Legal

Rules and prize terms

Last updated: 15 November 2026

Draft: this text is awaiting legal review and may change. The Turkish version prevails.

Everyone who plays on Omega Chess accepts these rules. Tournament-specific rules on the tournament page (time control, rounds, prize distribution) are part of this text.

1. Account

• One account per person, opened under your real name.
• Players under 18 may take part with parental consent.
• You may not let anyone else use your account.

2. Fair play

• During a game, chess engines, analysis software, opening books, help from another person or any outside assistance are forbidden.
• Playing yourself with two accounts or agreeing results is forbidden.
• Move times and tab or window switches are recorded during games and used in fair-play reviews.
• Players can report a finished game from the game page. Reports are reviewed by the tournament director.
• If cheating is confirmed, the administration may disqualify the player, cancel their prize and close their account. A disqualified player's rank is removed and the players below move up one place.

3. Game rules

• Games follow the FIDE Laws of Chess; moves and clocks are validated by the server.
• The first move must be made within 15 seconds. In Arena the game is aborted; in Swiss the player who does not move loses by forfeit and is not paired in later rounds (until they press "continue" on the tournament page).
• If a player disconnects, the opponent can claim the win after 30 seconds.
• A player who runs out of time loses, unless the opponent has insufficient material to mate, in which case the game is drawn.

4. Arena

• During the tournament, players with the tournament page open who are not paused are paired continuously.
• A win is 2 points, a draw 1. After two wins a streak starts and a win is 4, a draw 2; the streak ends at the first game that is not a win.
• Berserk: give up half of your time at the start and get 1 extra point for a win (if you made at least 7 moves).
• Draws before move 10 score no points.
• Ties are broken by performance rating.

5. Swiss

• Each round everyone is paired with the FIDE Dutch system; you never meet the same opponent twice.
• With an odd number of players one player gets a bye worth 1 point.
• A win is 1 point, a draw half a point. Ties are broken by Buchholz, Sonneborn-Berger, then starting rating.

6. Rating

Rated games change your Omega Rating (Glicko-2). Forfeits and aborted games do not affect rating.

7. Prizes

• Online tournaments are free; no entry fee is charged.
• Any cash prize is put up by a sponsor (or Media Omega). The amount and its distribution by rank are shown on the tournament page.
• Prizes are handed over at the earliest 72 hours after the tournament, once the fair-play review is complete.
• Prizes are paid in cash in person at the announced event. A phone number on your profile is required for the handover.
• A player disqualified or whose account is closed for cheating receives no prize; the prize passes to the next player.
• In-person tournaments may ask for a deposit to hold your place; see the Deposit and refund policy.

8. Sponsor gifts

Sponsor products and services are not prizes and do not depend on standings. They are given as gifts to participants or attendees. No lotteries are held.

9. Broadcast

Tournament games are available to spectators and the live stream with a delay. By entering a tournament you agree that your name, results and games are shown on the tournament page and in the stream.

10. Changes

Rules are updated when needed. The rules of a tournament that has started do not change during that tournament.