From "The Queen's Gambit" to digital chess: how this classic game came back into the spotlight

Released in 2020, the miniseries “The Queen's Gambit” is by far one of the most important audiovisual works about chess, but it is far from the only representation of this game in the media.

Although the title of this text refers to how “chess returned to the spotlight,” the reality is that it never exactly lost its popularity. Even before the internet and the advent of digital chess, the game was used in various fields—beyond entertainment and even in scientific studies.

As we’ll discuss more deeply in one of the following topics, chess played a major role in the development of contemporary artificial intelligence, so it’s no surprise that it has maintained its popularity even many centuries after its invention.

In this text, we will explore three of the multiple reasons for chess’s success in online spaces: its presence on platforms like Papergames.io, its representation in works like “The Queen's Gambit,” and its continuous use in the advancement of modern artificial intelligence.

One reason chess has returned to the spotlight is the rise of online platforms, which offer the game for free through web browsers or smartphone apps. This convenience is particularly valuable for those who don’t have access to physical chess sets.

Alongside this, there’s the fact that it’s possible to play chess online with friends through multiplayer modes. Sites like Papergames.io allow players to compete both with friends they already know (via individual invitations) and with unfamiliar opponents.

One possible answer to the main question of this text—how digital chess returned to the spotlight—can already be found in its title: “The Queen's Gambit”! The series showed that chess games can be thrilling and are not exclusively targeted at a male audience.

The series' impact was so significant that, right after its release, global interest in chess skyrocketed. According to Google Trends data, searches for “chess” hit their highest peak of the decade, as shown in the table below:

Growth of "Chess" searches on Google after “The Queen's Gambit” (2020–2021)

This phenomenon was called the “Queen's Gambit Effect” and was reflected not only in search trends but also in increased sales of chessboards, books, and the creation of new profiles on online chess platforms.

Besides the miniseries, films like “Queen of Katwe” (2016), “Pawn Sacrifice” (2014), and “Brooklyn Castle” also helped bring chess closer to wider audiences, especially by associating the activity with a sense of community and greater life purpose.

Finally, we can’t overlook the historical relationship between digital chess and artificial intelligence, which has been trained with the game since the early stages of its development. Given that AI has never been more prominent, it’s only natural that it would bring chess along with it.

Considering the prevalence of electronic and online games and the success of stories like “The Queen's Gambit,” it’s easy to predict that digital chess will not only maintain its popularity but may even become more widely practiced. For those who love the game, this is excellent news!