The Brief
LATEST ASSESSMENT
RECON · 1d ago▲ Building· 7 shipped events in 30d· medium confidence· as of Jul 11
Anichess (213K followers) is launching Pre-Season 9: The Circuit tonight with free-to-enter tournaments daily through Sunday, including 300 $CHECK pools on Thursday and Sunday. Magnus Carlsen (@MagnusCarlsen) was in Hong Kong for a FIDE World Team Championships event and a community player (@EllaijioB) beat him to win the Magnus Cup and 300,000 $CHECK. OpenSea Mobile early access is now live for…
Pre-Season 9: The Circuit launchMagnus Carlsen collaboration and Hong Kong eventOpenSea Mobile early access integration
EvidenceRead from 20 posts1 tracked handleWindow Jun 18, 2026 – Jul 9, 2026
About
Anichess is a Web3 chess game from Animoca Brands and Chess.com, endorsed by five-time world champion Magnus Carlsen, that layers spell-casting mechanics onto classic chess.
Gameplay
Anichess keeps standard chess rules but adds a magic-formula system — spells that introduce unpredictability and help level skill gaps. Competitive series like Road to Magnus and the Magnus Cup let players earn a seat to face Magnus Carlsen directly.
Economy & Assets
In-game progress is tracked with M8 (Mate) points. The broader Checkmate Ecosystem is powered by the CHECK strategy token, which is rolling into Anichess in stages. Anichess is Base-native — its token, gas and contracts live on Base — while ownership of in-game items is recorded on-chain.
Team & Backing
Anichess is developed by Animoca Brands in partnership with Chess.com, with an endorsement from Magnus Carlsen. It surfaces in the Abstract ecosystem through Abstract Global Wallet support and an Abstract Portal listing rather than being Abstract-native.
Where it sits
Last verified Jun 11, 2026
Media · 1
Network
Network · 1 connection
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The Timeline
The record
Every dated thing we know · Jan 2024 → Jul 2026July 202615 entries
Jul 10, 2026★ MilestoneBreaking
Jul 9, 2026Activity
Announced Pre-Season 9 opening with a free entry tournament.
bullish · season launch / tournament / free entry
@anichessgame
Jul 8, 2026Recap mention
Mentioned in the 2026-07-08 ecosystem recap.
Jul 8, 2026Assessment
Assessment — Bullish
Anichess (213K followers) just hosted Magnus Carlsen in Hong Kong for the FIDE World Team Championships, where he lost to a community player in their spell-casting chess variant. They're launching tournaments next week and have dropped $CHECK rewards totaling over 500K tokens. Key collaborations with @MagnusCarlsen, @opensea, and @animocabrands are driving visibility.
@anichessgame
Jul 7, 2026Activity
Anichess celebrated Magnus Carlsen making a certified 800-rated move and joining a club.
bullish · chess / Magnus Carlsen / milestone
@anichessgame
Jul 6, 2026Activity
Shared a playful comparison between chess and football players.
neutral · chess / football / sports
@anichessgame
Jul 6, 2026Assessment
Assessment — Bullish
Anichess (214K followers) is deep in a Magnus Carlsen activation spree, culminating in a Hong Kong event where Carlsen competed in spell-casting chess and a community player won the Magnus Cup for 300K $CHECK. Tournaments drop 'next week' (~Dec 2-8), and the project just partnered with OpenSea Mobile for early access. The Magnus Cup win by @EllaijioB over GMs is the strongest community marketing signal in weeks.
@anichessgame
Jul 5, 2026Assessment
Assessment — Bullish
Anichess (213K followers) is launching tournaments next week, with recent events featuring Magnus Carlsen in Hong Kong where a community player won the Magnus Cup. The project distributed 501K $CHECK in rewards and partnered with OpenSea for mobile early access.
@anichessgame
Jul 3, 2026Activity
Anichess announced upcoming tournaments.
bullish · tournaments
@anichessgame
Jul 3, 2026Assessment
Assessment — Bullish
Anichess (214K followers) is live on OpenSea Mobile early access for holders of Anichess Ethernals, Void Vanguards, and Checkmate Pass as of 2 days ago. The project also hosted Magnus Carlsen in Hong Kong on June 17-18 for the Magnus Cup, where a community player won; $CHECK rewards were distributed 7 days ago. Key collaborations with @opensea, @MagnusCarlsen, and @animocabrands are driving current engagement.
@anichessgame
Jul 2, 2026Recap mention
Mentioned in the 2026-07-02 ecosystem recap.
Jul 2, 2026Activity
Shared a link with followers.
neutral · update
@anichessgame
Jul 1, 2026★ MilestoneBreaking
Jul 1, 2026Activity
Reminded followers about a base address for the game.
neutral · reminder / base address
@anichessgame
Jul 1, 2026Assessment
Assessment — Bullish
Anichess is wrapping up a major activation with Magnus Carlsen in Hong Kong, including a community win over the world champion in their spell-based chess variant. Recent activity highlights a community champion beating Magnus for the Magnus Cup (June 11), a $500K+ $CHECK reward distribution (June 10), and the "Road To Magnus" knockout tournament that culminated in four players facing Carlsen live on June 16. Collaborations include @MagnusCarlsen, @ysiu, @animocabrands, @FIDE_chess, and @opensea.
