Chess: Definitive Edition Steam news

• Latest observed playersNot available
• SteamPulse tracked peak2
• Units sold (VGI)No data available
• Revenue (VGI)No data available
• Review score100% positive
• Total reviews5
• Release dateJan 19, 2026
• DeveloperAphoenicis
• PublisherAphoenicis

Genres: Casual, Indie, Strategy

Company pages: Developer: AphoenicisPublisher: Aphoenicis

Top Steam chartsTop 100 gamesGame directorySteam Store page

Chess: Definitive Edition Steam news

Chess: Definitive Edition news collects recent Steam feed items, update posts, and announcements that SteamPulse can associate with this app.

Latest Steam announcements

• Linux & Steam Deck Support - 11 April 2026

  Native Linux & Steam Deck build on Vulcan renderer with cross-platform networking support.Improvements:Fast move option in settings to speed up animations (x3)Animations now speed up as the clock runs downNew cards:Brannigan is back with a new legendary strategy, and pieces can now be frozen.Technical:Mod support: Simplified PieceModifierStack to Arr Mod support: Piece modifiers can prevent capture (supports frozen and similar situations)Bug fix: Win history for ELO could be reset

• Regular Update - 15 February 2026

  New cards:Shell Game* \: Disguises your Queen as a Pawn and shuffles her with two adjacent pawnsFake Piece \: Just like Free Piece, but worse.Castling Permit* \: Allows any piece to castle by moving two squares and having a Rook jump over it.Instant Castle \: Allows the King to move twice and manifest a Rook behind them.Heresy \: Allows a Bishop to convert an adjacent opponent Bishop.Royal Wedding \: Allows a Knight to marry an adjacent opponent Queen, changing his faction to your opponent's, but becoming king-like (requiring to be kept out of check, etc).Democracy \: Kings becomes Presidents for four turns, then another Pawn is elected and so on.* Suggestions from community discordFixes:\ Fallback font support to cover emojis Naruto Run now doesn't apply to Pawns that have already taken a moveQ1000 doesn't cause log errors when trying to play it on enemy pieces\ Replacing use of system…

• Steam Deck & UI Updates - 1 February 2026

  This update improves the UI for smaller resolutions and adds some additional support to help the game run on Steam Deck.Updated Godot engine to 4.6Added on-screen buttons for all game actions to support touchUpdated how turn phases are displayed and which will be consumed by an actionTweaked layout to support Steam Deck 800px heightAdded camera pan (WSAD/arrows/middlemouse), tilt (with shift), zoom (QE/mouse wheel)Added fullscreen toggle (F12)No new cards in this update, but I am collecting ideas for the next content drop.A Linux / Deck build was "coming soon", but the feedback has been that the game runs fine under proton. Convenient for a solo dev! An "official" Linux build with support listed in the store is still on the cards, but for now:Added initial config for Deck touch controlsDeck launches in fullscreen by defaultCross-platform multiplayerValve recommends using FSR with a lowe…

• Zero-day Patch Fun - 21 January 2026

  Some small updates that were noticed by new launch users.BUG: Added backup visuals and new particle effects for Nanopiece Invasion, as the shader isn't working on all hardwareImprovements to particle collisionsInteraction cancel indicator is now a button to help touchscreen-only play (right mouse / esc still works)Improved some of the interaction models to support touch (this should improve highlighting for all, but some cards with custom interaction handlers still need improvement)Improved the faction balance indicator to be more sensitive to small differencesIncreased size of the card hover from review feedbackUpdated description for Hardcore Pawn, as this was specifically called out in a reviewAs a reminder, the netcode will demand every client is on the same version (with same mod versions), so make sure your enemies update before you defeat them.

• Multiplayer Playtest Open - 7 October 2025

  Get a head start on mastering the latest patch for the ancient game of Chess in a free playtest.While you tame the chaos of the Definitive Edition and challenge your friends in multiplayer, we can collect feedback on balance, take new card suggestions, and make sure everything is stable and performs well.Click into the playtest and get automatically accepted during Melbourne International Games Week. Note: Achievements, ranks, and ability to lord these over your friends may not carry over to the published game. The playtest is not limited in content, but may be unavailable after release.

Patch notes and updates