Check out shredder lite and if you really like it buy the full version. It has a strong engine, you can make moves for both sides in a game and it has tactics puzzles.
Good luck
iPhone Chess Apps
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Shredder is great, strong, and has a really nice puzzle function, but as mentioned doesn't doesn't have the two player mode. tChess Pro can handle the two player mode, and is most likely strong enough to give a good challenge for quite some time. It doesn't have the built in tactics puzzles like Shredder does, but with tChess you can load pgn databases with positions and play them out against the engine. Personally, I enjoy both and wouldn't want to do without either!
Another great, and free, option that is both really strong and can do two player is Stockfish. No puzzles though.
It says that t-chess can only play up to elo 1200, shredder lite is free and seems to play up to 1500 elo. Does T-Chess do puzzles? Also how is the two player mode? I know you can click "enter moves" on shredder, but idk about T-chess.
tChess lite only plays up to 1200, tChess pro (more expensive) is supposed to be up to 2500 and has a lot more functionality, if it's in the budget. One of those extra functions is supporting pgn databases, so while tChess doesn't have built in puzzles, you could load a pgn database of tactical positions and play them out against the engine. Not as nice or clearly defined as Shredder's puzzle mode though....
tChess is about the same as Shredder for two player, with two big differences. First, you can turn the engine off completely and flip the board manually (one button press) to pass it back and forth without the engine trying to move for you. Second, you can also flip the top pieces so that you can sit on opposite sides of the board and play with it between the two players, acting as a virtual chess board - works with an iPhone, but especially nice with an iPad!
did that second paragraph describe tchess or shredder?
tchess
But isn't it engineered for one player? So it will look right for one player and bad for another? Also, on shredder if you hit enter moves it won't move for you.
If you flip the top pieces you're always looking at your own right side up, but your opponents upside down. Yeah, it does look kind of wierd, but is functional one you get used to it.
Shredder doesn't move for you if you're entering moves, but I think it does if you hit the flip board button. Otherwise black will always be at the top while passing it back and forth. Maybe there's a way around it, but I haven't found it.
Stockfish is a free one you should also definitely check out for 2 player. New game/play both and flipping the board works really well.
Oh I see what you mean about tchess, it flips it so white's pieces look correct on white's side, and black's pieces look correct to him too. But the opposite color won't look right to either player. And yes, shredder moves for you when you flip the board. But I guess Shredder has puzzles, so that's pretty much a dealbreaker to me.
Maybe download stockfish, it's free and it's 50-2500 elo.Very nice and clean looking app. In two player mode there is a flip button so it makes pass and play very easy
Yep, they're both great, in different ways - like I said, I wouldn't want to do without either!!
Have you looked at the chess.com iphone app? The computer mode on that actually lets you set it up so that it's in human/human mode, and would work really well for 2 person mode too - better than Shredder's. Also free.
It looks like stockfish would be good for twoplayer. Does the bot really play at a 2500 level? This seems like it could be the ticket, without the puzzles :(. Are there any other apps with a good engine, two player, and also puzzles? I've seen lots of other recommendations, but without puzzles.
Probably is > 2500, Stockfish is one of the strongest engines out there.
There are other puzzle options, but not in an integrated app like Shredder that I know of. TacticsTrainer is a nice app. Also, using the Tactics Trainer app within the chess.com app is nice, but it limited without an upgraded membership.
Hello all! I am looking for a good chess app for my iphone. Here's what I really want out of my app:
1. An Engine: Moderately strong, good enough to give me a challenge. Maybe an ELO of about 2000+?
2. A two player mode: I would really like a mode with two players, especially if it could automatically switch sides based on who's move it is.
3. Tactics/Puzzles: When I am on my computer, I prefer to play live chess. It would be great if I could work on tactics while I was going mobile.
I already play correspondence on chess with friends, so that's not an issue concerning this app I want. Do any of you know an app that meets the three criteria I listed above?