Choose Check vs Mate
Choose Check vs Mate if you want an Action experience. Check vs Mate launched in 2012.
Check vs Mate vs Cat Chess
Check vs Mate and Cat Chess both land in Strategy, Casual 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 Strategy, Casual on Steam. Check vs Mate (2012) is 14 years older than Cat Chess (2026). 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 Cat Chess
Choose Cat Chess if you want a Sports and Indie game with Shared/Split Screen, Camera Comfort, and Custom Volume Controls. On Steam, it's the newer release (2026) and ships with the modern feature baseline. Cat Chess launched in 2026.
Both Check vs Mate and Cat Chess sit in Strategy and Casual on Steam and both list Multi-player, Shared/Split Screen PvP, 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
 Check vs Mate |  Cat Chess | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2012 | 2026 |
| Genres | Action, Strategy, Casual | Sports, Strategy, Indie, Casual |
| Platforms | Windows, macOS, Linux | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Unrated | Unrated |
| Price | 24.99 USD | Price unknown |
| Steam reviews | 66.4% positive (211 reviews) | — |
| Multiplayer | Multi-player | Multi-player, Cross-Platform Multiplayer |
| Developers | Targem Games | Capricia Labs |
Side by side
- Both share Strategy, Casual on Steam.
- Check vs Mate (2012) is 14 years older than Cat Chess (2026).
Check vs Mate vs Cat Chess — FAQ
- Should I play Check vs Mate or Cat Chess first?
- If you want chronology, Check vs Mate (2012) came out before Cat Chess (2026). 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 Check vs Mate and Cat Chess similar?
- They overlap on Strategy, Casual 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.