ChessBlocks

ChessBlocks is free chess on RockBlocks where every move makes a drum beat. The board is a drum machine read left to right: files a to h are the eight eighth notes of a bar, and every piece that has moved plays its drum on its file. The groove builds in layers: pawns keep time on the hi-hat (White) and ride (Black), getting busier as more pawns move; the first bishop out brings the snare backbeat and the first knight the kick on the one; knights jump to a second kick; rooks play tom runs; queens add an open hi-hat or rimshot; and kings a mid tom. How far up the board a piece has come sets how hard it hits, from ghost notes at home to accents deep in enemy territory, and a check brings in a crash. So the beat starts from silence, builds as both sides develop, and thins out as pieces come off. Play the computer at five levels, pass and play on one phone, tablet or computer, or play a friend online by sending a link, all with no sign-up. Play classic chess, or Pirate Pawn, a ChessBlocks variant where each side has one secret pirate pawn that can strike once in any direction. Play any position as a loop, play the whole game back as a song, and open the game's beats in the RockBlocks drum machine and Stacks.

How to play

1. 1.Start a game. Play the computer at one of five levels, or switch to Pass and play for two players on one device, handing it back and forth. Or pick White, Black or Random under Play a friend online and send your friend the link; no account needed. Choose Classic or Pirate Pawn before you start.
2. 2.Move a piece. Tap a piece and then a square, or drag it there. Legal squares show a dot, and every move plays its piece's drum. To castle, move the king two squares or onto its rook. White stays at the bottom; you can flip the board, or have it turn for each player.
3. 3.Hear the beat build. Each piece that has moved plays on its file, a to h, as the bar sweeps across the board. Pawns get the hi-hat and ride going, bishops bring the backbeat, knights the bass drum, rooks tom runs, and pushing deep into enemy territory hits harder.
4. 4.Play the game as a song. Press Play the game as a song to hear every move in order, one bar each, as the board replays the game.
5. 5.Take it to RockBlocks. Press Save this beat on the positions you like as you play, then open them in the RockBlocks drum machine and choose a slot for each. Save none and key moments of the game are picked for you, played in order in Stacks, where you can add a bass line and save it.

Frequently asked questions

What is ChessBlocks?

ChessBlocks is a free chess game on RockBlocks, a browser drum machine, where the chessboard is also a drum machine: every piece plays a drum on its file, so each move changes the beat. You can play the computer, pass and play on one device, or play a friend online, in classic chess or the Pirate Pawn variant, with no download, ads or sign-up.

Is ChessBlocks free?

Yes. It's free with no ads. No account is needed for any of it, even playing a friend online. A free RockBlocks account puts your name on the board and lets you pick up your online games on any device.

How does a chess move make a drum beat?

The board works like a drum machine's step grid, read left to right: the a-file is the first eighth note of the bar and the h-file the last. Every piece that has moved plays its drum on its file, so moving a piece moves its hit, and capturing a piece silences it. On top of that the groove builds in layers: the more pawns are out, the busier the time feel; the first bishop out brings the backbeat and the first knight a kick on the one. The rank sets the dynamics: a ghost note near home, a normal hit in the middle, an accent past halfway, and an extra sixteenth deep in enemy territory. A check adds a crash on the first beat.

Which piece plays which drum?

Pawns keep time: White's on the hi-hat (opening it when a pawn gets deep into Black's half) and Black's on the ride cymbal. Bishops are the snare and backbeat, and knights the bass drum, each kicking on its file and jumping to a second kick a dotted quarter later. Rooks play tom runs, from the floor tom on the low ranks to the high tom on the high ones. White's queen is an open hi-hat and Black's a rimshot, playing on both the queen's file and her rank. Both kings are the mid tom. Pick any of RockBlocks' drum kits to hear them as an 808, 909, metal, Latin or even a cat kit.

Can I play ChessBlocks against the computer?

Yes, at five levels named for a band's career: Garage Band and Open Mic for beginners, who leave pieces lying around; Bar Band, which is solid but slips up; Headliner, which punishes blunders; and Stadium Rock, which thinks several moves ahead. Pick White or Black, take back a move on the two easy levels, and every move still builds the beat. When the computer takes one of your pieces, a banner says so, the board shakes, and your piece walks the plank to a drum fill.

Can two people play on one phone or tablet?

Yes. That's pass and play: make your move and hand the device over. White stays at the bottom, so nobody has to get used to a board that spins (you can have it turn for each player if you like), and the game is kept on the device, so you can come back to it later.

How do I play a friend online?

Choose to play White, Black or Random and send your friend the link. When they open it, they take the other side and the game starts. Neither of you needs an account: without one you play as a guest, and the game stays on that device. Sign in to play with your name and pick the game up anywhere. Moves show up on both screens within a couple of seconds, and the tab says Your move when it's your turn.

Does it know all the rules of chess?

Yes: castling (move the king two squares, or drop it on its rook), en passant, promotion (you pick the piece), check, checkmate, stalemate, threefold repetition, the fifty-move rule and insufficient material. You can also resign or offer a draw, and copy the game as PGN to analyze it anywhere.

Can I hear the whole game again?

Yes. Play the game as a song plays one bar per move, in order, while the board replays the game.

Does ChessBlocks work on a phone or tablet?

Yes. It runs in the browser on phones, tablets and computers with nothing to download: tap a piece and then a square, or drag it. Turn the sound up, since the beat is half the game.

What is Pirate Pawn?

A ChessBlocks game mode, against the computer, pass and play or online. One of each side's pawns, picked at random, is secretly a pirate: you can see your own (it wears a see-through pirate hat), but your opponent's looks like any other pawn. Once a game, a pirate can strike: take an enemy piece on any square touching it, sideways, backwards or straight ahead, like a king. It throws off its disguise, and its parrot carries the piece away or it slaps it off the board with a fish. A pirate can't take the king and never gives check. After its strike it's a normal pawn again, and if it's taken or promotes first, the strike is lost. Everything else is normal chess.

Chess pieces by Colin M.L. Burnett (the set Lichess calls cburnett), used under the BSD license.