I wanted to give a shout out to the best and most concise review of Chess that I've ever seen, Everything You Need to Know About Chess. Created and narrated by International Master Daniel Rensch for Chess.com, this video series does the seemingly impossible: pare the essential knowledge about the Game of Kings down to less than an hour! That the series also pulls off this herculean task in a clear, fun and engaging manner is the cherry on top.
Considered by many to be the finest and most respected strategy game of all time, the modern version of Chess is believed to have originated in 6th century India. In the millennia since, the Game of Kings has been played, debated and dissected by leaders of all stripes, scholars and enthusiasts. As you might expect, the game has a rich history filled with colorful figures, such as Paul Morphy and Bobby Fischer, and moments of true genius.
Aimed at 90 percent of players, Everything You Need to Know About Chess does assume that you have the bare minimum knowledge to play (i.e., you know how each piece moves, you know the relative value of each piece, you know how to castle, etc.), but then it provides a staggering amount of strategy, tactics, guiding principles and background information in a short period of time that lets you approach the game in a more systematic and enlightened manner. Produced by the fine folks at Chess.com, the world's most frequently visited chess website, Everything You Need to Know About Chess is broken up into several parts: The Opening, Tactics & Strategy, The Endgame, as well a couple of summary and supplemental videos. This meta review highlights the first three videos:
This video stresses the importance of development, center control and other principles that are key to strong openings.
This video covers the most fundamental tactical patterns: forks, pins and skewers. It also covers pawn structures and key types of checkmates.
This video highlights king activity and pawn play.
In terms of return on time invested, I don't know that you'll find a better deal than Everything You Need to Know About Chess. If you can absorb and effectively utilize the information in just the three videos above, for most people, your game should improve by at least a level. In addition, the series also provides a great springboard for further study of chess theory.
Game on!
Considered by many to be the finest and most respected strategy game of all time, the modern version of Chess is believed to have originated in 6th century India. In the millennia since, the Game of Kings has been played, debated and dissected by leaders of all stripes, scholars and enthusiasts. As you might expect, the game has a rich history filled with colorful figures, such as Paul Morphy and Bobby Fischer, and moments of true genius.
Aimed at 90 percent of players, Everything You Need to Know About Chess does assume that you have the bare minimum knowledge to play (i.e., you know how each piece moves, you know the relative value of each piece, you know how to castle, etc.), but then it provides a staggering amount of strategy, tactics, guiding principles and background information in a short period of time that lets you approach the game in a more systematic and enlightened manner. Produced by the fine folks at Chess.com, the world's most frequently visited chess website, Everything You Need to Know About Chess is broken up into several parts: The Opening, Tactics & Strategy, The Endgame, as well a couple of summary and supplemental videos. This meta review highlights the first three videos:
- The Opening
This video stresses the importance of development, center control and other principles that are key to strong openings.
- Tactics & Strategy
This video covers the most fundamental tactical patterns: forks, pins and skewers. It also covers pawn structures and key types of checkmates.
- The Endgame
This video highlights king activity and pawn play.
In terms of return on time invested, I don't know that you'll find a better deal than Everything You Need to Know About Chess. If you can absorb and effectively utilize the information in just the three videos above, for most people, your game should improve by at least a level. In addition, the series also provides a great springboard for further study of chess theory.
Game on!
SC's Parting Shot: 10 of 10
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