2 Versus 2 has been added

(EDIT: IT HAS BEEN REMOVED TEMPORARILY)

Hi guys, we are testing 2 versus 2! It is highly experimental and there is no guarantee everything is perfect, regardless here it is. 

Here are the rules that can be found in-game if you scroll all the way down:

Teams

• Pieces move and capture like always (though there is no en passant at this time)
• Pawns promote on your 8th rank
• Your team-mate is the player across from you.
• You cannot capture your teammate's pieces or check/checkmate them.
• The first team to checkmate an enemy player wins!
• Points are purely for bragging rights!

Also please note you can privately talk with your teammate by using /team before entering your message.

Ratings are also calculated for team games.

My first thoughts:

I really like this 2 vs 2. Maybe I have had luck with my teammates, but so far I have not gotten a teammate that is silent and ignore chat (which imo would ruin the game if it happened too often with a random partner).

I think there should be a separate rating for 2 vs 2. It is like a completely different game.

Also when it comes to rating calculations I hope the average rating for the team is used and not each players separate ratings.

Being able to start a game with a friend would also be nice.

One minor thing, I believe only one player is given 20 points when a player resigns. Points don't really matter, but it doesn't make sense to only give one player 20 points if you want to show the points after the game.

Glad to hear it! To avoid complications we are using the same rating for both four player modes but I agree it should have its own rating soon. Calculations for team rating is based on the average of your team's rating. we might end up removing the points altogether for this mode but that remains to be seen.

Isn't 2 v 2 pretty much a 1 v 1 since the stronger player will make most of the moves?

With the 2v2, shouldn't the other team still have a chance to comeback when one of their teammates is mated. The game automatically ends after someone is mated.

most of my game-chat is off screen and I can't read it...

Sounds good.

One more thing, I think the highest and lowest rated players should be in a team.

where is the link for this version?I can't find it. 

much better to seperate the rating of single and team. In team game its like 1 vs 1 also so the stronger player has a lot of advantage in this game. but due to board size and rotation, tempos, and team moves combination. i think still they can’t dominate the games. but let see as the game progress.

same here

The rating should be separate, it is a different game.

All valid points. But if we compare it to bughouse, the stronger player in the team will still have an initiative but as they are playing on different boards, its harder for the stronger player to take control and teamwork is needed. In this variant  it's turn based (so once the player makes a move he can help the other unlike bughouse where there are seperate timers) and importantly they also share the same board. This means that the stronger player's ideas and motives will have a large emphasis on the games so its possible that in many games it will pretty much be the stronger player making most of the moves like a 1 v 1 maybe.

Oh,nice and very interesting!!!

Yes we need link

Here  https://www.chess.com/4-player-chess

1.button Play

2.button Play Teams

oh thx

I don't think points make sense in a 2v2.

Interesting decision to play until one player is mated rather than until a team is fully eliminated.  I'm not sure which makes for a better game; the two options result in slightly different strategies.  This version has the advantage that defeated players aren't left waiting with nothing to do while hoping that their partner manages to save a win, which is probably good enough.

Brief strategy thoughts: if Player 1 creates a threat to Player 4, Player 2 MUST do something to prevent Player 3 exploiting that.  If Player 1 puts Player 4 in check, Player 3 must not be allowed to threaten Player 4's queen.  Teamwork is important here.

Also, since the game ends when one player is eliminated, communicating with your partner to gang up on one of your opponents is a potential strategy so long as you can avoid getting eaten from behind by the target's partner.

Here is an example with unfair pairings:

It would be more fair if the 2 highest rated players did not play together.

we need seperate scores for teams. that way it is different. because it is a completely different animal. 

I agree. But we definitely need a separate score for team 4 player chess. Who else thinks so too? Because it is different. Way more dynamic than singles 4 player chess. I don't want to lose my rating because some idiot doesn't know how to get his king to safety.