And while you are at it, play those soccer games with a 16 pound bowling ball and make the 10 meter dash be with bricks tied to your ankles and thumb tacks pointed upward cover the entire track and runners must run barefoot.
Long story short. Of you don't like the long game, quit chesd. Don't follow in Greg's footsteps and be a schmuck about it. Take up tic tac toe instead if you are ADHD and don't have the patience or interest in fighting it out over the course of 5 hours. Respect the players that actually enjoy the game. Dingbats that try to eliminate the game just because they don't like it and not letting those that do continue to enjoy it is just as bad as those clowns that smoke and think they have a right to do it wherever the F they please with no regard for the health of non smokers. Many of us are either asthmatics or have other forms of respitory issues, and many others simply don't want to inhale the disgusting sh*t you breathe out.
So all you people that want to discard the game, go shove it and join the cancer stick advocate with no regard for others because you are just as bad as them!
Basically, chess has been turned into a small market with some hardcore niche fans who don't want or don't care if chess becomes popular widely. These hardcore fans vouch for the 'beauty' of longer formats because its a way of showing that they somehow appreciate chess more than others. Some of them also seem to like the chess to remain unpopular to make themselves seem special. But, even these people(despite all their claims) when given a choice, prefer the bullet, blitz, and rapid as seen on online sites. As Greg Shahade points out when the players have a choice, they clearly prefer shorter formats at all levels on all sites. Now, they may not be demanding shorter formats due to the peer pressure or prejudice or inertia or whatever. But, the preference is clearly seen as players of all ratings play all kinds of formats except the 4-6 hr format.
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Masses simply think that chess is some boring game that ends in a draw. Its a vicious cycle which causes the chess become poorer on the whole.
The masses may know what chess is but many don't know all the rules anyway. At the professional level there are a lot of draws, but at the amateur level, where most of the players are at that will play in most events, regardless of time control, decisive games are common.
Again, if there is a market and money to be made with quick chess, why hasn't it been done at a large scale? Where are the masses clamoring for this style of event? They don't exist and the money isn't there either .... or you would see it being marketed and being successful already.
You don't see them because you overestimate the appeal and market. For most people, chess is a game. A game that is very complex and one they are unwilling to spend significant time trying to get good at or spend a lot of money on.
Can chess grow? It absolutely can. It has happened in the past. The main difference today is that there is a lot of competition for people's attention and money, things that are more approachable and understandable. Shortening the time controls doesn't make chess easier to understand.
Well, Chess has to be promoted by Chess players and federations and clubs. And if they promote a boring format, then obviously people won't be interested. How can people clamour for a better format when they think that all chess is boring like the long format?
About the rules and understanding, it grows on people. No one starts off as a master of a game they are watching or playing. They start watching or playing it if its interesting. Then, they slowly learn it more and more.
Can chess grow? It absolutely can but not with the longer formats. People are obviously interested in chess(or for that matter any other good game). A classical format of 4-6 hrs game is meant to be a time-waster and only small number of people would be interested and afford to waste so much time on a single game. Players might still want to do it because they get a FIDE rating and feel that they have achieved a difficult task. But, for audience, most of those 4-6 hrs time is spent watching the players thinking. So, for spectators(live or TV or online) watching players think for 4-6 hrs is just not worth it. Neither movies, serials, TV shows, competitions, or games go on for 4-6 hrs every single time. If they did, then their fate would be similar: a small set of people vouching for it and making sure it remains unpopular.
Due to lack of money spinning chess format, chess as a whole remains impoverished(except the really top guys). And I think thats the reason for keeping entry fees in tournaments and paid rated games. Even if there was no entry fees, it would still cost money for the players and apart from time. So, all of it means that chess gets restricted to a small set of players who can afford the time and money. And it has no audience literally even though given how high profile it was. It should have a huge audience and people should be able to make lots of moolah to allow them to concentrate on their chess without worrying about other things. When people complaint about fall in quality due to shorter formats, they also should factor in the fall in quality due to lack of financial compensation for players in general. Chess is lucky to have lot of patronizers. It should be using this to create a permanent money spinning vehicle for itself.
Chess was at its height of popularity during the time of Fischer vs Spassky with all the cold war hype. Chess could have used that attention to gain a formidable market for itself. Instead, other lesser popular games of the time have become huge today. Chess was arguably bigger than cricket or football in 1970s. Today, cricket and football are huge. That means an average cricket player or football player can concentrate on his game as his finances are taken care of by the game. Meanwhile, chess is relegated to sidelines slowly. And its no rocket science to see why . I think the only reason is the really long format. It makes it unaffordable for players and uninteresting for the audience and unprofitable for federations.