ZakuChess
Rate itWin the day's chess battle with pixel-art troops, in the turns the scouts predict.
on zakuchess.com
ZakuChess is a daily chess challenge dressed as a fantasy battle. Your pieces are pixel-art soldiers, archers, riders and mages; the computer plays the undead. Each day sets up a new position and says how many turns it can be won in, and you can retry, undo or see a solution.
About ZakuChess
ZakuChess plays by the rules of chess but swaps the pieces for pixel-art characters drawn from The Battle for Wesnoth. Sword fighters are pawns, mounted characters are knights, archers are bishops, flying creatures are rooks, staff-wielding mages are queens and heavily armoured figures are kings. Your troops have a green circle under them; the opposing army is the undead, played by the Stockfish engine running in your browser.
Each day there is a new challenge, the same for everyone: a position set up mid-battle, most of them adapted from games in the Lichess open database, and a note from your scouts on how many turns the battle can be won in, such as six or eleven. You tap a unit to see its name, its chess role and the squares it can reach, play your move, and the computer answers. The aim is to win within that count. Undo takes back a move, Retry starts the battle again, and See solution shows a winning line if you give up. Preferences change the game speed and the board's look, and a stats panel tracks games played, win rate and your streak.
ZakuChess is free and open source, written by Olivier Philippon in Edinburgh, with no ads, no tracking and no account. It suits chess players who enjoy a short tactical fight against a real engine, and newcomers who find a story easier to follow than notation.
How to play ZakuChess
- Open ZakuChess and read today's target: the number of turns the battle can be won in.
- Find your troops, the pieces with a green circle, and tap one to see the squares it can reach.
- Tap a highlighted square to move; the undead army answers.
- Use Undo to take back a move, or Retry to start again from the beginning.
- Win within the turn count, or press See solution to learn a winning line.
Screenshots
Tips
- Learn the mapping first: swords are pawns, riders knights, bows bishops, flyers rooks, staffs queens and heavy armour kings.
- Each square also shows a small chess symbol in its corner, so you can read the position as a normal board.
- Look for checks and captures first; a short turn count usually means forcing moves.
- The opponent is an engine and does not always answer the same way, so plan for its best reply.
Questions
Which character is which chess piece?
Swords are pawns, mounted characters knights, bows bishops, flying characters rooks, staffs queens and heavy armour kings. A small chess symbol on each square shows it too.
What time does ZakuChess reset?
The challenge is picked by the date in UTC, so a new one starts at midnight UTC.
What if I cannot solve the challenge?
Press See solution to give up for the day and see a winning line.
Does ZakuChess have ads or need an account?
No. It is free and open source, with no ads, no tracking and no sign-up; your stats are kept in your browser.
Ratings and reviews
No ratings yet. Be the first to rate ZakuChess.
Games like ZakuChess
Really Bad Chess
A daily board played out as a whole game against the computer, with shuffled armies instead of a set position
Mate (Mind Loft)
A daily position to win against the best defence: checkmate in two, in three on Sundays
Totally Normal Chess
A Daily Mini game on a 6x6 board against a bot, the same start for everyone
Prince Chazz
Chess pieces as characters on a daily board: run as the prince and capture enemies until one catches you
Lichess Puzzle of the Day
One chess puzzle a day from real Lichess games, the database most ZakuChess positions come from
Echo Chess
Two daily chess-piece levels where your one piece becomes whatever it captures
Chess.com Daily Puzzle
One daily chess position, easiest on Monday and hardest on Sunday
blunder.clinic
Six realistic chess positions a day where the task is simply not to blunder.