PyChess is a Gnome inspired chess client.
The goal of PyChess, is to provide a fully featured, nice looking, easy to use chess client for the GNOME desktop.
The client should be usable both to those totally new to chess, those who want to play an occasional game, and those who wants to use the computer to further enhance their play.
Features include:
- Attractive interface.
- Chess Engine Communication Protocol (CECP) and Univeral Chess Interface (UCI) Engine support.
- Play online for free on the Free Internet Chess Server (FICS) and for an membership fee on the Internet Chess Club (ICC)
- Built-in Timeseal client for FICS, so you won’t lose clock time during a game due to lag.
- Read and writes PGN, EPD and FEN chess file formats.
- Pre-move support, which means you can make (or start making) a move before your opponent has made their move.
- Built-in Python based engine.
- Works with most popular chess engines as long as they’re installed on your computer. This includes engines such as Stockfish, Rybka, Houdini, Shredder, GNU Chess, Crafty, Fruit, and many more). These engines are available as opponents, and are used to provide hints and analysis.
- PyChess also shows analysis from opening books and Gaviota end-game tablebases.
- Undo and pause functions.
- Board and piece animation.
- Drag and drop.
- Tabbed interface.
- Hints and spy move arrows.
- Opening book sidepanel using sqlite.
- Score plot sidepanel.
- “Enter game” in pgn dialog.
- Optional sounds.
- Legal move highlighting.
- Chess variants: Fischer Random chess, Losers chess, Horde.
- Play with problembot/trainingbot/tacticaltrainer on ICC
- Internationalised or figure pieces in notation.
Website: pychess.github.io
Support: GitHub Code Repository
Developer: Thomas Dybdahl Ahle
License: GNU General Public License v3.0
PyChess is written in Python. Learn Python with our recommended free books and free tutorials.
Return to Games | Return to Chess | FICS Chess Clients | Return to Online Board Games
| Popular series | |
|---|---|
 | The largest compilation of the best free and open source software in the universe. Each article is supplied with a legendary ratings chart helping you to make informed decisions. |
 | Hundreds of in-depth reviews offering our unbiased and expert opinion on software. We offer helpful and impartial information. |
 | The Big List of Active Linux Distros is a large compilation of actively developed Linux distributions. |
 | Replace proprietary software with open source alternatives: Google, Microsoft, Apple, Adobe, IBM, Autodesk, Oracle, Atlassian, Corel, Cisco, Intuit, and SAS. |
 | Awesome Free Linux Games Tools showcases a series of tools that making gaming on Linux a more pleasurable experience. This is a new series. |
 | Machine Learning explores practical applications of machine learning and deep learning from a Linux perspective. We've written reviews of more than 40 self-hosted apps. All are free and open source. |
 | New to Linux? Read our Linux for Starters series. We start right at the basics and teach you everything you need to know to get started with Linux. |
 | Alternatives to popular CLI tools showcases essential tools that are modern replacements for core Linux utilities. |
 | Essential Linux system tools focuses on small, indispensable utilities, useful for system administrators as well as regular users. |
 | Linux utilities to maximise your productivity. Small, indispensable tools, useful for anyone running a Linux machine. |
 | Surveys popular streaming services from a Linux perspective: Amazon Music Unlimited, Myuzi, Spotify, Deezer, Tidal. |
 | Saving Money with Linux looks at how you can reduce your energy bills running Linux. |
 | Home computers became commonplace in the 1980s. Emulate home computers including the Commodore 64, Amiga, Atari ST, ZX81, Amstrad CPC, and ZX Spectrum. |
 | Now and Then examines how promising open source software fared over the years. It can be a bumpy ride. |
 | Linux at Home looks at a range of home activities where Linux can play its part, making the most of our time at home, keeping active and engaged. |
 | Linux Candy reveals the lighter side of Linux. Have some fun and escape from the daily drudgery. |
 | Getting Started with Docker helps you master Docker, a set of platform as a service products that delivers software in packages called containers. |
 | Best Free Android Apps. We showcase free Android apps that are definitely worth downloading. There's a strict eligibility criteria for inclusion in this series. |
 | These best free books accelerate your learning of every programming language. Learn a new language today! |
 | These free tutorials offer the perfect tonic to our free programming books series. |
 | Linux Around The World showcases usergroups that are relevant to Linux enthusiasts. Great ways to meet up with fellow enthusiasts. |
 | Stars and Stripes is an occasional series looking at the impact of Linux in the USA. |