Aren't opening names for distinguishing certain different positions? In that case what in the world is the problem with chess.com assigning these opening names that make perfect sense based on the context of the position? It's not like they give every single position a variation name either; they do give them to a wide variety of initial positions, though, so you can distinguish more positions by name. Many of the openings often transpose into other ones anyway. But they might not as well. What, are you a passionate believer that only games played in chess tournaments should be honored with having their own variation names?
1. d4 openings HURT/HEAL game
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Jul 16, 2025
0
#103
Myllion wrote:
Aren't opening names for distinguishing certain different positions? In that case what in the world is the problem with chess.com assigning these opening names that make perfect sense based on the context of the position? It's not like they give every single position a variation name either; they do give them to a wide variety of initial positions, though, so you can distinguish more positions by name. Many of the openings often transpose into other ones anyway. But they might not as well. What, are you a passionate believer that only games played in chess tournaments should be honored with having their own variation names?
If you are going to give some unnamed position a name, don't borrow it from another opening and turn it into a variation - you smear the reputation of that group.
The French players in 1834 made the move 1...e6 into a legitimate defense to 1.e4. It does not mean that was the first ever time 1...e6 was played. But it was what ultimately put the defense on the map. Kind of like a song artist's first album may not be what got them on the map. Michelle Branch had an independent album "Broken Bracelet" in 2000, but her 2001 album, The Spirit Room, featuring the hits Everywhere (Track 1), All You Wanted (Track 3), and Goodbye to You (Track 10), or No Doubt, who had an album in 1992, but their 1995 album Tragic Kingdom, featuring Spider Webs (Track 1), Excuse Me Mister (Track 2), Just a Girl (Track 3), Sunday Morning (Track 9), and Don't Speak (Track 10), are what got them on the map.
So it was the French national team against the Brits that put 1...e6 on the map, even if it was not the first time the move was ever played. They get credit for it.
Well, now you have this lousy defense called the Sicilian and since 2...e6 is not a defined variation, let's just do a smear campaign on the French people and call it the French Variation. It would be like saying that No Doubt had the dirtiest hit ever, "I Touch Myself", when in reality, that was The Vinyls (spelling?).
Don't do a smear campaign on the French people just because you feel the need to give a nameless variation a name. The French National Team knew better than to play a stupid move like 1...c5. Black should alway move his e-pawn. Either 1...e5 or 1...e6.
Jul 16, 2025
0
#104
Copy and paste - Do not quote and modify. I did not write post 104.
Benko Gambit 15
Bogo-Indian 25
Catalan 30
Dutch 40 (+5)
King's Indian Defense 30
Nimzo Indian 30
Queen's Gambit Accepted 30
Queen's Gambit Declined 20
Queen's Indian Defense 25
Semi-Slav 15
Torre Attack 25
Trompowsky 40
Jul 16, 2025
0
#107
Lazy posts 109 and 110 factored in:
Benko Gambit 15
Bogo-Indian 25
Catalan 30
Dutch 45
King's Indian Defense 35
Nimzo Indian 30
Queen's Gambit Accepted 30
Queen's Gambit Declined 20
Queen's Indian Defense 25
Semi-Slav 10 (-5)
Torre Attack 25
Trompowsky 40
Jul 16, 2025
0
#108
Benko Gambit 15
Bogo-Indian 25
Catalan 30
Dutch 45
King's Indian Defense 35
Nimzo Indian 30
Queen's Gambit Accepted 30
Queen's Gambit Declined 20
Queen's Indian Defense 25
Semi-Slav 5 ( - 5)
Torre Attack 25
Trompowsky 40
Jul 17, 2025
0
#109
Benko Gambit 15
Bogo-Indian 25
Catalan 30
Dutch 45
King's Indian Defense 35
Nimzo Indian 25 (-5)
Queen's Gambit Accepted 30
Queen's Gambit Declined 20
Queen's Indian Defense 25
Semi-Slav 5
Torre Attack 25
Trompowsky 40
Jul 17, 2025
0
#110
Benko Gambit 15
Bogo-Indian 25
Catalan 30
Dutch 40 (-5)
King's Indian Defense 35
King's Gambit 30
Nimzo Indian 25
Queen's Gambit Accepted 30
Queen's Gambit Declined 20
Queen's Indian Defense 25
Semi-Slav 5
Torre Attack 25
Trompowsky 40
Jul 17, 2025
0
#111
Hurt Semi-Slav. Semi-Slav is D - E - A - D - DEAD!
