JANGGI
JANGGI is a free web game of Korean chess, where you move wooden pieces to trap the other king, alone against the computer or two players on one screen. It runs in your browser with no download.
Press START and choose your setup: one of four ways to place the horses and elephants on the back row. The pieces are set and Cho, the green side, moves first. Tap a piece and it lifts, its legal moves appear as dots and any enemy piece it can take gets a red ring. Tap a square and the piece slides over with a wooden clack. Captured pieces pile up in the tray beside the board.
When a king is attacked a red ring pulses around it, the word for check appears in brush lettering and a voice calls it out. Escaping is called out too, and so is bikjang, when the two kings face each other. If you are in check with no legal move, the game is over. The computer answers about a second after your move.
The opponent has 27 levels from 18 kyu to 9 dan. Low ranks read shallowly and sometimes miss things; the dan levels read deep. A win moves you up a level, a loss or draw keeps you there. You can pick your starting rank on the title screen, so experienced players can begin at dan level right away. From 1 dan you alternate between Cho and Han each game. Press 2 PLAYERS to share one screen, where Han sets up first and then Cho.
The rules follow the Korean Janggi Association. The cannon moves by jumping over exactly one piece and can neither jump over nor capture another cannon. The chariot and cannon can travel along the palace diagonals, and a soldier can step diagonally forward inside the enemy palace. A move that repeats the same position for the third time is not allowed. If both players pass in a row or the game passes 200 moves, the remaining pieces are counted up.
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- Type
- Board game · Strategy game · Indie game
- Built in
- 1 day
- Tech
- Canvas 2D · alpha-beta search in a Web Worker · Web Audio · rules verified against a separate Python implementation
- Players
- 1 · 2 on one screen
- Plays on
- Phone · PC
- Status
- Finished · 27 levels from 18 kyu to 9 dan · 4 setups · Chinese or Korean lettering
- Released
- 2026-10-03
- Last updated
- 2026-10-03
Good for — anyone curious about Korean chess who wants the legal moves shown while they learn, chess and xiangqi players who want to try the Korean cousin, and anyone who wants a quiet board game against a computer that grows with them.
Frequently asked questions
Can I play without knowing the janggi rules?
Yes. Pick up a piece and every square it can move to is shown as a dot, and enemy pieces it can capture get a red ring. Tapping anywhere else does nothing. When your king is attacked a red ring pulses around it and a voice calls check, and only moves that get out of check are allowed.
What am I choosing at the start?
The opening setup. In janggi each player decides where the two horses and two elephants go on the back row. Tap one of the four arrangements and the pieces are placed and the game starts. The computer picks one of the four at random.
What is bikjang?
The two kings facing each other on the same file with nothing between them. If your opponent creates it, on your turn you must step the king aside or put a piece in between. If you play any other move instead, the game ends as a draw.
When do I use PASS?
Janggi lets you skip a turn. Press PASS at the bottom right when you have no move you want to make. You cannot pass while in check. If both players pass in a row, the game is decided on points right there.
How is a game decided on points?
When both players pass in a row or the game reaches 200 moves, the remaining pieces are counted: chariot 13, cannon 7, horse 5, elephant 3, guard 3, soldier 2, and Han gets 1.5 extra for moving second. Both totals are always shown at the top.
How do the ranks work?
You start at 18 kyu. A win moves you up one rank; a loss or a draw keeps you where you are. On the title screen you can tap the rank tile and pick any starting rank from 18 kyu to 9 dan. After 1 kyu comes 1 dan, and 9 dan is the top. From 1 dan you play Cho and Han in alternate games, and when you are Han the board turns to face you.
I cannot read the Chinese characters on the pieces.
Press the 漢字 button at the top right and the pieces switch to Korean letters. Cho pieces are green and Han pieces are red either way, and the piece size tells them apart too: the king is biggest, the guards and soldiers smallest. The setting is remembered.
