Time controls · 持ち時間
Five minutes, then ten seconds a move.
Shogi clocks work a little differently from chess clocks. Most games give each player a block of thinking time and then, once it is gone, a fixed number of seconds for every move. That second part is byoyomi, and it changes how the end of a game feels.
Byoyomi
Byōyomi (秒読み) means “counting the seconds”. In a hall it is literally that: once your main time is used up, a timekeeper counts aloud, and you must move before the count runs out. Every move restarts it from the top. You cannot save seconds up, and you cannot fall behind: as long as each move is made inside the count, the game goes on for as long as it takes. A hall counts to thirty or sixty; online it is usually ten, and ten is what Standard gives you.
That is the difference from a chess increment. An increment adds time to your bank each move, so a fast player builds up a reserve and a slow one runs out. Byoyomi is a floor: everyone gets the same seconds a move forever, and the game cannot be lost on time by someone who keeps moving inside them. It rewards steady play and punishes a single long think.
The two speeds in the app
| Speed | Main time | Then | Feels like |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blitz 速 | 3 minutes each | nothing: when it is gone, you lose | Quick games, sudden death. A typical game is under ten minutes. |
| Standard 静 | 5 minutes each | 10 seconds a move | Time to think in the opening, and an endgame that is never lost on the clock if you keep moving. |
Each speed has its own rating; they are different games. Friend rooms let you pick either and are not rated. Games against the bot can be played without a clock, or with either one.
What the clock does
- Your clock runs while it is your turn, from the moment the opponent's move lands until your own does.
- In Standard, when your main time reaches zero the display switches to the ten-second count. It resets to ten after each of your moves.
- If the count reaches zero, or in Blitz your three minutes run out, you have lost on time, jikan-gire (時間切れ). The other player is told the game ended on time, not by mate.
- If your connection drops, the clock keeps running; the app reconnects you to the same game as soon as it can.
How the professionals do it
Title matches give each player hours, sometimes across two days, and then one minute a move. Television games run on ten minutes and thirty seconds. Online, the most common controls in Japan are ten minutes sudden death, three minutes sudden death, and ten seconds a move with no main time at all. Our Blitz sits with the second of those; Standard is the third with five minutes of thinking time in front of it.
Playing with byoyomi
- Spend the main time early. The opening and the moment the fight starts are where a plan is worth minutes. The endgame will have ten seconds a move regardless.
- Think on the opponent's time. Decide your reply to their most likely move while their clock runs, not yours.
- In the count, keep two seconds back. Aim to have the move played by eight. A finger that slips at nine loses the game.
- A won position is still a position. Byoyomi is where checkmates are missed. The daily tsume exists for this.
Pick a speed.
Tap Play in the app and choose Blitz or Standard; each has its own rating and its own rank after five games.