And a message to the buffoon trying to slip KP openings in - STOP INSERTING NEW NON-d4 OPENINGS! We are down to 11.
Benko Gambit 15
Bogo-Indian 25
Catalan 30
Dutch 40
King's Indian Defense 35
Nimzo Indian 25
Queen's Gambit Accepted 30
Queen's Gambit Declined 20
Queen's Indian Defense 25
Torre Attack 25
Trompowsky 40
ThrillerFan wrote:
Myllion wrote:
Aren't opening names for distinguishing certain different positions? In that case what in the world is the problem with chess.com assigning these opening names that make perfect sense based on the context of the position? It's not like they give every single position a variation name either; they do give them to a wide variety of initial positions, though, so you can distinguish more positions by name. Many of the openings often transpose into other ones anyway. But they might not as well. What, are you a passionate believer that only games played in chess tournaments should be honored with having their own variation names?
If you are going to give some unnamed position a name, don't borrow it from another opening and turn it into a variation - you smear the reputation of that group.
The French players in 1834 made the move 1...e6 into a legitimate defense to 1.e4. It does not mean that was the first ever time 1...e6 was played. But it was what ultimately put the defense on the map. Kind of like a song artist's first album may not be what got them on the map. Michelle Branch had an independent album "Broken Bracelet" in 2000, but her 2001 album, The Spirit Room, featuring the hits Everywhere (Track 1), All You Wanted (Track 3), and Goodbye to You (Track 10), or No Doubt, who had an album in 1992, but their 1995 album Tragic Kingdom, featuring Spider Webs (Track 1), Excuse Me Mister (Track 2), Just a Girl (Track 3), Sunday Morning (Track 9), and Don't Speak (Track 10), are what got them on the map.
So it was the French national team against the Brits that put 1...e6 on the map, even if it was not the first time the move was ever played. They get credit for it.
Well, now you have this lousy defense called the Sicilian and since 2...e6 is not a defined variation, let's just do a smear campaign on the French people and call it the French Variation. It would be like saying that No Doubt had the dirtiest hit ever, "I Touch Myself", when in reality, that was The Vinyls (spelling?).
Don't do a smear campaign on the French people just because you feel the need to give a nameless variation a name. The French National Team knew better than to play a stupid move like 1...c5. Black should alway move his e-pawn. Either 1...e5 or 1...e6.
That's ridiculous, anyone can look up the variation and immediately know why it was named that way. The openings which you complain about bear a resemblance to the other openings that they're named after, why else would they be called that way?! If not the "french variation", what should they name it? Just make something up? What would they even make up for the name? No, it makes sense to relate it to a different similar position. And any person strange enough to care so much about the reputations of countries in chess could easily look it up and instantly know that no, the sicilian french variation was not popularized by a french person.
Hurt the no one defense
Jul 17, 2025
0
#114
Benko Gambit 15 (+ 5)
Bogo-Indian 25
Catalan 30
Dutch 40
King's Indian Defense 35
Nimzo Indian 25
Queen's Gambit Accepted 30
Queen's Gambit Declined 20
Queen's Indian Defense 25
Torre Attack 25
Trompowsky 40
The London System is very good, especially below 1000 and perhaps up to 1200. It is a nice opening. I do not play it any longer, as I have adapted a more dynamic style of play, but I still respect it.
