Big G's Chess ♔

How to Play

Big G's Chess offers three ways to play: challenge a friend online, take on the computer, or practise solo. All the standard chess rules apply — castling, en passant, promotion, the lot.

Play vs Computer

Tap ”♞ Play vs Computer” on the home screen to face the built-in engine.

  • Five difficulty levels — Beginner (1) to Expert (5). Pick before the game starts.
  • Choose to play as White or Black. As Black the computer opens immediately.
  • The computer takes between 1 second (Beginner) and 5 seconds (Expert) to “think” — watch the banner below the board.
  • The board never flips — White is always at the bottom regardless of your colour.
  • Use the ▲ ◄ ▼ ► buttons to rotate the board to Attacking, Left, Defending, or Right view.
  • Moves are shown in proper chess notation (e.g. e4, Nf3, Bxe5, O-O).
  • Once the game ends it is saved automatically and you're taken to the replay screen.
  • If you leave mid-game, it appears in Your games in progress on the home screen — tap it to resume.
  • Moves are final — there is no Undo in vs-Computer games.

Practice on your own (solo)

Tap ”♟ Practice on your own” to move both sides on a single board — great for working through openings or teaching someone the moves.

  • You control both colours. The board stays fixed; it never flips.
  • Tap a piece to see its legal moves highlighted, then tap the destination.
  • ↩ Undo takes back the last move at any time; New game resets the board.
  • Completely offline — no code, no chat, no opponent.

Creating & Joining a Two-Player Game

Host a Game

  1. Enter your name on the home page and click ”Host a game”.
  2. On the waiting screen, set the Move time limit slider — anywhere from 30 minutes to 48 hours per move. The default is 24 hours. You can also choose your colour and whether Simulate mode is allowed in this game.
  3. Choose your colour — White, Black, or Random. The default is Random.
  4. Share the code (or link) with your opponent. The game starts the moment they join.

Join a Game

  1. Enter your name on the home page.
  2. Type the code your friend sent and click ”Join & play (or watch)”.
  3. The game begins automatically once both seats are filled.

Only the first two people to join take seats. Anyone else who opens the code joins as a spectator.

Watching a game (spectators)

A game only ever has two players. If you open a game code once both seats are taken, you join as a spectator: you can watch the board update live and join the chat, but you can't move pieces, resign or claim. The players see a small “👁 watching” note so they know someone's tuned in.

Playing on all your devices (your player key)

Want to play the same games on your phone, tablet and laptop? Create a player key — your personal identity across devices.

  1. On the home screen open “⚙ Your player key & devices” and tap Create my key.
  2. On each of your other devices, open the same panel and either scan the key's QR code or tap Paste a key and enter it.
  3. That's it — every device with your key now shows and plays all of your games. Tap Sync my games to pull them in straight away.

Keep your key private: anyone who has it can play as you. Games you started before creating your key won't auto-appear on new devices — for those, use the per-game link below.

Move alerts (notifications)

Get a nudge when it's your turn — even when the app is closed — using the free ntfy app (iPhone & Android).

  1. From the home screen open ”⚙ Settings & your devices” and scroll to Move alerts.
  2. Choose your own private topic name (or keep the suggested one). One subscription covers all your games.
  3. Install ntfy from the App Store / Google Play, tap Subscribe to topic, leave the server as ntfy.sh, and enter your topic — or scan the QR shown.
  4. Tap Enable alerts. You can turn them off or change the topic any time.

While the app is open you'll also get a sound and a buzz on your turn. Pick a long, hard-to-guess topic — anyone who knows it could read your alerts.

Installing & staying up to date

Chess is a Progressive Web App: from your browser's menu choose “Add to Home Screen” (or “Install”) and it runs full-screen like a normal app, even offline.

You don't need to update it manually. Whenever a new version is published the app quietly downloads it in the background and refreshes itself, showing a brief “Updated to the latest version ✓” note. You're always on the newest build.

