The purpose of the game is to checkmate the king of the opponent by putting the king under ‘check' and the king cannot be moved to any other square to remove the attack.
Eight rows and eight columns are printed on the chessboard with alternate colour in each square. The pieces are divided into two matching sets called white and black. The player with the white pieces makes the first move. During the alternate turns of each player, the pieces on the chess board are moved. Each piece has its own distinctive way of movement. The game carries on while making moves and capturing the opponent's pieces. An opponent's piece is captured and removed from the game if the piece had occupied the respective square of the opponent. When a player's king is under attack by any piece of the opponent, it is said to be in check and it has to be moved out of the check in the next move. Otherwise, the king will be captured and the game will end. If there is no square left where the king can be moved and if the check cannot be removed, then the player is said to be checkmated and he or she loses the game. A game can also end if the opponent player resigns during a hopeless situation. A game can also result in a tie.
The importance of the pieces on the chessboard depends on their range of action. For example, the queen is the strongest piece because its range of action is greatest. The King is the most important piece as it is the target of the enemy attack. All other pieces are also important and must be secured from being captured.
Some of the basic rules on how to play chess that you must consider while playing the game are:
• Don't pressurize yourself or your opponent to move the pieces faster. Remember that it is a game of patience.
• After moving a piece, you can't take it back.
• If you have touched a piece, then you must move it.
• If you have moved a piece and you have still not taken your hand off it, then you can move it to another square.
As the game moves forward, more and more pieces get captured and are removed from the game. The requirements thus keep changing. Depending on this, the game of chess is divided into three different stages:
• The opening: This is the initial stage of the game, and the players concentrate on developing their position.
• The middle game: In this stage, the players try to control the game. Each opponent tries to understand each other's weaknesses and make moves which aim at forcing the opponent to make disadvantageous moves.
The end game: In this stage, a small number of pieces are left on the board. The result of the game can be predicted at this stage, but a small advantage can help you win the game.
Chess is an entertaining game that is played by two players and has now become one of the most popular games in the world. It has been advocated to be a mental exercise. Before going deep into the rules of how to play chess , you must know that the game is played on a square board with 64 squares of black and white colours. Each player is given 16 pieces to start with. These pieces are: