# Mate in 2 Chess Puzzles — Chess Problems: Two Moves

> Chess puzzles requiring checkmate in two moves for skill improvement. (iPhone/iPad app by Gano Technologies LLC.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mate-in-2-chess-puzzles/id368403957 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Gano Technologies LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/333237652)
- Category: Games, Entertainment, Board, Puzzle
- Price: $0.99
- Rating: 4.80/5 from 70 App Store ratings · 134 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 12.0 · 7 MB
- Languages: American English
- Released: 2010-04-22
- Data updated: 2026-09-02
- Monetization: free
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mate-in-2-chess-puzzles/id368403957/reviews.md

## What is Mate in 2 Chess Puzzles?

The Ultimate mate in 2 moves chess puzzle app! 

Sharpen your chess skills with Mate in 2 Puzzles!  Beginners and experienced players will enjoy solving these chess problems!

This app has over 1200 interactive chess problems ranging from easy to harder puzzles that will challenge you and help improve your chess skills.  The object is to finish each game by forcing a checkmate in 2 moves.  The puzzles consist of a large number of classical puzzles collected from a variety of sources.   These puzzles are fun to play and can be enjoyed at your leisure on your iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.

Mate in 2 chess problems are especially useful for learning to play chess or anyone wanting to improve their skills.

New features added in Version 2.0 include:
------------------------------
- Completely revamped chess engine that is much stronger

- Timing clock is displayed while you are working on each puzzle. How long you take to solve a puzzle is stored.

- New options: more chess piece sets (total of 7) and more colors schemes (total of 7) including wood and marble. (Improved the options menu as well)

- Social Gaming:  Leaderboards to compare the number of puzzles you have solved with your friends and other players.  Facebook integration - including the ability to post your progress and ask your friends for help on a puzzle.

- Universal app - works on iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad - high resolution graphics all around (where supported).

For even more chess puzzle challenges check out these apps:
- Mate in 1 Puzzles 
- Mate in 3 Puzzles  
- Mate in 4+ Puzzles

## Key features

- Over 1200 interactive chess problems
- Checkmate in 2 moves objective
- Variety of classical puzzles
- Timing clock for puzzle solving
- Multiple chess piece sets and color schemes
- Leaderboards and social sharing

## What do users think of Mate in 2 Chess Puzzles?

Overall sentiment: positive

**Pros**

- 🧠 Excellent puzzle collection with 1000+ problems
- 💰 Great value for money at low price point
- 🎯 Wide range of difficulty levels for various skill levels
- 🎨 Clean, well-designed user interface
- ⏱️ Built-in timer for tracking solve times
- 💡 Helpful hint system with adjustable assistance levels
- 🔄 Multiple attempts allowed per puzzle
- 📚 Historical puzzle information and provenance
- ⚡ Smooth, fast performance without bugs
- 🏆 Addictive and engaging gameplay experience
- 🎮 Works seamlessly across iPad and iPhone

**Cons**

- 🔥 App causes phone to heat up during extended use
- ❌ Inconsistent puzzle accuracy and validity
- ⚠️ Sudden difficulty jump between Mate in 1 and Mate in 2
- 🤔 Some puzzles rely on opponent making unforced errors
- 🚫 Cannot explore alternative black responses
- 📱 Limited orientation support (landscape/portrait)
- ❄️ Occasional freezing and crashes
- 🎯 Many puzzles too difficult for intermediate players
- 🔍 Difficult to understand puzzle solution logic

**Commonly reported bugs**

- App freezes or goes haywire requiring restart
- Occasional crashes during gameplay
- App skips puzzles when navigating
- Game Center prompts become annoying
- Performance issues on older devices

**Most requested features**

- Ability to freely move pieces and explore variations
- Sandbox mode to test alternative moves
- Play as black against white
- Hint that only shows which piece to move, not destination
- Landscape and portrait orientation support
- Puzzle tracking by number of moves
- Mark puzzles solved with hints vs. solutions
- More gradual difficulty progression
- Page scroll feature for navigation
- Disable Game Center prompts
- Show why opponent made specific moves

## Recent user reviews (10 of 134)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mate-in-2-chess-puzzles/id368403957/reviews.md

### 4/5 — A very good training tool

*2026-06-06, version 4.4*

I think this is a great interactive app that has 1000+ mate in 2’s. My only criticism is that the app doesn’t force you to find all variations, but apart from that I love the problems.