Game Rules

Standard Chess Rules Apply:

  • White always moves first
  • Pieces move according to standard chess rules
  • Castling is allowed if both the king and rook haven't moved
  • En passant is allowed in the turn after a double pawn move
  • When a pawn reaches the back rank, you choose what it becomes — queen, rook, bishop or knight
  • The last move played is highlighted on the board, so you can always see your opponent's reply

Move Time (two-player games):

  • The host sets a time limit per move — 30 minutes to 48 hours — before the game starts. The default is 24 hours.
  • The timer resets after every move.
  • If your opponent's time runs out, the "Claim victory" button appears and you can end the game.

Game Actions

  • Make a Move: Tap a piece to select it — legal destinations are highlighted. Tap a square to move. A pawn reaching the back rank triggers a promotion picker.
  • Resign: Tap "Resign" to concede and give your opponent the win.
  • Claim Victory: Appears when your opponent's move time has expired. Tap it to win by timeout.
  • Move History: Tap "Move history" to see all moves played so far in chess notation.
  • ◄► Review: Tap "Review" during a live game to step through every move played so far on a read-only board. Use ← → keys or the ⏮ ◄ ► ⏭ buttons to navigate, or tap any move in the list to jump straight there. Tap "✕ Back to game" to return — the live game keeps polling in the background the whole time.
  • Replay: After any finished game you're taken to the replay screen where you can step through every move, play/pause the replay, and read the full move list. The names of who played White and who played Black are shown above the board.
  • 🧪 Simulate from here: In Review (mid-game) or Replay (after the game), step to any position and tap "Simulate from here" to try out what could happen next. You move both sides on a sandbox board, can undo move by move to try a different idea, and tap "Back to game" / "Back to replay" when you're done. Simulated moves are never saved and never affect the real game. The host decides in the waiting-room settings whether Simulate mode is allowed — the choice applies to both players for that game.
  • Board Rotation: Use the ▲ ◄ ▼ ► buttons below the board to view it from any of four orientations. In a two-player game the default orientation puts your own pieces at the bottom; in a vs-Computer game it defaults to white at the bottom.

Winning the Game

You can win by:

  • Checkmate: Put the opponent's king in check with no legal escape
  • Resignation: Your opponent gives up
  • Timeout: Your opponent doesn't move within the agreed time limit
  • Draw: Stalemate (opponent's king is not in check but has no legal moves)

Chess Piece Symbols

♔︎ / ♚︎ King Can move one square in any direction
♕︎ / ♛︎ Queen Can move any number of squares horizontally, vertically, or diagonally
♖︎ / ♜︎ Rook Can move any number of squares horizontally or vertically
♗︎ / ♝︎ Bishop Can move any number of squares diagonally
♘︎ / ♞︎ Knight Moves in an L-shape (2 squares in one direction, 1 square perpendicular)
♙︎ / ♟︎ Pawn Moves forward one square (or two on first move); captures diagonally

FAQ

Can I play on mobile?

Yes! This game is fully responsive and works on mobile phones and tablets.

What if my opponent disappears?

After the move time limit you set (30 minutes to 48 hours, default 24 hours) the Claim victory button appears. Your opponent can always resign if they want to quit.

Can I undo a move?

No, moves are final once confirmed. Think carefully before you move!

Can I play with the same person multiple times?

Yes, you can play as many games as you like. Each game is independent.

Can other people watch my game?

Yes — anyone you give the code to can join as a spectator once both seats are taken. They can watch and chat but can't affect the game. Only share the code with people you're happy to have watching.

How do I play on more than one device?

Create a player key in the “⚙ Your player key & devices” panel on the home screen, then add that same key to your other devices (scan its QR or paste it). All your games then appear everywhere. See “Playing on all your devices” above.

How do I get notified when it's my move?

Open ⚙ Settings & your devices from the home screen, scroll to Move alerts, pick a private topic, and subscribe to it in the free ntfy app. You'll get a push when it's your turn — even with the app closed.

Is this game secure?

Each player authenticates with a secret token (and optionally a player key); these never appear in another player's or spectator's view. Game codes are 8 characters — share them only with people you want playing or watching, and keep your player key and alert topic private.

💬 Join the community

We have a WhatsApp group for friendly chat, tips and finding new opponents — everyone is welcome.

💬 Join us on WhatsApp

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