Play Against The New Yoko Ono Bot And Watch Award-Winning ‘War Is Over!’ Short

You can now play chess against iconic musician, artist, and activist Yoko Ono on Chess.com—while also experiencing her art!

Challenge the Yoko bot and play with an exclusive all-white chess set based on Yoko Ono’s “Play It By Trust” artwork. “The white chess set is a sort of life situation,” Yoko said about her artwork on her website. “Because the chess pieces on both sides are white, you always have to be aware of which are your pieces.” Find out more about Yoko Ono’s chess artwork “Play It By Trust,” 1966, on her website.

Play Against Yoko Ono

Head to our Play Computer page to challenge the Yoko bot to a friendly game of chess and enjoy the unique experience of playing with the online version of Yoko’s chess artwork.

The new bot celebrates Yoko’s 93rd birthday, coming up on February 18. It also celebrates the recent online premiere of the Academy Award-winning short film War is Over!, inspired by the music of John Lennon and Yoko Ono. 

The short film tells the story of two soldiers fighting on opposite sides of a war. Aided by a heroic carrier pigeon, the two connect and find mutual ground through a game of chess. You can watch the short film in full below:

In the film, chess is an integral part of the story. The game symbolizes how humans can find empathy and communication through shared interests—even between enemies. But why did they choose chess?

According to Sean Ono Lennon, John Lennon’s and Yoko Ono’s son and the co-creator of the short’s story, it was a matter of personal taste. “That was mainly because my parents love chess, and my mom is a big chess fan,” Ono Lennon said in an interview with Wallpaper. “And I love chess, too. So it seemed like a nice metaphor.”

Now, we invite you to watch the short film and challenge chess lover Yoko to your own chess match! Can you take down this legendary artist?