Zen Chess: Mate in Two

Minimalist chess puzzles built around finding checkmate in two moves

Minimol Games · Released Apr 30, 2019

Reviews: Very Positive; 85% of 108
Recent reviews: Not enough recent
Players: 0; daily peak, Oct 29, 2026
Steam Deck: Verified
Last update on Steam: 5 years ago; Jan 28, 2021
Minimum PC: DirectX 9 GPU; 2 GB RAM · 0.1 GB disk; Full requirements

What is Zen Chess: Mate in Two?

A single-player chess puzzle game where you study preset positions and choose moves that lead to checkmate. The puzzles are selected by a chess grandmaster, and an original soundtrack accompanies play.

For you if...

+you enjoy practicing chess tactics in a relaxed setting

Not for you if...

−you want full chess matches against other players

What players say

85% of 108 reviews are positive

Players praise the clean interface and options to change pieces and colors. The most common complaint is that puzzles accept only a prescribed solution even when alternatives work. Players also criticize opponent replies that make little chess sense.

Screenshots and trailer

Zen Chess: Mate in Two system requirements

Minimum: DirectX 9 GPU, 2 GB RAM, 0.1 GB of disk space.

As published by the developer.

Can my PC run Zen Chess: Mate in Two?

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Minimum

OS: Windows XP/Vista/7/8
Processor: 2 Ghz Dual Core
Graphics: Graphics card supporting DirectX 9.0c
Memory: 2 GB RAM
Storage: 100 MB available space
DirectX: Version 9.0c

Does Zen Chess: Mate in Two have co-op or multiplayer?

No: single-player only, no multiplayer modes declared.

Single-player

Does Zen Chess: Mate in Two run on Steam Deck?

Verified Yes, Verified by Valve: it works on Steam Deck out of the box.

All functionality is accessible with the default controller configuration
In-game text is legible on Steam Deck
Default graphics settings perform well on Steam Deck

PC version details

DRM: None declared on Steam
Controller: Keyboard and mouse
Platforms: Windows, macOS
Achievements: 15
Steam features: Family Sharing
Languages: Text only: English, French, Italian, German, Spanish - Spain, Arabic, Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Hungarian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese - Portugal, Portuguese - Brazil, Romanian, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Spanish - Latin America, Swedish, Thai, Traditional Chinese, Turkish, Ukrainian, Vietnamese.

Does Zen Chess: Mate in Two use AI-generated content?

No AI-generated content is disclosed on the game's Steam page.

Self-reported by the developer under Steam rules: it covers AI content that ships in the game, not tools used to make it. Steam page checked on Oct 27, 2026. How to filter AI games on Steam