PGN

A PGN file is a plain-text format used to record chess games. PGN stands for Portable Game Notation. It captures both the metadata of a game and the move sequence, making it a standard for storing, sharing, and analysing chess data.

Structure A PGN file contains two main parts:

1. Tag Pairs (metadata) Written inside square brackets. Examples:

   • [Event "World Championship"]
   • [White "Carlsen"]
   • [Black "Nepo"]
   • [Result "1-0"]

2. Movetext (game record) A sequence of moves in algebraic chess notation. Example: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6

Key Features

• Human-readable and easy to parse.
• Supports annotations, comments, and variations.
• Widely used in chess engines, databases, and analytical workflows.

Example

[Event "Casual Game"]
[White "Player1"]
[Black "Player2"]
[Result "1-0"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bg5 Be7 1-0