myChess

A real-time multiplayer chess application built with Node.js, Socket.IO, and Redis.

Features

• Multiplayer — Create or join rooms and play against another person in real time
• vs AI — Play against a built-in chess engine (js-chess-engine)
• Game Lobby — Browse active games and join open rooms
• In-game Chat — Chat with your opponent during a game
• Persistent State — Game state is stored in Redis, surviving server restarts

Tech Stack

• Backend: Node.js, Express, Socket.IO
• Templating: EJS + ejs-mate
• State/Sessions: Redis (ioredis), express-session
• Chess Logic: chess.js, js-chess-engine

Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Node.js (v18+)
• A running Redis server (default: localhost:6379)

Installation

git clone <repo-url>
cd myChess
npm install

Environment Variables

Create a .env file in the project root:

SESSION_SECRET=your_secret_here

Run

npm start

The server starts on http://localhost:8000.

Project Structure

├── app.js                  # Express app setup
├── server.js               # HTTP server & Socket.IO setup
├── controllers/
│   └── gameController.js   # Socket event handlers (moves, chat, AI)
├── routes/
│   └── index.js            # HTTP routes (lobby, game, create)
├── utilities/
│   ├── chessAI.js          # AI move logic wrapper
│   └── redisClient.js      # Redis connection
├── views/                  # EJS templates
└── public/                 # Client-side JS & CSS