose Computer or 2 players.
- Playing the computer? Set the Level (Beginner, Easy, Medium or Hard) and choose your color under You play. White makes the first move.
- Select a piece and its legal moves light up: dots for plain moves, rings for captures. Tap a highlighted square, or drag the piece onto it.
- Castling is done by sliding the king two squares to the side of the rook. When a pawn reaches the far side, you choose what it becomes.
- The game ends in checkmate, or in a draw by stalemate, threefold repetition, the 50-move rule or too few pieces to mate. The game spots draws for you.
Controls
- Touch: tap to select and tap to place, or drag.
- Mouse: click to pick a piece up and click again to put it down, or drag and drop.
- Keyboard: Tab into the board, walk the squares with the arrow keys, and use Enter first to select a piece, then to drop it.
- Buttons under the board: Undo steps back a move, Flip board shows the other side's view, and New game resets.
Tips
- Fight for the center early with your middle pawns and knights.
- Get your knights and bishops out before sending the queen on adventures.
- Castle early so your king sits safely behind a wall of pawns.
- Every turn, ask what the opponent threatens and whether the square you're moving to is safe.
- Ahead on material? Trade pieces. Simpler positions are easier to win.
FAQ
How strong is the computer?
It's a compact engine written for this game. The two lower levels blunder deliberately, while Medium and Hard calculate a few moves deep and answer within a second. A good sparring partner while you learn, nowhere near the strength of top chess software.
Can two of us share one device?
Yes. Select 2 players and alternate on a single phone, tablet or computer. Use Flip board so Black can see the position from their side.
Does it know en passant and the draw rules?
Yes. En passant, castling, promotion, stalemate, threefold repetition, the 50-move rule and insufficient material are all built in, and draws are called automatically.
Can I play chess at school?
Chess needs no install and no account, so it opens in any up-to-date browser, Chromebooks included. A school filter can still block the site, and if it does, only the school's IT team can allow it.
