Amateur / Freeware Chess Engines
Note: Many of these are Winboard
compatible. You will find commercial programs on the Software
page.
WBEC-Ridderkerk
- Maintains a list of Winboard-compatible engines with download links.
Aldebaran
Amyan
Arasan
Armageddon
Averno
BabyChess
BACE (Source only - you must compile)
Beowulf
- Chess engine project with a goal of producing readable source code
useful for learning chess programming.
Bestia
Betsy
Blikskottel
Chenard -
Older program with own interface.
Chessterfield
- Neural-network based.
Cilian
Cilk Project - Cilk
is a strong program for multi-processor machines. Has source code and
info on parallel computing. Not a Winboard engine.
ColChess
- Engine for Linux/Unix.
CPP1 - Experimental object-oriented
chess engine. Does not use brute force.
Crafty - The leader of
the pack. This is the ftp server -- just look for the latest version.
Crazy Bishop - Quite strong.
A class library for chess programs also available.
Crux
La Dame Blanche
DChess
Deep Bug - Bughouse-playing
chess engine.
Delfi
Dragon
EG Chess -
3D board and pieces, and you can play against the built-in engine or
a friend over a network.
Embracer
EnginMax
(page in German)
Esc
ExChess
- Also has DOS interface.
Faile
Fortress
Francesca
Freyr
Galahad
Gandalf (commercial program)
Gaviota
Gerbil
- from Bruce Moreland, author of Ferret.
GNU Chess
- Totally new version released Oct '99.
Golem
Green
Light Chess - GUI and Winboard versions.
GromitChess
Holmes
Horizon
Inmichess - Also can be
used as a Fritz engine or with a built-in DOS interface.
KingofKings
KnightCap - Interesting
program for UNIX is supposed to learn as plays. Source code available.
No Winboard/Xboard support.
KnightX
LambChop
LarsenVB
MFChess
Mint
Monik
Mr Chess
Mustang
Nejmet
Nero - For
DOS.
Noonian
OliThink
Ozwald
Pax Chess - Experimental
chess program.
Pepito
Phalanx
Pierre
PolarChess
Quark
Queen
Raffaela
RD
Chess - Has both Windows interface & Winboard support.
Replicant
Rival
Chess
Screamer
- For the Mac.
SdBC
Sjeng - Plays bughouse &
crazyhouse.
Skaki
StAndersen
Sunsetter - Another bughouse
/ crazyhouse engine -- ability to play on a chess server.
Tamberlane
Terra
TI-Chess - Engine for your TI
calculator.
UruChess
Wilhelm
- In German. Uses own GUI (no Winboard), and can solve corresponding
square locked pawn endgames where only king moves are possible.
Yace
Zephyr
Chess Programming Tutorials & Info /
Computer Chess Miscellaneous
Alberta
GAMES Group - An academic research group -- includes a respository
of papers (in PostScript format) regarding chess and game programming.
Anatomy
Of Chess Programs - Short article from ICCA on how chess programs
work. Not detailed, but a good intro.
Anticomputer
Chess - How do you beat your fancy new program? Find out here.
Aske Plaat's Homepage
- Has a tutorial on MTD, a very fast minimax algorithm. Also has some
good stuff in the "Research" section.
Bibliography
on Machine Learning in Strategic Game Playing - a list of publications
on how computers can learn to play strategic games.
Bionic - Info
(but no download) on Bionic, a competitive Dutch program.
Bruce
Moreland - The chess page of the author of Ferret & Gerbil.
Has information about these two programs, plus computer chess programming
in general.
ChessBits
- In German. Computer Chess magazine.
Chess
Computer Collectors Site - Pictures & manuals of dedicated chess
computers (mostly old ones).
Chess
Programming - Multi-part series from GameDev.net. Well-written and
thorough.
Chess
Programming from the Ground Up - Very good introduction to the techniques
of chess programming.
Chess
Programming Introduction - The author of Rival Chess takes you through
the chess programming process.
Chess
Programming Theory - Chess programming tutorial from the Beowulf
project creators.
Computer
Chess - Part of a huge HTML document, this section describes the
basic architecture of a chess program.
Computer
Chess Club - Web-based moderated discussion forum aimed at keeping
the posts on-topic (computer chess). Very active.
