Shogi – How to Play Japanese Chess

Chess originated from a game called Chaturanga in China. While most of the world plays traditional chess, Japan and some Asian countries have their own version of chess. The Japanese version is called Shogi (将棋). In this article, we will learn how to play this fun and strategic chess.

It is said that shogi was introduced to Japan during the Nara period (704 to 790 AD). If that is the case, then it is possible that shogi does not have origins from chaturanga or Chinese chess. There are notable differences between them. The objective of the game is the same as Western chess, “to capture the opponent’s king.” But the pieces and the board change.

Pieces in Japanese chess

Japanese chess is played on a board of 9 rows by 9 columns. Each player has 20 pieces identical to those of the other player. The pieces of one player are distinguished from those of the other by the direction they point on the board.

The game has equal pieces on both teams to operate the capture and return system in the game. Additionally, some pieces have designs on both sides to identify when a piece has been promoted. The 20 pieces are as follows:

• 1 king
• 2 gold generals
• 2 silver generals
• 2 knights
• 2 lances
• 1 bishop
• 1 rook
• 9 pawns

Movements in Japanese chess

According to the image below, you can see all the movements of the pieces in shogi, and see how similar they are to Western Chess.

Promotion in Japanese chess

Whoever reaches the promotion zone can choose to promote their piece which will give them new movements.

• The silver general, the knight, the lance, or the pawn assume the movement of a gold general
• The rook or the bishop, in addition to their normal movement, gain one more movement. One square diagonally in the case of the rook and one square horizontally or vertically in the case of the bishop;

The image below shows the promotion zone and movement, and the initial position plus the kanji of each piece:

When a piece reaches the last three rows, it may or may not be promoted. The decision is up to the player. They have the opportunity to choose whether to promote their pieces or not, every time they move them through these squares. If the lance, knight, or pawn reach the last row, promotion becomes mandatory.

All pieces when promoted become gold generals, except for the bishop, rook, and the gold general itself. The bishop, in addition to its normal movement, gains the right to move one square vertically or horizontally. The rook, in addition to its normal movement, gains the right to move one square diagonally. The gold general cannot be promoted.

Capture in Japanese chess

Unlike Chess, in Shogi we do not eat pieces, but capture them. A captured piece is kept in hand and can be brought back into the game under the control of the player who captured it (reintroduction), meaning it becomes part of that player’s army as a sort of reserve (but without promotion). In the following title, the rules for reintroducing pieces.

If a king accidentally enters the attack line of a piece, it can be captured and the game ends.

Reintroduction of pieces

Instead of making a normal move, a player can choose one of the pieces they captured and reintroduce it (without promotion) onto the board as one of their pieces. Rules:

• The piece must be placed on an empty square (that is, it cannot be placed and already capture another piece) from anywhere on the board (as long as it does not fall under the following restrictions), even in the promotion zone, but promotion is not immediate (promotion can occur normally in subsequent moves);
• A piece cannot be placed on a square from which it could not make a legal move (pawns, lances, and knights on the last row, nor knights on the penultimate);
• A pawn cannot be placed in a column that already contains another unpromoted pawn of the same player (“nifu”). If a player already has an unpromoted pawn in each column, they cannot reintroduce a pawn anywhere; for this reason, it is common to sacrifice a pawn in order to gain flexibility for reintroduction;
• When reintroducing a pawn, it is not allowed to give checkmate (“uchifuzume”), but it can give a check. Other pieces can give immediate checkmate when reintroduced;
• A game is won by checkmating the opponent’s king. Because of the piece reintroduction rule, a stalemate (which would mean a draw) is highly unlikely;
• Perpetual check is prohibited. The player who causes such a situation is required to abandon it;
• The reintroduction ability of Shogi gives the game tactical richness and complexity;

Download Shogi

If you are interested in playing shogi, you can download an app for your Smartphone or Tablet, or play online or download it on your computer.

• Click here to access shogi games on the Play Store
• Click here to play Shogi Online
• Click here to play Online in Flash
• Shogi on IOS – IPHONE

I hope you enjoyed the article! We count on your possible sharing!