### 5/5 — Well done

*2025-01-18*

One request would be to have a hint where you just indicate which piece to move, but not where it goes.

### 1/5 — Lost confidence in the puzzles

*2024-12-11*

If I’m going to spend hours trying to figure out a “mate in 2” puzzle, then it better really be that… puzzle #17..illustrated London news is bogus…the “solution’ is in NO way a forced mate on the other side..it relies on black making an UNFORCED dumb move to “solve” it… I even used a chess engine to double check that the puzzle is bogus…

### 5/5 — Best problem app

*2024-10-29, version 4.4*

Great app. Best out there!
Thanks

### 5/5 — Fabulous puzzles

*2022-11-05, version 4.3*

I've always loved chess puzzles in the old day when you would get one a week in a newspaper. There are so many of them in this app they have kept me busy for years. Great value for money.

### 5/5 — You will never get bored

*2022-02-23, version 4.3*

Perfect way to sharpen your brain.
Tons of smart intriguing puzzles 
Simple but effective playing format.
One of my favorites

### 5/5 — The first move is never check :)

*2019-08-12*

A great chess app that helps teach calculation, especially in complicated positions.

### 5/5 — Superb!

*2019-08-08, version 4.2*

Wonderful value and years of fun.

### 4/5 — Excellente application !

*2018-05-29, version 4.0*

Des mats à foison !

### 5/5 — Great collection of puzzles

*2018-02-03*

Great puzzles, really enjoying this app. But be warned, they are tough.

## Frequently asked questions about Mate in 2 Chess Puzzles

### What is this app about?

This app provides a collection of over 1200 interactive chess puzzles where the objective is to achieve checkmate in exactly two moves. It's designed to help players of all levels sharpen their chess skills and tactical understanding.

### What are the key features of this app?

Key features include a vast library of puzzles, a timing clock to track solving speed, customizable piece sets and color schemes, and social features like leaderboards and Facebook integration for sharing progress and seeking help.

### Is this app free to use?

Yes, the application is available for free. There are no in-app purchases or advertisements mentioned in the provided description.

### What devices is this app compatible with?

This is a universal app, meaning it is designed to work seamlessly on iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad devices, offering high-resolution graphics where supported.

### How can this app help improve my chess game?

By regularly solving the mate in 2 puzzles, you will train your tactical vision, pattern recognition, and calculation abilities. This focused practice is especially beneficial for learning the game or for experienced players looking to refine their attacking strategies.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 4.4 — 2024-01-02

- Latest iOS and iPadOS Compatibility updates
- Minor bug fixes

### 4.3 — 2020-11-25

- Dark Mode support
- Corrections to puzzles #191 and #201
- Support for all new iPhone and iPad screen resolutions (+ MacOS Apple Silicon ready)
- iOS 14 compatibility improvements
- Bug fixes
- iOS 12+ required for this update

### 4.2 — 2019-07-11

- Added a new Color Scheme option:  Light Green and Yellow!
- Improvements to iOS 12 compatibility

### 4.1 — 2019-04-29

- iOS 12 Compatibility updates
- A couple of small bug fixes

### 4.0 — 2017-11-07

- Support for the iPhone X including Super Retina HD graphics
- Significantly improved compatibility with iOS 11
- Speed improvements
- many bug fixes
- new icon

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## More apps by Gano Technologies LLC

- [Phyto](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/phyto/id333237649)
- [Mate in 1 Chess Puzzles](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mate-in-1-chess-puzzles/id368403230)
- [Mate in 3 Chess Puzzles](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mate-in-3-chess-puzzles/id368404199)
- [Mate in 4+ Chess Puzzles](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/mate-in-4-plus-chess-puzzles/id368405007)
- [Chess Problems Lite](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/chess-problems-lite/id369822228)

All apps by Gano Technologies LLC: https://appshunter.io/developer/333237652

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-09-02.*