Matle
Fill in the hidden squares of a real checkmate, Wordle style.
Every day: One checkmate position from a real game each day, the same for everyone, with several squares hidden: guess which pieces stand on them in five tries. New puzzle: Midnight, local time.
Matle is a daily chess puzzle inspired by Wordle. Each day shows a checkmate position from a real game with a few squares hidden, and you guess which piece (or no piece) belongs on each one. Coloured squares tell you what is right, what belongs elsewhere and what is wrong.
About Matle
Matle builds its puzzles from finished games that ended in checkmate. The board shows the final position with several squares marked by question marks, and your job is to work out what stands on each of them: a white or black piece of a given type, or nothing at all.
You fill in the hidden squares from a palette of pieces and submit the guess. A green square means the right piece on the right square, yellow means that piece belongs on another hidden square, and grey means the piece is wrong. You have five guesses, a hint is available if you are stuck, and you can flip the board to Black's side. When you solve it, the game names the game it came from, such as a Tal or Carlsen win, with a link to the full score.
There is one daily puzzle for everyone, with community statistics on how others guessed. If you miss a day you can still play yesterday's puzzle to keep your streak. Play works without an account; optional Google sign-in syncs stats, streaks and achievements across devices, and players can submit their own checkmates.
It suits chess players who enjoy mating patterns and want a short daily puzzle that rewards knowing why a position is checkmate.
How to play Matle
- Open Matle and look at today's checkmate position with its hidden squares.
- Pick a piece from the palette, or the no-piece option, and place it on each hidden square.
- Press Guess to check: green is the right piece on the right square, yellow is a right piece on the wrong square, grey is wrong.
- Use the colours to refine your next guess, with a hint if needed.
- Solve within five guesses, then read about the real game the mate comes from.
Tips
- Start from the mated king: which squares must be covered for it to be checkmate?
- Remember the no-piece option: some hidden squares are empty.
- Check that your position is legal, with exactly one king per side.
- Flip to Black's view if the mate happened on the other side of the board.
Questions
Where do the positions come from?
From real games that ended in checkmate; the game shows the source after you solve it.
How many guesses do I get?
Five.
Do I need an account?
No. Google sign-in is optional and syncs your stats and streak across devices.
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