How to Play Chess
Chess is one of the world's oldest and most beloved strategy games. Two players face off on an 8×8 board, each commanding sixteen pieces: one king, one queen, two rooks, two bishops, two knights, and eight pawns. The goal is to checkmate your opponent's king—placing it under attack with no legal escape.
Each piece moves in a unique way. Pawns advance one square (or two on their first move) and capture diagonally. Rooks move any number of squares along ranks or files. Knights jump in an L-shape (two squares in one direction, one in the other). Bishops slide diagonally. The queen combines rook and bishop movement. The king moves one square in any direction.
Special rules add depth to the game. Castling allows the king and rook to move together under certain conditions—either king-side (short) or queen-side (long). En passant lets a pawn capture an opponent's pawn that just advanced two squares, as if it had moved only one. When a pawn reaches the opposite end of the board, it promotes to a queen, rook, bishop, or knight.
Check occurs when the king is under attack. The player must get out of check on their next move. Checkmate ends the game when the king cannot escape. Stalemate is a draw when the player to move has no legal moves but is not in check.
Strategy in chess involves controlling the center, developing pieces early, ensuring king safety, and creating threats. Our AI offers three difficulty levels: Easy plays random valid moves, Normal evaluates captures and center control, and Hard uses minimax search with piece values to find stronger moves. Whether you're learning or sharpening your skills, this online chess game provides a full, rule-complete experience.