@anichessgame
June 202633 entries
Jun 30, 2026Activity
Anichess joined the first wave of games on OpenSea Mobile, offering holders early access.
bullish · OpenSea Mobile / launch / early access
@anichessgame
Jun 30, 2026Assessment
Assessment — Bullish
Anichess (214K followers) just hosted Magnus Carlsen in Hong Kong for a full-day event including a private lunch with 150 AI/finance/tech leaders and a live match where community player @EllaijioB beat Magnus to win the Magnus Cup and 300K $CHECK. The 'Road to Magnus' knockout concluded with four challengers earning seats against Carlsen on June 16, and 501K $CHECK in combined rewards were distributed to players over the past two weeks.
@anichessgame
Jun 29, 2026Activity
Expressed emotional appreciation for chess.
bullish · chess
@anichessgame
Jun 28, 2026Assessment
Assessment — Bullish
Anichess (214K followers) wrapped a major Hong Kong event with Magnus Carlsen on June 17-18, including a FIDE World Team Championships appearance and a live match where a community player (@EllaijioB) beat Magnus to win 300,000 $CHECK. Yesterday's cryptic tweet "e6=N???" may hint at a new spell or game mechanic. Rewards distribution is active, with 501K $CHECK paid out across multiple categories in the last 2 days.
@anichessgame
Jun 27, 2026Recap mention
Mentioned in the 2026-06-27 ecosystem recap.
Jun 27, 2026Assessment
Assessment — Bullish
Anichess (214K followers) just completed a major Hong Kong event with Magnus Carlsen, where a community player beat him in their spell-based chess variant. Over 500K $CHECK in rewards landed yesterday, and the "Road To Magnus" tournament esports cycle just finished. The account is driving engagement around their gamified chess product with @MagnusCarlsen and @animocabrands.
@anichessgame
Jun 26, 2026Recap mention
Mentioned in the 2026-06-26 ecosystem recap.
Jun 26, 2026Activity
Teased a cryptic chess puzzle with the notation e6=N.
neutral · chess / puzzle / teaser
@anichessgame
Jun 25, 2026Activity
Anichess announced $CHECK rewards for CHECKmate Reign and rating milestones.
bullish · rewards / CHECKmate Reign / rating milestones
@anichessgame
Jun 25, 2026Assessment
Assessment — Bullish
Anichess (214K followers) is running a 'Road to Magnus' event culminating on June 16, where community players can qualify to face world #1 @MagnusCarlsen in their spell-based chess variant. The top 4 from an open arena knockout will play him live in Hong Kong, with a community champion already beating Magnus in the Magnus Cup. Key collaborations include @AnimocaBrands co-founder @ysiu and @OpenSea for streaming the finals.
@anichessgame
Jun 24, 2026Recap mention
Mentioned in the 2026-06-24 ecosystem recap.
Jun 23, 2026Assessment
Assessment — Bullish
Anichess hosted Magnus Carlsen in Hong Kong for the Magnus Cup at the FIDE World Team Championships, where community player Ellaijio won the cup and $300,000 CHECK, beating Carlsen and Bortnyk. The event highlighted Anichess's spell-based chess format that lets non-GMs compete with legends. Post-event activity focuses on amplifying this win and community engagement.
@anichessgame
Jun 21, 2026Graph · enriched
Profile enriched
Anichess's dossier was expanded with new researched detail.
Jun 20, 2026Recap mention
Mentioned in the 2026-06-20 ecosystem recap.
Jun 18, 2026★ MilestoneBreaking
Jun 17, 2026Recap mention
Mentioned in the 2026-06-17 ecosystem recap.
Jun 16, 2026Recap mention
Mentioned in the 2026-06-16 ecosystem recap.
Jun 15, 2026★ MilestoneBreaking
Jun 15, 2026Recap mention
Mentioned in the 2026-06-15 ecosystem recap.
Jun 13, 2026Recap mention
Mentioned in the 2026-06-13 ecosystem recap.
Jun 12, 2026Recap mention
Mentioned in the 2026-06-12 ecosystem recap.
Jun 11, 2026★ MilestoneGraph · edge
Anichess, the Abstract chess game, partners with Chess.com.
high confidence
Jun 11, 2026Recap mention
Mentioned in the 2026-06-11 ecosystem recap.
Jun 6, 2026★ MilestoneGraph genesis
Added to the graph
Anichess entered the Descout entity graph — the start of its permanent record.
January 20242 entries
Jan 16, 2024★ MilestoneBreaking
$CHECK · deep market
Market Overview
Market Sentiment
