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ChessVS · Roadmap

Where we are,
and what’s next.

ChessVS is being built in the open. It moves as we do. This page is not only where the rubber meets the road, but where that road is heading next:

Now

Phase 1 · The Web Game

An invite-only alpha. Two clubs, 44 Battle Cards across three Focus Levels, and Quick, Casual and Ranked play.

You are here
Dec 2026

Registration Opens

Founding registration, from Woodpusher up to Genesis. Every tier lists exactly what it includes, and nothing is decided by chance.

After

Phase 2 · The Full Launch

A new engine, the full economy opens, and Season 1 begins. The cards you hold become permanently yours, and your name, badges and history carry over.

Later

Phase 3 · Things You Can Hold

Printed editions of the cards you played, coins and trophies earned by rank, themed chess sets for each founding club, and the SmartBoards.

Playable Today

Live right now.

  • The board, and every legal chess move
  • Battle Cards, armed one per move
  • Clashes, where a capture is a fight
  • Your own Tension Gauge
  • Tempo, a head start on your gauge
  • Quick, Casual and Ranked play
  • Tournaments, with three formats
  • An AI opponent, any time
  • The Sparring Room tutorial
  • The Honeypot, a second way to win
  • Battle Highlights
  • The ranked ladder, with seven rating tiers
  • The Card Shop and the Battle Box
  • The Card Market, player to player
  • A daily puzzle, with a gauntlet that runs all season
  • Step back through any game, move by move
  • Referrals: bring a friend, skip the line
Tournaments

Built for competition.

SwissNobody is knocked out. You are matched against players on your own score, round after round, so a bad game costs you a placing and not your day.
Single eliminationOne loss and you are out. Short, sharp, and unforgiving.
Double eliminationOne bad match does not decide it. You need to be beaten twice.
Running todayThe bracket engine, all three formats, entry caps and waitlists, color balancing, live standings and tournament XP, plus a Classic option: straight chess, no Battle Cards.
What Opens Later

Still switched off.

Seasons and clubsNew clubs arrive with each pair of seasons, and from Season 5 the community votes on which one comes next.
Club boardsA collectible board that records your wins, rank and club. A Club Board unlocks club bonuses, club duels and the club leaderboard. You will never need one to play, ranked included.
Gambit CardsTactical cards you can add to your loadout with FOCUS, the in-game virtual currency. Each card holds 3 uses and can be recharged.
The WandererThe one card FOCUS can’t buy. It travels the community, and you do not choose the Wanderer; it chooses you.
The Omega VaultEarned, never bought. Play 60 counted games across 30 different days against 15 different opponents, and the Vault opens for one Omega card, the rarest kind.
The Woodpusher CupAn opening event for new players. In a variant nobody has played before, not even us, we’re all woodpushers.