Analysis of two old game

Hi all, these are two old games I just found when I was clearing up my computer. I have not annotated them for this reason, because I can't actually remember playing them. (I do remeber it was on Chess Titans for Windows 7, and they were my first attempts at writing my games in long algebraic notation). I was playing white both times (left moves), and any feedback will be greatly appreciated, thank you...

Game 1

 1. a2-a4     e7-e5

 2. e2-e4     Qd8-f6

 3. Ra1-a3     Bf8-d6

 4. Ra3-d3     Qf6-h4

 5. g2-g3     c7-c5

 6. g3xh4     h7-h5

 7. Rd3xd6     a7-a5

 8. c2-c4     Nb8-c6

 9. Rd6-d3     Ra8-b8

10. Nb1-a3     Rh8-h6

11. Ng1-f3     Rh6-f6

12. Nf3-g5     d7-d5

13. Qd1xh5     b7-b5

14. a4xb5     d5-d4

15. b5xc6     a5-a4

16. Rh1-g1     g7-g6

17. Qh5-h8     Rb8xb2

18. Bc1xb2     Bc8-f5

19. e4xf5     Ke8-e7

20. Qh8xg8     Rf6xf5

21. Ng5-h7     f7-f6

22. Qg8xg6     Rf5-f4

23. Qg6-g8     Ke7-d6

24. Qg8-a8     Rf4xh4

25. Rg1-h1     Rh4xh7

26. h2-h4     e5-e4

27. Rd3-g3     d5-d6

28. h4-h5     Rh7-h6

29. Rh1-h4     f6-f5

30. Qa8xa4     Rh6-h7

31. h5-h6     Rh7-e7

32. h6-h7     Re7-a7

33. Qa4xa7     f5-f4

34. Rg3-g7     e4-e3

35. f2xe3     f4xe3

36. d2xe3     d6-d7+

37. Ke1xd2     Kd6xc6

38. h7-h8=Q     Kc6-d6

39. Qh8-f6     Kd6-c6

40. Qf8-f6#

Game 2

 1. e2-e4     h7-h5

 2. Ng1-f3     g7-g6

 3. Nf3-e5     Rh8-h7

 4. Nb1-c3     d7-d6

 5. Ne5-f3     Bf8-h6

 6. d2-d4     c7-c6

 7. Nf3-h4     Nb8-c6

 8. Nc3-b5     Bh6xd2+

 9. Ke1xd2     b7-b6

10. Qd1-e2     f7-f6

11. Nh4xg6     Bc8-e6

12. a2-a4     a7-a6

13. Nb5-c3     Qd8-c8

14. Ng6-f4     h5-h4

15. Kd2-e3     a6-a5

16. g2-g3     h4-h3

17. Ra1-a3     Qc8-a6

18. Qe2-g3     b6-b5

19. Ke3-e2     b5-b4+

20. Nc3-b5     b4xa3

21. b2xa3     d6-d5

22. e4xd5     Be6xd5

23. Qf3xd5     e7-e5

24. Qd5xg8+     Ke8-d7

25. Qg8xh7+     Nc6-e7

26. Qh7xh3+     Kd7-e8

27. Nf4-d3     c7-c6

28. Nb5-c3     Ne7-d5

29. Nc3-b1     Ke8-d8

30. Ke2-f3     e5-e4+

31. Kf3xe4     Qa6-c4+

32. Ke4-f5     Qc4xa4

33. Qh3-h4     Nd5-e7+

34. Kf5-e6     Qd4xc2

35. Qh4xf6     Qc2-b3+

36. Ke6-e5     Qb3-d5+

37. Ke5-f4     Qd5xh1

38. Qf6-d4+     Ne7-d5+

39. Kf4-f5     Qh1xf1

40. Nd3-c5     Qf1xc1

41. Nb1-d2     Qc1xa3

42. Qd4-h8+     Kd8-e7

43. Qh8xa8     Qa3xc5

44. Qa8-b7+     Ke7-d6

45. f2-f4     Qc4-c1

46. Nd2-e4#

Too painful for me to watch even the first game past the 3rd move, sorry. Absolutely horrible play from both sides. I'll let others provide the specifics. Maybe the games have nostalgic or historical value, but nothing more. I admit I wish I'd kept my old games when I was first starting to play.

