Tournament

Anichess Sets S5-7 Playoffs for Friday with 100K $CHECK

Anichess sets S5-7 Playoffs for Friday with a 100,000 $CHECK prize pool.

The image from 'anichess' shows two players, annamaja and Magnus.C, in video call frames on a digital chessboard interface with a partly played chess game and a banner reading 'S5 S6 S7 Playoffs 100K $Check' prominently displayed.
Elara Neuralink
By Elara Neuralink, News Host, Author, Gamer
Published on August 20, 2026 · 4 min read
$CHECK-2.59%

On August 19, 2026, Anichess announced that top players from Seasons 5 through 7 will compete in Playoffs this Friday. The prize pool is 100,000 $CHECK. A public list of who can play is now available [1]. The studio also recently shared that its $CHECK token is now live and tradable on Coinbase. This shows growing ties with major cryptocurrency platforms [2]. The Playoffs are the next big competitive event in the Anichess ecosystem. They offer a token reward for the top players.

In the game Anichess, a chessboard is displayed at the center with various pieces in play, surrounded by player information on the sides and special move options below, set against a stylized digital background.
In the game Anichess, a chessboard is displayed at the center with various pieces in play, surrounded by player information on the sides and special move options below, set against a stylized digital background.

Polished Art Direction

Now let’s take a look at Anichess’s art style. The art direction leans into a polished, top-down digital illustration style that makes the 8×8 board feel like a high-end fantasy-sci-fi interface. The chess pieces themselves are the star. Each rook, bishop, and knight is rendered with metallic sheen and subtle glowing accents. They read clearly as fantasy artifacts rather than generic tokens. Around the board, the spell and ability cards use illustrated icons set against dark panels with neon edge highlights. This reinforces the mystical yet fierce mood without overwhelming the board itself. It’s a clean, confident look that balances readability with a strong sense of atmosphere.

Glowing metallic chess pieces shine on a neon-accented board.

JRPG

In the game 'anichess,' a screen displays a selection of nine brightly colored spells for players to choose from, accompanied by descriptive text about a spell called 'Shot in The Dark' with its mana cost and limitations.
In the game ‘anichess,’ a screen displays a selection of nine brightly colored spells for players to choose from, accompanied by descriptive text about a spell called ‘Shot in The Dark’ with its mana cost and limitations.

Shot In The Dark Backlash

Let’s check out how the Anichess community feels. Despite all the hype around the artistic side of these spells, there’s a serious catch that’s killing the fun [3]. Many commenters say the spell turns chess into a guessing game and breaks the strategy they enjoy [4]. The community is split on whether it needs a massive nerf, a simple change, or just to be removed completely [5].

We also checked video comments and found two that contain spam-like referral links or standard tournament promo codes. The rest seem to be genuine reactions about game balance and gameplay. [6]

The image from anichess shows a digital chess game interface with a central chessboard, character portraits on either side representing players, and special move options displayed below.
The image from anichess shows a digital chess game interface with a central chessboard, character portraits on either side representing players, and special move options displayed below.

Checkmate Token Performance Slump

Price History

Checkmate · USD chart

Checkmate daily USD price over the year up to publication on 2026-08-20.
Checkmate price data
DatePrice (USD)
2025-11-20$0.00834219
2025-12-20$0.02758879
2026-01-20$0.10024601
2026-02-20$0.06923945
2026-03-20$0.0552403
2026-04-20$0.03169414
2026-05-20$0.0433742
2026-06-20$0.0356198
2026-07-20$0.02538817
2026-08-20$0.01319758

Let’s see how CHECK has been doing. Checkmate had been sliding lately and was lagging behind other gaming tokens. This is a rough look for a token that’s supposed to be the lifeblood of the ecosystem.

CHECK vs. Gaming Index. Percent change per trailing window, as of publication on 2026-08-20.
CHECK vs. Gaming Index: data table
WindowCHECKGaming Index
6 months-85.88%-26.19%
3 months-69.46%-7.54%
1 month-51.69%-7.13%
1 day-2.64%+4.16%

Season 5-7 Playoffs Date

Okay, charts aside, let’s get to the real news. Anichess just dropped the date for the Season 5 to 7 Playoffs, and they are coming this Friday. Leading players from those seasons get to duke it out for a prize pool of 100,000 $CHECK tokens. The tweet includes a link where players can check if they made the list. The attached graphic shows a large “S5-7 PLAYOFFS” banner with a floating character and chess pieces. Looks flashy. But take a closer look at that prize pool value in actual dollars and it starts to feel more like a participation trophy than a life-changing bag. A 100,000 token prize sounds huge until you do the math on that 90-day chart.

People in the replies had mixed feelings. One person called the prize “$1200 for all the players” and threw some angry words at the devs. Another commenter just called them scammers. But the official account also reminded players who are on the list to head to Discord and register before Thursday 10:00 UTC. So at least the process is clear for those who qualified.

References

  1. ↑ “Original announcement on X” X
  2. ↑ “X post by @AnichessGame” (English) X Post
  3. ↑ “YouTube comment by @wombat4191” (English) YouTube Comment
  4. ↑ “YouTube comment by @AnimeFan-wd5pq” (English) YouTube Comment
  5. ↑ “YouTube comment by @SuperZebezian” (English) YouTube Comment
  6. ↑ “What shill detection is and how we identify it” (English) What is Shill Detection
  7. ↑ “What wash trading is and how we detect it” (English) What is Wash-Trading

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