Deep Green vs Check’d
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Deep Green
This app provides a classical chess experience with a clean, native interface and customizable piece designs. It supports open game formats, offers a unique chess engine with adjustable strength, and features a private, ad-free environment.
- Clean, native user interface
- Customizable chess piece designs
- Open game format (PGN/FEN)
- Adjustable strength chess engine
- Private and ad-free experience
- System-level integration
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A no-nonsense classical chess app. - CLEAN UI: Deep Green offers a distraction-free experience in a clean, native user interface, with Liquid Glass on iOS 26 and later. - CUSTOM PIECE DESIGN: Beautiful chess set designed specifically for Deep Green and rendered at high resolution in both outline and 3D throughout the app. - MADE FOR IPAD: Dedicated menu bar, multiple windows, and refined trackpad, mouse, and Apple Pencil support. Squares highlight as you hover over the board. - MADE FOR IPHONE DUO: Adapts to both displays and every pose. The board centers on the fold like a folding chess board, and the game controls follow the system into the vertical bar. - TIGHT SYSTEM INTEGRATION: System-level sharing, drag and drop, AirDrop, undo/redo, contextual menus, Quick Look previews of chess files, Dark Mode, high contrast support and more. - OPEN GAME FORMAT: Games can be shared, saved, copied, pasted, imported, exported in the ubiquitous, open source PGN and FEN formats. Deep Green can open chess files straight from the Files app. - UNIQUE CHESS ENGINE: Enjoyable opponent with adjustable strength, praised for its humane gameplay, developed for Deep Green on the Apple Newton more than 25 years ago. - TWEAKABLE APPEARANCE: Engage the knights in the game by having them turn towards the center of the board, apply a humane, slightly random placement of the pieces. - IN YOUR LANGUAGE: Available in English, German, and Danish. - MODERN ARCHITECTURE: Written in Swift as a fully native app – modern, maintainable, and prepared for the future. - PRIVATE, AD-FREE: No ads, no tracking, no analytics, no nonsense. If you like Deep Green, please rate it favorably on the App Store.
Check’d
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Your move, in every message. Check'd brings real chess to iMessage. Start a match inside any conversation, send moves as interactive messages, and keep playing at your own pace. No accounts, no servers, no spam—just pure chess that lives in your chat history. WHAT'S NEW & FUN • Daily Puzzles — 4,462 unique puzzles, daily rotation, UTC‑based streaks, and fastest‑time leaderboards. • Tactical Alerts — Smart on‑board warnings for hanging pieces, forks, pins, and mate threats (consistent in iMessage + companion app). • Big UI refresh — Modern redesigns for Play vs Computer, iMessage, Tutorials, Opening Guide, and FEN export/import. • Seasonal magic — Halloween, Valentine, Easter, and Winter overlays with animated effects. • Name onboarding — A fun, animated “Chess Oracle” name reveal for new and existing players. • Promotion knows the script — Auto‑promotion follows the puzzle’s expected move (Q/R/B/N) when you’re on the correct line. WHY YOU'LL LOVE CHECK'D • Seamless iMessage play — Moves send as messages and update instantly for both players. • Play vs Computer — Practice anytime with smart difficulty and helpful hints. • Interactive tutorials — Learn castling, en passant, and checkmates with mini‑games. • Full chess rules — Castling, en passant, promotions, 50‑move rule, and threefold repetition. • Replay & history — Browse finished games, replay moves, and jump to key moments. • Shareable recap — Create a beautiful recap card with opening, result, rating change, and mini‑board. • Privacy‑first by design — All game state stays on‑device and in the message thread. • Seasonal flair — Snow, hearts, pumpkins, and Easter effects (toggleable). • Fully localized — Available in 12 languages. GET STARTED 1. Install Check'd from the iMessage App Store. 2. Open any conversation and tap the Check'd icon. 3. Make your first move and send. That’s it. PLAY YOUR WAY Enjoy quick casual games or long, thoughtful matches. Check'd is built for real‑life schedules—play when you can, keep the thread alive, and finish the game in days if you want. COMPANION APP Check'd also includes a companion app with extra info, guides, stats, analysis tools, and settings outside iMessage. ACCESSIBILITY Check'd is designed to be usable by everyone: • Full VoiceOver support — Every menu button, chess square, and piece is labeled for screen readers. • Dynamic Type — Text scales with your system font size preferences. • Haptic feedback — Feel confirmation on moves and alerts for invalid actions. • High contrast pieces — Clear distinction between white and black pieces on all board themes. PRO UPGRADE Unlock advanced insights and power features with Check'd Pro: • Takeback requests with smooth slide‑back animation. • Full analytics dashboard: win/loss/draw breakdown, activity heatmap (games & moves), Elo rating + peak + trend, win streaks, shortest/longest game, and piece‑balance records. • Performance insights: white/black performance split and favorite opponents. • Opening insights: full openings list and win‑rate breakdowns. • Critical moments + Journey replay: best move, blunder, and missed‑chance markers with quick playback. • Move assistance toggles: move hints, capture targets, move dots, last‑move highlight, and tactical alerts. • Board control: rotate board to your side. • Extra customization: additional board and piece themes. • FEN export and PGN tools for analysis in other chess apps. • Best Move requests — Ask the engine for help (3 per game) with visual arrows. • Live engine verdicts — See move strength (Best, Good, Blunder) and checkmate status. • Opening Trainer — Train openings right from the analysis list. Made with care in The Netherlands.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Deep Green at none against Check’d's 1. Deep Green also leads on iOS requirement (16.4 vs 18.0). Check’d's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 4 months). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Check’d sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Deep Green asks for nothing beyond the download.
Deep Green ships an update every 4 months, Check’d every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 2, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Deep Green | Check’d |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.9 (76 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 66.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 76 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Paid | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.4 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 24 MB | 59 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Cocoa Stuff | Marco Janssen |
Bugs and requests
Deep Green
Reported bugs
4 issues- App crashes when promoting pawns
- Board orientation issues when rotating device
- Unresponsive UI elements
- Compatibility problems with newer iOS versions
Requested features
5 requests- Game saving and loading functionality
- Online/multiplayer mode
- Customizable board/piece themes
- Difficulty settings for beginners
- Indicators for check, checkmate, and draw
Check’d
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Deep Green
No in-app purchases
Check’d
- Check'd Pro$4.99









