Chess.com has announced the 4-Player Chess Championship as the next event in its Community Championships series, with qualifiers beginning April 6. The tournament features a $5,000 prize fund and uses the variant's free-for-all mode on an extended board for four players. Eight top qualifiers will advance to semifinals and finals on April 10.
In 4-Player Chess, four armies share a larger board, and players score points by capturing opponents' pieces, including kings, under a 3-1-1-0 system. Matches are played at a 4+0 time control in free-for-all format, emphasizing opportunistic tactics amid threats from multiple directions. Chess.com highlighted a video featuring GM Hikaru Nakamura, IM Levy Rozman, IM Eric Rosen, and content creator Agadmator demonstrating the chaos of the variant. Qualifying runs from April 6 to 9, with two two-hour arenas daily: early sessions at 11 a.m. ET (1:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday) and late ones at 5 p.m. ET. Participants must join a video call and use two cameras from different angles to ensure fair play, or risk disqualification. On April 10, the eight qualifier winners form two semifinal groups of four for 90-minute countdown matches, with the top two from each advancing to the final. There, the first player to reach 7 points and win a game claims the title. Last year, Argentinian Luis Ignacio won the 2025 edition, rallying from a loss to defeat CM Hamlet Antonyan, Aswin Devendran, and Jose Bolea. Chess.com invites players to join via the event schedule.