The four games side by side
| Game | Players | Against the computer | Online | On one device | Menus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chess | 2 | 4 levels, Easy to Master | Elo rating, 1 to 10 minute clocks | yes | Uzbek |
| Checkers | 2 | 5 levels | Elo rating, 3+2, 5+0, 10+0 | yes | English, Russian, Uzbek |
| Sea Battle 3D (Battleship) | 2 | Sailor, Captain, Admiral | Elo rating, Classic and International rules | no: fleets are secret | English, Russian, Uzbek |
| Devor Poygasi (Quoridor) | 2 to 6 | 4 levels | room code, quick join | yes, up to 6 people | Uzbek |
All four are games of pure skill: no dice, no cards, no luck in the draw. Whoever thinks further ahead wins, which is also why a rating means something here.
Chess
The full game with every rule it needs: castling, en passant, promotion, the fifty-move rule and threefold repetition. A quick game pairs you with an online opponent at 1, 3+2, 5 or 10 minutes and moves your Elo rating, which starts at 1200 and changes faster during your first 20 games. A friend joins with a four-character code, and two people can also share one phone or laptop.
The computer plays at four levels, Easy, Medium, Hard and Master, and lets you take moves back, so it works as a sparring partner as much as an opponent. The chess menus are still in Uzbek, but a board, pieces and a clock need no translation. New to the game? Start with learning chess and the rules.
Checkers
Two rule sets on the same 8×8 board. In Russian draughts, the version most of the CIS grew up with, men may capture backwards and a king flies along the whole diagonal. In English checkers (draughts in the UK) men capture forwards only, kings move one square at a time and Black moves first. You choose the rules in the lobby; the differences are shown on diagrams.
Rated games run at 3+2, 5+0 and 10+0 for Russian rules and 5+0 for English, with one shared Elo rating. The computer has five levels with hints and take-backs, and a room with a friend can also be 15+10, rated or casual. When nobody is waiting in the queue the game tells you so plainly instead of inventing an opponent.
Sea Battle 3D (Battleship)
The pencil-and-paper classic on a 10×10 grid, played with models of real warships on a 3D ocean. Classic rules use ten ships that may not touch, even at the corners, and give you another shot after every hit. International rules use five ships (5, 4, 3, 3 and 2 cells), allow them to touch and pass the turn after each shot. The enemy layout is never sent to your device, so a hidden fleet really is hidden.
Quick matches keep a separate queue for each rule set and count towards your Elo rating, a friend can join by code or link without touching the rating, and the computer plays at three levels: Sailor, Captain and Admiral. Each player needs a screen of their own, since the point of the game is that your fleet stays secret. Before your first match, read the rules and the search strategy.
Devor Poygasi (Quoridor)
A race with walls, based on the board game Quoridor. On your turn you either step your pawn to a neighbouring cell or place a wall two cells long to make someone else’s road longer. You may never close a road completely. Two players get 10 walls each, three get 7, four get 5; five and six players use pentagon and hexagon boards, and the Race variant sends everyone from the bottom row to the top.
This is the one game here built for a group: up to six people can pass one phone around, or play online with a five-character room code. The computer has four levels, each player has a 300-second clock, and the menus are in Uzbek. The full rules include the wall counts for every board.
Which one to start with
- Learn it in five minutes: Battleship or Devor Poygasi. Both sets of rules fit in two sentences.
- A game for years: chess. If the pieces are new to you, play the Easy computer with take-backs, or see chess for kids.
- A short game on a phone: checkers at 3+2, roughly ten minutes from first move to result.
- Three to six people at one table: Devor Poygasi on one device, passing it round.
- Playing with a child: Battleship against the Sailor level. It fires mostly at random, so a child can beat it within a few games.
Playing with a friend
- Open the game and choose “With a friend”. Chess, checkers and Battleship give you a four-character code and a link; Devor Poygasi gives a five-character room code.
- Send it in any messenger. Your friend opens the link or types the code; nobody has to sign up.
- If a connection drops, the game waits for you: 45 seconds in chess, checkers and Battleship, 30 seconds in Devor Poygasi.
- Sitting next to each other? Chess, checkers and Devor Poygasi also run on a single device, taking turns. More ideas on the 2 player games page.
FAQ
Are these board games really free?
Yes. Every mode, level and rating is free, nothing is sold inside the games and nothing is played for money. The site is paid for by advertising.
Do I need an account?
No. Type a name and play. Your rating and saved games belong to your browser, so another phone or computer starts a new profile.
Can two people play on one phone?
Chess, checkers and Devor Poygasi, yes, by taking turns. Battleship needs two screens because each fleet is secret, so send your friend a code instead.
Do you have backgammon, dominoes or card games?
No. GameUZB only hosts games of skill; games built on dice, cards or bets are left out on purpose.
Are the rules the official ones?
Chess follows the standard rules, including the fifty-move rule and repetition. Russian draughts are based on the FMJD-64 rules and English checkers on the standard ones. Battleship offers both the Classic and the International rule sets, and Devor Poygasi is our own take on Quoridor with variants for up to six players.