Crafty
Benchmark Page - How does your Crafty match up?
Dark
Thought - This program is made to compete, so you can't actually
download it, but the authors provide plenty of information on various
chess programming techniques.
Didzis Computer
Chess Site - Where Mr. Didzis pits chess programs against each other
and reports on the results.
Endgame
Tablebase Guide - An introduction to endgame tablebases and how
to get them working properly.
Endgame
Tablebase Server (Nalimov) - An online interface to a complete set
of 3, 4, & 5 man endgame tablebases. Can even be accessed directly
from a chess engine with the right programming.
Endgame Tablebase
Server - Another site to look-up endgames, including depth-to-conversion
data.
EPD2WB
- Bruce Moreland's utility to run EPD test suites with Winboard chess
engines.
Frank's Chess
Page - Lots of info on lots of Winboard engines. Games, Winboard
tournaments, etc. Very popular. In German and English.
Galahad
Project - Chess engine using genetic algorithms to tune its evaluations.
Game
Programming - Selected lectures on how to program board games.
Game
Theory: Computer Chess Notes - A short explanation of the techniques
of chess programming.
Genetic
Algorithms for King-Pawn Endgames - A paper describing experiments
to use GA's in chess programming.
Hossa
- Steffen Jakob introduces you to his program Hossa (you may remember
his killer Crafty-clone "Brause" that played the Halloween
Attack). No executable or source, but a discussion of techniques used
and games played.
International
Computer Chess Association (ICCA) - Organizes computer chess tournaments
(including the computer chess championships), and publishes a journal
for those interested in computer chess research and developments.
Introduction
to Bitboards - The author of ZChess explains how to implement bitboard
representation in your program.
Jim's
Chess Strategy - Specifically, these are Jim's anti-computer chess
strategies, with most of the advice being for when you are playing with
the black pieces.
KC Chess
- Academic report on a project to make a chess program. Good reading
if you are just getting into chess programming. Also includes Pascal
source code.
Louis Kessler's Page
- Links and some essays on the history of computer chess from one of
its early innovators.
Machine
Learning in Games - All sorts of great information about programs
that learn to play games.
Memory
vs. Search in Games - A Ph.D. thesis by Dennis Breuker using computer
chess as its main focal point.
Mr.
T vs. Deep Blue - It turns out Kasparov was using the wrong strategy.
Permanent
Brain - In German. Computer chess games for replay, computer chess
history and software museum.
Programming
a Computer to Play Chess - The paper that started it all. Claude
E. Shannon's 1949 Bell Labs report on just how a computer might play
chess.
RebelBase
- Strong human players vs the Rebel computer program.
Selective
Search - British computer chess magazine.
Shep's Computer Chess Site
- Home of Shep's World Championship, a contest among chess programs.
SSDF
- Swedish rating list of chess programs.
SSDF
database & Man vs. Machine games - The test games used to create
the SSDF ratings of chess programs, as well as a collection of man vs.
machine games.
Steve Maughan's
Web Site - Test positions and a utility to determine statistical
significance between chess engine matches.
Tom
Kerrigan's Web Site - Tom has a created a couple of chess programs,
but TSCP (Tom's Simple Chess Program) should be studied before you take
your first crack at making your own.
University
of Nis Computer Chess Page - Attempting to keep on top of the developments
in the world of computer chess, but hasn't been updated lately.
Valentin
Albillo's Chess Page - Definitely worth a look. Has a gauntlet of
positions to test your chess program, plus other goodies.
WBEC-Ridderkerk
- Maintains a list of Winboard-compatible engines with download links.
Also has computer chess tournaments.
WinBoard
/ XBoard - You'll need an interface for all those chess engines.
Winboard
/ Chess Engine FAQ - If you don't know what all this Winboard, Crafty,
chess engine, etc. nonsense is all about, this is your first stop to
get your questions answered.
Winboard
Forum - Very popular place to discuss what's what with Winboard
chess engines. (sometimes in German).
Winboard
Tourney Manager - Utility for running tournaments between Winboard
chess engines.
Yellow
Bishop Computer Chess Center - Nearly 80 academic/theoretical papers
on computer chess, a program to help you browse the CCC
archives, and test suites.