The rules
How to play Nokori Chess
Nokori Chess is a solo chess puzzle: a chess puzzle for one person, with no opponent. A few pieces stand on the board. Every move captures one of them. In the end, one remains.
Three rules
Every move captures.
A piece moves to a square where another piece stands and takes it off the board. You may never move to an empty square.
As in chess.
King, queen, rook, bishop, knight and pawn move as in chess. All the pieces are yours; there are no two colours.
One remains.
The puzzle is solved when only one piece is left. If a king is playing, it cannot be captured and stays.
How the pieces move
The red dots show the squares a piece in the middle can capture on, if another piece stands there.
King
It moves one square in any direction. It captures as in chess, but it can never be captured. If a king is on the board, it is the piece that remains.
Queen
It moves any distance in a straight line or diagonally, as long as the path is clear.
Rook
It moves any distance horizontally or vertically, as long as the path is clear.
Bishop
It moves any distance diagonally, as long as the path is clear. It always stays on squares of its own colour.
Knight
It moves one square straight and two to the side, like an L. It jumps over other pieces.
Pawn
It captures only diagonally forward, and forward here always means up. It never moves straight ahead. Once it reaches the top, it has no move left.
Not included: check (the king cannot be attacked), castling, en passant and promotion. That keeps the rules small.
A puzzle in three moves
The bishop captures the pawn, the queen captures the bishop, and the king captures the queen. The king remains. Solved.
Try it
The same puzzle to play. Tap a piece and then the square it captures on, or drag it there.
Tips for getting started
- Start with the piece that has only one or two moves. Often its move is the only sensible one.
- Think backwards: which piece should be the one left at the end? If a king is on the board, it is always the answer.
- Pawns capture only upwards. A pawn at the very top can no longer move: it either remains or has to be captured.
- Knights and bishops are the pieces most often moved wrongly. Count the squares once more.
- If you are stuck, go back move by move. There is a solution, and a hint is nothing to be ashamed of.
Questions and answers
What is a solo chess puzzle?
A chess puzzle for one person: you play against the board, not against an opponent. Because every move captures, the board gets emptier move by move until one piece is left.
Do I need to know chess?
No. The pieces move as in chess, and all six are explained above. If you play chess you will find the puzzles faster, but you do not need to.
Is there always a solution?
Yes. From the Easy level up, every puzzle has exactly one solution. On Kids there are several ways.
How many levels are there?
Seven, from Kids on 3×3 to Grandmaster on 6×6. The level sets the difficulty, the board gives the variety.
What does it cost?
Playing here on the page is free and needs no sign-up.
Play now
Today there is a new puzzle on every level.