Jul 18, 2025
0
#117
Factoring in post 119 in which the author was too freaking lazy to copy and update the list:
Heal Trompowsky
Benko Gambit 15
Bogo-Indian 25
Catalan 30
Dutch 40
King's Indian Defense 40
Nimzo Indian 25
Queen's Gambit Accepted 30
Queen's Gambit Declined 20
Queen's Indian Defense 25
Torre Attack 25
Trompowsky 45 (+5)
@ThrillerFan thank you for keeping the list updated and game going in my absence. I am back now
Benko Gambit 10 (-5)
Bogo-Indian 25
Catalan 30
Dutch 40
King's Indian Defense 40
Nimzo Indian 25
Queen's Gambit Accepted 30
Queen's Gambit Declined 20
Queen's Indian Defense 25
Torre Attack 25
Trompowsky 45
The Indian game is not a chess opening in itself - after 1. d4 Nf6 chess.com says "Indian game" because it's a filler, they don't know what opening will be yet. But most of the openings it leads to e.g. Nimzo-Indian, Bogo Indian, QID, KID etc. have Indian in their name so they just use it. It's not an opening in itself, just an opening move
So how this works is there's a list of openings and in your post you can either HURT an opening by giving it -5 or HEAL an opening by giving it +5. (I'm going first as example)
If an opening gets to 0 points it's out and we keep going until there's one left, which is the winner. Each opening starts on 25 points.
Rules: no posting 2 or more times in a row, wait until someone else has posted to post again
I'm not a d4 player so if I miss any big openings, do tell and I'll add them in.
Openings: (alphabetical)
Benoni 25
Bogo-Indian 25
Catalan 25
Dutch 25
Grunfeld 25
King's Indian Defence 25
London 25
Nimzo Indian 25
Queen's Gambit Accepted 25
Queen's Gambit Declined 25
Queen's Indian Defence 25
Semi-Slav 25
Slav Defence 25
Trompowsky 25
You forgot about the ruy lopez and indian game
No he didn't - The Ruy Lopez is NOT a 1.d4 opening, and there is no such thing as the "Indian Game". You have the King's Indian Defense, Nimzo-Indian Defense, Queen's Indian Defense, etc., but there is no such thing as just the "Indian Game".
It's indian game after 1. d4 Nf6
No it's not. It requires more moves. Chess.com has this stupid idea that every position has an opening name when in truth, they aren't. 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 is NOT the "Sicilian Defense, French Variation". It is simply the Sicilian Defense. It can be a deferred Alapin (3.c3), a Taimanov (3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6), a Kan (3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 a6, along with other possibilities, like the Scheveningen or the Four Knights Sicilian.
Well, same thing goes for 1.d4 Nf6. 1.d4 Nf6 is NOT the Indian Defense. 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 is the NIMZO-Indian Defense, 3.Nf3 Bb4+ is the BOGO-Indian Defense, 3.Nf3 b6 is the QUEEN'S Indian Defense, 2...g6 3.Nc3 d5 is the GRUNFELD Defense (a.k.a. The Grunfeld Indian Defense), 3...Bg7 is the KING'S Indian Defense, etc.
There is no just flat out "Indian" Defense. 1...Nf6 does not always even lead to any type of Indian Defense. 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 d5 is the Queen's Gambit Declined. 1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 g6 3.Bg7 is the Torre Attack. 1.d4 Nf6 2.Bg5 (what I play as White) is the Trompowsky Attack.
Instead of arguing with someone that has played chess for 42 years, studied chess for 30 years, has played over 3600 tournament games over the board, and is rated over 2000 over the board, maybe you should listen to more experienced players instead of arguing with them.
You arguing the Existence of the Indian Defense would be like me arguing ballet moves.
oh ok i didn't realise i was supposed to be basing opening names on your personal opinion instead of the names on chess.com
It's not "personal opinion". Chess.com is just flat out WRONG in many cases because they try to force-feed a variation name at literally every move when in some cases, no such variation name exists.
Like after 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3, there is no "Vatiation Name" for 2.Nf3. 2.c3 is the Alapin. 2.d4 is the Morra Gambit. 2.Nc3 and 2.Nf3 just flat out have no variation name. It is merely the Sicilian Defense at that point.
In the case of 2.Nc3, 2...Nc6 still has no name. But after 3.g3, you have the Closed Sicilian, 3.f4 is the Grand Prix Attack, and 3.Bb5 is the Tiviakov Variation.
After 2.Nf3, none of 2...Nc6, 2...d6, or 2...e6 have a variation name because not enough moves are played to determine. There is no "Pirc Variation" (2...d6) or "French Variation" (2...e6), but their infatuation to make up a stupid variation name of their own just to have one is completely ridiculous, leaving to the more naive chess players actually believing the garbage.
It's not "opinion", it's hard facts, but getting people like you to actually understand pure facts is like trying to convince a farmer in Rural Illinois that Chicago is not the capital.