How To Play Chess
You know how the pieces move. Now it's time to learn everything else! Follow along and learn how to win chess games!
Not what you're looking for? Go back to the video guide.
The Language of Chess: This video demonstrates chess notation. Notation is how we write and discuss the game of chess.
Moving and Capturing: See how chess pieces capture. Most pieces move and capture the same way, but pawns have special capturing rules.
Check: This video explains the concept of check and what happens when a king is in danger!
Getting Out Of Check: This video shows how to get out of check. If your king is in danger, you can move, block, or capture your way to safety.
Checkmate: If someone is in check and there is no way out, then the position is a checkmate! That means that the player who made the checkmate has won the game!
Fastest Checkmate: This video shows the fastest possible way to win a game of chess. Learn how an exposed king can make for a very fast chess game!
Stalemate: When there are no legal moves, but there's no checkmate, then the game is a stalemate. Stalemate results in a draw and is often a big relief for a player who is behind in the game.
Other Draws: Stalemate isn't the only type of draw in chess. Learn about insufficient mating material, threefold repetition, and other ways that a game might end without a checkmate.
Castling: Because the king is the most important piece, you are allowed to do a special move called castling to keep it safe. Learn how to secure your king in this video.
En Passant: Hundreds of years ago, pawns used to only be allowed to move one square at a time. When they started moving two squares, they invented a new rule to make it difficult for one to move past another. Find out about this special type of capture in this video.
Finding The Right Move: Once you know the rules, this video can help you figure out what moves to consider playing each turn.
Playing A Game: This video shows you a full chess game and demonstrates ideas for both sides and a checkmate.
Were these videos challenging or did you already know everything? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!
