Any chess players here?

[Heyo]

I used to be a serious Chess player.. until I discovered Go.

I used to play Chess until I discovered that I sucked at it. Fortunately that was also the time I discovered GO.

I still like Chess and play it occasionally,

So do I and I usually win but I can't compete against serious players.

but Go is IMO a far, far better game for many reasons:

- it has a really good handicap system that allows players of differing strength to truly challenge each other
- it's much less "brittle" than chess, lose a pawn early and that can be the end of the game. Not so with Go.
- it does a better job of requiring both the focused "reading" that chess has with "seeing the big picture".

- The complexity of GO relates to the one of Chess as Chess's relates to Tic-Tac-toe's.

 

[libre]

- The complexity of GO relates to the one of Chess as Chess's relates to Tic-Tac-toe's.

Theoretically GO has more board states but I think as both Chess and Go are unsolved games, neither are really like tic-tac-toe.

The top level of both games push the human brain to it's limits, I think practically they have a comparable complexity for humans.

 

[George-ananda]

I've taken it up quite regularly in the past year playing online random opponents of about my skill level. I seem to hover around the 700 range which I don't think is very good. I just play and don't study or watch lessons. Maybe that is holding me back. Or maybe I don't have a great brain for chess.

But it keeps my wondering mind focused for the half hour.

 

[Orbit]

I peaked in 4th grade with 2nd place in the Orange County youth tournament. It's all downhill from there.

 

[libre]

I've taken it up quite regularly in the past year playing online random opponents of about my skill level. I seem to hover around the 700 range which I don't think is very good. I just play and don't study or watch lessons. Maybe that is holding me back. Or maybe I don't have a great brain for chess.

But it keeps my wondering mind focused for the half hour.

If you enjoy playing for fun, play for fun - no need to study or watch lessons.

That said, if you want to improve, no reason to be discouraged by your current rating.
I played a lot of chess from 2019-2022 I was able to go from 1000-1200 from independent study and 1200-1720 with weekly lessons. In my view I do not have a good brain for chess (I can't visualize anything at all,) but I have been able to memorize some opening and develop some good attacking instincts.

I've fallen off to around 1400-1500 after I stopped taking weekly lessons, it's pretty hard to sustain if I don't actively play. My teacher says that in his view anyone who is stubborn and has interest can achieve his level (2200ish), but that for him it is a job and not a hobby, so it's not a realistic goal for working professionals who are already adults. He also believes that any child who can realistically hit the 1400 rating probably also has the ability to hit master titles if he has the right teacher and living environment.

 

[George-ananda]

If you enjoy playing for fun, play for fun - no need to study or watch lessons.
I played a lot of chess from 2019-2022 I was able to go from 1000-1200 from independent study and 1200-1720 with weekly lessons. In my view I do not have a good brain for chess (I can't visualize anything at all,) but I have been able to memorize some opening and develop some good attacking instincts.

I've fallen off to around 1400-1500 after I stopped taking weekly lessons, it's pretty hard to sustain if I don't actively play. My teacher says that in his view anyone who is stubborn and has interest can achieve his level (2200ish), but that for him it is a job and not a hobby, so it's not a realistic goal for working professionals who are already adults. He also believes that any child who can realistically hit the 1400 rating probably also has the ability to hit master titles if he has the right teacher and living environment.

When I say '720' I assume it is on the same scale as you are talking about. I play 30 minute games against random people of my approximate level. I wonder about all the people playing random games on Chess. Com, what do you think the average would be?

 

[libre]

When I say '720' I assume it is on the same scale as you are talking about. I play 30 minute games against random people of my approximate level. I wonder about all the people playing random games on Chess. Com, what do you think the average would be?

I play on another site but I converted to what I approximate my chess.com would be.
I just checked the average chess.com leader board and it indicates of the 65 million accounts, the average user is 644.44 rated.
I anticipate the average of regular players would be a slightly higher than that because many just play a small amount of games and depart from the site.

 

[George-ananda]

I play on another site but I converted to what I approximate my chess.com would be.
I just checked the average chess.com leader board and it indicates of the 65 million accounts, the average user is 644.44 rated.
I anticipate the average of regular players would be a slightly higher than that because many just play a small amount of games and depart from the site.

Thanks

 

[Twilight Hue]

I have a go set but I've not played in recent years. I agree with your benefits of go, had trouble finding people to play with.
I will always be a chess player at heart though

It's why I enjoy playing AI in chess. Playing against an AI capable of besting world class grandmasters is a wonderful exhilarating challenge.

Also I enjoy playing against death in VR for my soul.

 

[Mock Turtle]

I know the rules but I'm rubbish

I have tried to get better at it but failed to do so

It's just that I have next to zero aptitude for it

I've played chess when younger but not seriously (clubs and such, although I did a bit of this), and I think it is more about the number of games played than much else - apart from sheer aptitude - and I certainly improved after a bit of book studying (the various classic openings and such), but I suspect we reach a level beyond which it won't be possible to improve much - unless fanatical about the game.

 

[Kenny]

Most of the talk in the games thread are about video games, which makes sense given we are online.
I was wondering if anyone here played Chess, Go or other traditional games?

I was big into Chess in my youth and just got back into it as an adult a few years back. I've enjoyed following it's new developments in entertainment and the pro world.

Love playing chess although I know I’m not going to win any competitions.

Currently my rating is 1348 and slowly going up on chess.com.

My dad had the opportunity to play against Bobby Fischer along with another 24 people at the same time. They all failed miserably.