Sqod, could you possibly be more specific, and give some general feedback as to why this is so terrible. I'll admit, I was (and still am) a complete beginner, and I was playing AI on it's lowest setting, but I did at least win both games. That has to count for something, right? Any feedback greatly appreciated...

notmtwain, I think I've found the problem with the second game - white's move 18 should say Qe2-f3, not Qe2-g3. I'm not really sure what happened in the first game after move 36 though, but I don't think it was at all bad for a first attempt, was it?...

OK, sorry to be so critical. If you just play through dozens of the games here by clicking on their moves, you should soon start to see some general patterns emerge, and those patterns are very different than how you're playing. Notice that in games with skilled players, certain things happen in a predictable order: center pawns move forward, usually two squares, followed by knights and bishops, the king castles, the queen moves forward slightly (often to c2, d2, or e2) to make room for the rooks on the back rank, the rooks come together on the back rank aiming forward at the center (usually on d1 and e1), then the attack begins with the center pawns moving to the 5th rank, and/or knights jumping out to the 5th rank (to e5, d5, b5, g5), minor pieces get traded off, then the major pieces (the queen and rooks) come out in force, then most or all of the pieces get traded off, then there are only kings and pawns, then the pawns try to rush to the last rank to promote to queen. If both sides played correctly, the game then ends in a draw for one reason or another (lack of mating material, repetition of position, stalemate, lack of superior force).

1. a4?!

A worthless move played only by extreme novices. One of your first main goals when starting a chess game is to control the center squares with moves like (for White:) e4, d4, c4, Nf3, Nc3, or (for Black:) ...e5, ...d5, ...c5, ...Nf6, ...Nc6. This played move is the exact opposite of center control.

2...Qf6?!

Brings out a major piece (queen, rook) too early. This subjects it to attack by less valuable units, which forces it to retreat, which loses moves, which loses time. This queen also occupies the f6 square that the knight should occupy (see my list of most important first moves above).

3. Ra3??

Again, brings out a major piece (rook, queen) way too early. In this case it's even worse since it sets a rook (worth 5 pawns) right in line to be captured with a bishop (worth only 3.25 pawns) immediately. Already white has lost the game since you can't survive a game two pawns down without some major compensation elsewhere. And again, this move on the side has nothing to do with the center. Also, you can't castle with a rook you've moved, which means White can't castle on his queen side, which reduces his options and alerts Black to attack on the king side.

3...Bd6?

Fails to win the game with the obvious 3...Bxa3. Also blocks a center pawn that needs to advance (again, see my list of important opening moves above). Now Black's queenside bishop can't get out normally.

4. Rd3?

Too early to bring the rook out anywhere, especially in the middle where it will just get trapped and lost. Also, it blocks the "d" pawn which needs to move forward (see my list again), which in turn blocks *three* pieces from emerging: the queen and two bishops. Also, it doesn't even attack anything worthwhile since the bishop at d6 is already guarded.

See the pattern of the same type of mistakes? If you just fix those few problems I mentioned, your play should improve considerably!

Thank you, sqod, this was all much appreciated, and very helpful. I shall try and implement this into my next game, and see what happens...

You're welcome. One more observation: Your opponent is playing in a rather human-like manner. I play Chess Titans all the time, including sometimes on the lowest level, and it doesn't play like Black is playing in those games. Although it does blunder its queen away at times and sometimes sets its bishop in front of pawns as Black did there, it almost never brings out its rooks to the side or in front of its pawns early in the games as your games show. That's something that beginning human players do all the time, though. I suggest that your unknown opponent was human.

sqod, no, I definitely remember playing against computer, maybe it's just a rather stupid computer...