Shogi (Japanese chess) is a two-player strategy game on a 9×9 board of 81 squares, each side commanding 20 pieces: a king, a rook, a bishop, two golds, two silvers, two knights, two lances and nine pawns. Players alternate single moves starting with the first player, and the winner is whoever captures the opponent's king. Shogi's signature rule is that captured pieces join the capturer's hand and may be dropped back onto the board, and most pieces promote inside the enemy's three furthest rows.
Play now — it's freeThe board is a 9×9 grid of undifferentiated squares, played one-on-one. Each player starts with twenty pieces, all facing the opponent.
The back rank holds, from wing to wing: lance, knight, silver, gold, king, gold, silver, knight, lance. Directly in front of it sit the bishop on one wing and the rook on the other (the rook on the player's right hand, the bishop on the left, from their own view), and the third rank is filled by a line of nine pawns.
The first player (sente) opens the game; from then on the players alternate one move per turn.
Pieces move as in the table; a piece captures whatever enemy piece it lands on, taking its square.
| Piece | Count | Movement |
|---|---|---|
| King | 1 | One square in any direction |
| Rook | 1 | Any distance orthogonally |
| Bishop | 1 | Any distance diagonally |
| Gold general | 2 | One square forward, sideways, or either forward diagonal (never backward) |
| Silver general | 2 | One square along any diagonal, or straight forward |
| Knight | 2 | A forced jump: two squares forward, one to either side — the only piece that jumps, and it moves forward only |
| Lance | 2 | Any number of squares straight forward |
| Pawn | 9 | One square straight forward |
The sliding pieces (rook, bishop, lance) travel any number of squares along their line until blocked; every other piece steps a single square.
The promotion zone is the opponent's three furthest rows. A move may promote when it starts or ends inside that zone, and promoting is the mover's choice.
Promotable pieces are the pawn, lance, knight, silver, bishop and rook. The king and the golds never promote.
When promoted: the pawn, lance, knight and silver all move like a gold general; the promoted bishop keeps its diagonal slide and gains a one-square orthogonal step; the promoted rook keeps its orthogonal slide and gains a one-square diagonal step.
Pieces dropped from the hand always enter the board unpromoted, even inside the promotion zone.
Shogi's signature rule: a captured piece never leaves the game. It moves to your hand as its original, unpromoted type.
On any turn, instead of moving a piece on the board, you may drop a piece from your hand onto any empty square, where it becomes your own piece from that moment.
The only restrictions on drops are:
| Restriction | Detail |
|---|---|
| Nifu (two pawns in a file) | You may not drop a pawn into a file that already holds one of your unpromoted pawns |
| Last rank | Pawns and lances may not be dropped on the last rank (the opponent's king row), since they only move forward |
| Last two ranks | Knights may not be dropped on the last two ranks, for the same reason |
The goal is to capture the opponent's king: the moment a king is captured, the game ends and the capturer wins. This version does not announce a separate "check"; if you leave your king attacked, your opponent may simply capture it and win, so guarding the king is your own job.
Each move has a 40-second allowance; if the time runs out without a move, or a player disconnects, an automated assistant plays that move in their place.
If the game reaches 300 moves in total without a king being captured, it ends in a draw.
Don't launch your rook or bishop without support: they are your strongest pieces, and capturing one hands your opponent a fresh weapon to drop against you.
Use small captured pieces (pawns, silvers) to defend your king — dropping is the fastest way to patch a defensive hole.
Promote your bishop or rook at the first opportunity inside the enemy camp; promoted, they move almost like a king.
Check your unpromoted pawn files before dropping a pawn — nifu forbids two in one file.
Never leave your king attacked: there is no "check" warning, and your opponent's next move might capture it.
Shogi is Japanese chess: a two-player strategy game on a 9×9 board with 20 pieces per side, best known for letting players drop captured pieces back on the board and for promotion inside the enemy camp.
Twenty pieces per player (40 in total): a king, rook and bishop, two each of golds, silvers, knights and lances, and nine pawns.
Captured pieces switch sides and can be dropped back onto the board instead of leaving the game, most pieces promote in the enemy's three furthest rows, and the board is 9×9 instead of 8×8.
By capturing the opponent's king — the game ends the instant a king is taken. This version has no separate check announcement, so protecting your king is your own responsibility.
An optional upgrade when a move starts or ends in the opponent's three furthest rows: pawn, lance, knight and silver gain gold-like movement, the promoted bishop adds a one-square orthogonal step, and the promoted rook adds a one-square diagonal step.
You may never drop a pawn into a file that already contains one of your own unpromoted pawns — two pawns of yours in one file are forbidden.
Pawns and lances cannot be dropped on the last rank, and knights not on the last two ranks, because those pieces only move forward and would be stuck.
At 300 total moves without a king capture the game ends in a draw. Each move allows 40 seconds, after which an automated assistant plays for the player.
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Yes, the site is mobile-first and runs in any modern browser on Android or iPhone, with full Arabic support.