Mittens Takes the Chess World by Storm

Online bots have been a major part of the Chess.com experience, providing users with an easy to use platform and a variety of levels for training and instruction.^[0] But, the recent fame of the viral bot “Mittens” has taken the chess world by storm. Despite having a relatively low ranking, the cuddly kitten avatar has been the most popular opponent of January's slot, which includes a range of different bots from the easy “Scaredy Cat” to the more difficult “Mr. Grumpers” and the Garry Kasparov-like “Catspurrov”.^[0]

Since its introduction on the first of January, the popularity of Mittens has been incredibly impressive and has even caused the Chess.com website to crash.^[1] This has helped drive more people to play chess than the popular Netflix show “The Queen's Gambit”.^[1]

People from all over the world have been sharing their experiences with Mittens, from Poland to Turkey, Slovakia to the UK, and Argentina to the USA. Many are sharing their successes and failures on social media platforms such as Facebook, and the craze doesn't seem to be slowing down anytime soon.

0. “Chess.com's Mittens is one brutal chess bot.” slate.com, 4 Feb. 2023, https://slate.com/technology/2023/01/chess-dot-com-mittens-bot.html

1. “A Cat Conquers Chess – Lessons for the Toy Industry – Global Toy …” globaltoynews.com, 4 Feb. 2023, https://globaltoynews.com/2023/01/20/a-cat-conquers-chess-lessons-for-the-toy-industry/