Checkers
Checkers, called draughts in Britain, on the classic 8×8 board. Twelve men each, jumps you have to take, and a crown for every man that reaches the far row. Play a house player at Easy, Medium or Hard, or pass the device to a friend. Tap a piece to see where it can go, and a coach explains your first game a step at a time.
Two players. A game takes 5 to 15 minutes. More board games: Reversi, Four in a Row, Backgammon, Dominoes, Sea Battle and Ludo are in Yuzool's Board Games too.
How to play Checkers
- The board: 8×8, played on the dark squares only. Each side starts with twelve men on the three rows nearest them. Dark moves first.
- Moving: a man moves one square diagonally forwards onto an empty square.
- Jumping: a man captures by jumping diagonally forwards over a piece next to it into the empty square beyond. If you can jump you must, and a piece that can jump again must carry on.
- Your choice of jump: when more than one capture is possible you may pick any of them. There is no rule to take the most pieces.
- Kings: a man that reaches the far row is crowned and the move ends there. A king moves and jumps one square diagonally, forwards or backwards.
Tap one of your pieces to see where it can go, then tap the square. In a capture with more than one jump, tap each landing square in turn. On a computer, use the arrow keys and Enter, or click. The full rules, with worked examples, are in How to play Checkers.
Winning
| What happens | Result |
|---|---|
| You capture every piece on the other side | You win |
| The other player has pieces but no legal move | You win |
| 40 moves each with no capture and no man moved | A draw |
A player whose turn it is and who cannot move loses, whether their pieces are gone or blocked in.
Tips
- Keep your back row at home for as long as you can. A man cannot be crowned on a square you still occupy.
- Play towards the centre. A man in the middle has two squares to go to; a man on the edge has one.
- Use the forced jump. Offer one man where taking it pulls a piece out of place, then take two back.
- Trade when you are ahead. Five against four is a small lead; two against one is nearly a win.
Questions
Is Checkers free to play here?
Yes. Checkers against the Easy and Medium house players, pass and play for two, the coach, undo and autosave are free, with no ads and no sign-up. Board Games Pro, a one-time $1.99 upgrade for all seven games, adds the Hard players, rule options, full statistics and history, and extra board and piece looks.
Does the computer cheat?
No. There is nothing hidden in checkers: the house player sees the same board as you and has to follow the same rules, forced jumps included. The Hard player wins by looking many moves ahead.
Which rules are these?
English draughts, also called straight checkers: an 8×8 board, twelve men each, dark moves first, captures are compulsory, men capture forwards only and kings move one square at a time. Pro adds two rule options: captures you may choose not to make, and men that may capture backwards.
Can two people play on one device?
Yes. Choose pass and play and take turns on the same screen. The game in progress is saved in this browser on this device, so you can close the tab and carry on later.