Checkers

How to play

• Red is on the left of the screen, black on the right. P1 is you, the player who opened the app, and plays red; red moves first. A second player joins by clicking the screen and takes black.
• Only the player whose turn it is can move.
• Play happens on the dark squares. Each side starts with 12 men on its three home rows.
• A man steps one square diagonally forward. A king, which has a crown, moves one square diagonally in any direction.
• To capture, jump over an enemy piece onto the empty square beyond. A man cannot jump backward.
• Captures are mandatory, and you must take the route that captures the most pieces. While any jump is open, plain steps are not allowed.
• A jump chain is played one jump at a time. The piece stays lifted and its next jump lights up until the chain is done.
• A man that reaches the far row is crowned a king and its move ends there.
• Tap a man to lift it. It rises with a gold outline and its legal moves light up. Tap a lit square to play it, or tap the man again, or any square that is not lit, to put it back. A man with no legal move does not lift.
• Before the first move you can turn the board with Front / Side. The button goes away once play begins.

Ending the game

• You win by capturing every enemy piece, or by leaving your opponent with no legal move.
• The game is a draw after 40 moves each with no capture and no crowning.
• There is no resign: play on, or start again with New.

Scoring

Each side shows its player's record - wins, draws and losses - and the pile of the pieces it has taken. The record follows the player, not the colour, and New keeps it.

Controls

Tap a man          lift it and light its legal moves
Tap a lit square   play the move
New                start a fresh game
Front / Side       turn the board (before the first move)
? / X              help / leave the game