user32424: 
I am just learning Chess. Why is this a checkmate? It's Black's turn, and White's queen threatens Black's king, so check. But if I play gxf8, the check is gone. Why doesn't the game let me do it?

user17887: In the usual orientation of pictures, black starts at the top and moves down, so the pawn would have to capture backward to take the queen. The actual pattern you see is a prime example of a "back rank/row mate".

32424: <p><a href="https://i.stack.imgur.com/UlhJU.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.stack.imgur.com/UlhJU.png" alt="board" /></a></p>
<p>I am just learning Chess. Why is this a checkmate? It's Black's turn, and White's queen threatens Black's king, so check. But if I play gxf8, the check is gone. Why doesn't the game let me do it?</p>
 17887: <p>In the usual orientation of pictures, black starts at the top and moves <em>down</em>, so the pawn would have to capture <em>backward</em> to take the queen. The actual pattern you see is a prime example of a &quot;back rank/row mate&quot;.</p>
