Who made Chessmaster?

Chessmaster was published by Software Toolworks, released in 1989.

What kind of game is Chessmaster?

Chessmaster is a puzzle game for the NES / Famicom.

Can two people play Chessmaster?

No. Chessmaster is a single-player game, so it has no two-player mode.

How much data does Chessmaster load?

The Chessmaster ROM is 160 kB. It is fetched once when you press play and then cached by your browser, so returning to the game does not download it again.

Which emulators can run Chessmaster?

Chessmaster runs on NES / Famicom and Nestopia UE (Accurate). You can switch between them from the emulator list further down this page if one performs better on your device.

Chessmaster Game (1989) - NES

Name: Chessmaster
Availability: InStock
Author: Software Toolworks

Action / Button	Keyboard Key
D-Pad (Up / Down / Left / Right)	`Arrow Keys`
Button A	`Z` or `J`
Button B	`X` or `K`
Button X / Turbo A	`A` or `U`
Button Y / Turbo B	`S` or `I`
Select	`Shift`
Start	`Enter`

Gamepad Input	Retro Function	Keyboard Key
D-Pad / Analog	Character Movement / Steering	`▲` `▼` `◄` `►`
Button A (East)	Primary Action / Attack / Fire	`Z` / `K`
Button B (South)	Secondary / Jump / Cancel	`X` / `J`
Button X / Y	Special / Turbo / Extra Fire	`A` / `S`
Select	Insert Coin / Select Option	`Right Shift`
Start	Game Start / Pause Game	`Enter`

Gamepad Input

Retro Function

Keyboard Key

D-Pad / Analog

Character Movement / Steering

▲ ▼ ◄ ►

Button A (East)

Primary Action / Attack / Fire

Z / K

Button B (South)

Secondary / Jump / Cancel

X / J

Button X / Y

Special / Turbo / Extra Fire

A / S

Select

Insert Coin / Select Option

Right Shift

Start

Game Start / Pause Game

Enter

Emulator Core Engine	Technology	Multiplayer	Gamepad	Touch	Ads	Action / Switch
EmulatorJS (Default WebAssembly)	`WebAssembly / JS`	YES	YES	YES	NO	▶ ACTIVE
NES / Famicom (Recommended)	`WebAssembly / Libretro`	YES	YES	YES	NO	PLAY ⚡
Nestopia UE (Accurate)	`WebAssembly / Libretro`	YES	YES	YES	NO	PLAY ⚡

Emulator Core Engine

Technology

Multiplayer

Gamepad

Touch

Ads

Action / Switch

EmulatorJS (Default WebAssembly)

WebAssembly / JS

YES

▶ ACTIVE

NES / Famicom (Recommended)

WebAssembly / Libretro

YES

PLAY ⚡

Nestopia UE (Accurate)

WebAssembly / Libretro

YES

PLAY ⚡

Chessmaster is a chess game for the NES, published by Software Toolworks in 1989. One of the strongest chess programs available on 8-bit consoles, it brings a capable AI engine and adjustable difficulty settings to the Nintendo living room — accessible to players still learning the rules and competitive for experienced opponents looking for a real game.

How to Play

Move the cursor across the board with the arrow keys. Press X to select a piece; legal destination squares become available. Navigate to your chosen square and press X again to complete the move. Press Z to deselect without moving. Enter opens the menu where you can adjust the AI difficulty, swap sides, or take back a move.

The objective is checkmate — leave the opponent’s king with no safe square to move to. Open with pawns to control the centre, develop your knights and bishops before your heavy pieces, and castle to get your king behind a row of pawns before launching an attack.

Tips

Start on the lowest difficulty to get comfortable with the cursor and the AI’s pace — the gap between difficulty tiers is real, so work up gradually.
Castle early. Chessmaster’s engine reliably punishes an exposed king, and kingside castling is the quickest shelter available.
Use the take-back option in the menu after a losing move. Seeing exactly how the AI responded to your mistake is faster and more instructive than restarting the whole game.