Choose The Chess Variants Club
Choose The Chess Variants Club if you want an Indie game with Shared/Split Screen and Shared/Split Screen PvP. The Chess Variants Club launched in 2020.
The Chess Variants Club vs FourPlay Chess
The Chess Variants Club and FourPlay Chess both land in Sports, Strategy, Simulation on Steam, which is why they keep getting compared. The comparison below is built from each game's Steam metadata — release year, genres, categories, Steam Deck status, price, and review score — refreshed daily by imho.run's scraper. Headline differences: Both share Sports, Strategy, Simulation on Steam. The Chess Variants Club (2020) is 2 years older than FourPlay Chess (2022). FourPlay Chess is currently ~80% cheaper on Steam than The Chess Variants Club (0.99 USD vs. 4.99 USD). No login or purchase needed — scroll for the full table, the verdict FAQ, and links to ranked similar games for both titles.
Which should you pick?
Choose FourPlay Chess
Choose FourPlay Chess if you want the Online PvP, Online Co-op, and Co-op side of the pairing. On Steam, it's currently about 80% cheaper on the Steam Store. FourPlay Chess launched in 2022.
Both The Chess Variants Club and FourPlay Chess sit in Sports, Strategy, and Simulation on Steam and both list Multi-player and PvP, so either pick lands in the same broad neighborhood. Use the side-by-side table for the feature view, or follow the "Games like" links below to see ranked alternatives for either title.
Side-by-side comparison
 The Chess Variants Club |  FourPlay Chess | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2020 | 2022 |
| Genres | Sports, Strategy, Indie, Simulation, Casual | Sports, Strategy, Simulation, Casual |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Unrated | Unrated |
| Price | 4.99 USD | 0.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 95.7% positive (23 reviews) | 2 reviews |
| Multiplayer | Multi-player | Multi-player, Online Co-op, Co-op |
| Developers | Minimol Games | Smunty Studios |
Side by side
- Both share Sports, Strategy, Simulation on Steam.
- The Chess Variants Club (2020) is 2 years older than FourPlay Chess (2022).
- FourPlay Chess is currently ~80% cheaper on Steam than The Chess Variants Club (0.99 USD vs. 4.99 USD).
- FourPlay Chess has co-op; The Chess Variants Club does not.
The Chess Variants Club vs FourPlay Chess — FAQ
- Should I play The Chess Variants Club or FourPlay Chess first?
- If you want chronology, The Chess Variants Club (2020) came out before FourPlay Chess (2022). If neither is a sequel to the other, order doesn't really matter — start with whichever fits your current mood, since both share enough on Steam to make either a reasonable opener.
- Are The Chess Variants Club and FourPlay Chess similar?
- They overlap on Sports, Strategy, Simulation on Steam, so the catalogue groups them together — but "similar" depends on the specific mechanics. Use the genre + category rows above to decide whether the overlap matches what drew you to the one you've already played.