A new update will allow Chess Ultra players on Steam to play seamlessly with friends on Epic Games for the first time.

The update will also include performance and optimisation improvements, as well as fixes for some recently reported issues.

The update will take place on Thursday 23/03/23 between 3 PM - 8 PM GMT.

Please note: As a result of the update, there may be some downtime for Chess Ultra’s online multiplayer during this time.

We hope you enjoy, and thanks as always for your support!

The Ripstone Team

We're carrying out scheduled maintenance today (16/03/2023) between 10AM and 3PM GMT. There may be some downtime during this period. Sorry for any disruption this may cause.

Hi everyone,

A brand new update is now available for Chess Ultra. We’ve been listening to your feedback and making some changes that we hope will cover what a lot of you have been asking for. Here’s what you’ll find in the update:

• We’ve slowed down the camera’s rotation speed and it’s now harder to accidentally unlock, making it easier to find and keep it in that sweet spot.
  
• Twitch integration is back! Challenge chat to a one vs everyone game and get your community involved in your chess streams.
  
• We’ve reduced the time taken to time out in a community tournament. We’re hoping that this will help to speed them up and ensure that you aren’t waiting too long for your next game. We’d love to hear your feedback on this and if you feel that it’s now where it needs to be so that we can adjust it further if it’s needed.
  
• With the addition of some more backend tools, there will be brand new community tournaments on the way, so keep your eyes peeled.
  
• Blitz mode animations are now much faster.
  
• We’ve removed the online requirement to play on PC.

Thanks as always for your support,

Team Ripstone

To celebrate the Steam Digital Tabletop Fest, we're bringing you a 1 hour masterclass from renowned chess Grandmaster Simon Williams.

Simon will be running through a couple of challenges in Chess Ultra whilst teaching you how to improve your chess skills. The session will be streamed live on Thursday 22nd October at 5pm UK time on the official Steam Tabletop Fest page and we can't wait for you to join us!

Ever wanted to play chess at the beach without going outside? Then this is the DLC pack for you...

We're super excited to share the brand new Santa Monica Pack for Chess Ultra, which launched this week and is playable both with and without VR. The pack contains an environment and a chess set, bringing the sandy beaches of Santa Monica to Chess Ultra.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/638011/Chess_Ultra_Santa_Monica_Game_Pack/

The beach environment was modelled on the real life Santa Monica chess park, whilst the chess set was inspired by the skate scene of California. We spent a long time contemplating how the pieces would look in-game and landed on a hand-made style, with each chess piece fashioned from recycled skateboard parts. You can see an early concept that we created during the design process below.

We hope you like the contemporary style of the new set and enjoy playing in the California sunshine! The pack is available to purchase now for £4.79.

Thanks as always for your support,

Ripstone

Hey everyone,

Two announcements to share with you today; new DLC and details of the next official Ripstone Tournament. (It's starting next week!)

We're delighted to announce our partnership with the critically acclaimed team at Purling London to bring several of their bespoke, hand-painted chess sets to the virtual world of Chess Ultra. The four exclusive sets are available to download in-game now.

Celebrated international contemporary artists have used the traditional Staunton chess set as an unconventional “canvas” upon which they have created one-of-a-kind, hand-painted works. Purling names this line of their collection “Art Chess” as they create a diverse line artistic gaming sets and four of these designs will be available in Chess Ultra.

We hope you enjoy playing with the sets as much as we enjoyed creating them!

To celebrate the launch of the Purling London collection, we are hosting a new official Ripstone chess Tournament! The tournament will start in-game on Monday 9th April at 11am BST, so make sure to get in there early to reserve your slot.

Thanks as always for your support.

Ripstone

http://store.steampowered.com/app/813380/Chess_Ultra_X_Purling_London_Bold_Chess/

http://store.steampowered.com/app/816980/Chess_Ultra_X_Purling_London_Mr_Jiver_Art_Chess/

http://store.steampowered.com/app/816981/Chess_Ultra_X_Purling_London_Nette_Robinson_Art_Chess/

http://store.steampowered.com/app/816982/Chess_Ultra_X_Purling_London_Olivia_Pilling_Art_Chess/

Hi everyone,

We've got an announcement to share that will hopefully brighten your Friday... a brand new DLC Pack is available now for Chess Ultra!

The Academy Pack contains two new pieces of DLC for Chess Ultra and is a tribute to the long and noble chess playing tradition in Russia that has produced some of the greatest players of all time.

http://store.steampowered.com/app/638980/Chess_Ultra_Academy_game_pack/

The Akademiya environment invites you to follow in the footsteps of the Russian Grandmasters that played in the halls of the academy, and is fully playable in VR. We invite you to immerse yourself in the tournament setting and feel the pressure with every move.

The Academy Pack also contains the simple yet beautiful Kholmogory chess set, which is available in two materials; traditional wood and sleek plastic. The design was modelled on a rare chess set created in the Russian town of Kholmogory, and pays homage to the rich chess history held by the rural village.

The pack is available to download now for £4.79 / $5.99. We're really excited to be sharing this new content with you and hope you enjoy playing using the new environment and chess set!

Thanks for your ongoing support,

Ripstone

The Ripstone holiday elves have been working extra hard this year and have prepared a special Christmas gift for you all to enjoy…

As a special festive treat for fans of Chess Ultra, we launched the Easter Island chess set today, for free! The Easter Island chess set is inspired by the mysterious Moai of Easter Island, Polynesia. These head-like, monolithic chess pieces have been beautifully crafted, bringing the Moai not only to life – but to the chess board. The set comes with two material variants; rock and metal, and can be played in any environment within Chess Ultra.

You can download the free DLC using the link below, and we really hope you enjoy taking to the board with a brand new set.

http://store.steampowered.com/app/639000/Chess_Ultra_Easter_Island_chess_set/

Thank you as always for your support and we hope you enjoy the holiday season!

Ripstone

A brand new DLC chess set launched today!

The Imperial pack for Chess Ultra contains two exquisite chessmen designs, and brings a touch of luxury to the chessboard.

The Ruby and Emerald set radiates elegance with polished gold adorned with the finest gemstones, whilst the Platinum and Onyx set provides a striking contrast with stylish gunmetal pieces and elegant stones to match. Both chess set designs have been hand-crafted and embellished with jewels fit for a King or Queen.

http://store.steampowered.com/app/639001/Chess_Ultra_Imperial_chess_set/

We’re really excited to be bringing another new chess set to Chess Ultra, especially as this design is very different to any of the styles we have worked on previously! We hope the Imperial pack brings you luck on the chessboard and we will have more details to share about upcoming releases for Chess Ultra soon, so watch this space.

Thanks as always for your support,

Team Ripstone