Checkers

About Checkers

Checkers, also called draughts outside North America, has roots going back to a similar game played in ancient Egypt around 1400 BCE, though the modern 8×8 version with its current capture rules solidified in Europe by the 12th century. It's simple enough to teach in a minute yet deep enough that the American variant played here was only completely "solved" (proven to always end in a draw with perfect play from both sides) in 2007, after a team of researchers ran computers continuously for nearly two decades.

The rules are compact but strict: pieces move diagonally forward one square at a time, capture by jumping over an adjacent enemy piece into the empty square beyond, and reaching the far row crowns a piece as a king, which can then move and capture diagonally in any direction. Critically, capturing is mandatory whenever it's available — if you can jump, you must, and if a jump leads to another available jump with the same piece, you're required to continue the chain before your turn ends (unless that piece just became a king mid-jump, which always ends the turn immediately, even if another capture would otherwise be possible). This version enforces every one of those rules exactly, including multi-jump chains, which play out automatically once you tap your intended final landing square — so you'll never accidentally miss a forced capture or make an illegal move. Three AI difficulty levels adjust how many moves ahead it searches, from a beatable Easy for players still learning the forced-capture rules to a Hard mode that reliably punishes any missed mandatory jump or overextended piece.

How to Play

1. 1Tap one of your pieces (highlighted if it has a legal move) to select it
2. 2Tap a highlighted destination square to move there
3. 3If a capture is available anywhere on the board, you must take a capturing move — non-capturing moves are disabled
4. 4Multi-jump chains are completed automatically in a single tap to your final landing square
5. 5A piece that reaches the far row becomes a king and can then move and capture diagonally in any direction
6. 6Win by capturing all of the AI's pieces or leaving it with no legal moves

Tips & Strategy

• •Always check for a forced capture before planning any other move — if one exists anywhere on the board, you must take it.
• •Keep pieces supported by a neighboring piece behind them whenever possible — an unsupported piece near the enemy's front line is often just a free capture waiting to happen.
• •Control the center columns rather than the edges — center pieces have more directions to move and more ways to set up multi-jumps.
• •Don't rush to promote a piece to king if it means leaving your back row undefended — an open back row lets the opponent create their own king easily.
• •On Hard, avoid any move that hangs a piece to a jump — the AI reliably takes every mandatory and optional capture it can find.

Frequently Asked Questions