tactics bad tool

I'm incredibly frustrated with the tactics trainer. Most of these tactics rarely occur, and the negative reinforcement is superbly irritating, as it does not allow you to advance much, even if you make their "correct" move. And your points just keep exponentially going down. And if you get a few right, up just a few. I even played it against a move calculator, and most didn't even match up correctly. In summary, the more I get correct on the tactics trainer, the worse I do against another real person. The worse I do on tactics trainer, the better I do against a real person. Go figure. I'm going to see what other available trainers there are besides this. If anyone else has similar experiences or a recommendation, please let me know.

you sound similar to what i am going through at the moment

my coach recommend a book by emmanuel nieman "chess tactics antenna"

the point is when playing a game one should look for tactics only when certain "signals" are present- among these signals are king safety, alignment, undefended pieces, etc

when you notice two or more of these signals in your opponents position that is the time to start looking and calculating for tactics

it is a good book; im squareology also has a video series on these same "signals" (just watched it this weekend) if you dont want to buy a book

my coach has flat out told me that at this immediate point in time "doing tactics" is not the problem and we have moved tactics trainers to the back burner- not to neglect it mind you- but i have several other things to prioritize first-- maybe you are in the same boat

good luck

It's not about how high your dating is- it's about your skill.the reason you loose A LOT of points for getting it wrong is simple- that could, and often would, cost you a chess game. Why does your rating even matter that much? I usually loose ALL my tactics trainer points, because I don't focus on tactics trainer, and don't care if I get it wrong- all I want to do is learn. I don't even Know what my rating IS! I just know it is substancualy beneath what my skill level is.

I appreciate all the help guys!! Daxy, I'm taking your advice. And Vicount, you bring up a really valid and logical point. I was just a bit discouraged considering my score has been higher and continues to climb, but te tactics doesn't like my options or choices that much. However, as you both pointed out, learning should be the priory. Thank you!!

The reason they rarely occur in your games is because when they do - you fail to spot them.

Cold, but probably spot on...

Vicount is right. Making one little mistake on a tactic, and the opponent sees it, will very possibly lose the game. So if your tactic rating drops a lot, isn't that exactly what would happen if you lost the game the tactic was in? As for these tactics rarely occuring, they occur all the time. One of the reasons for tactic trainer is so that they become easier to identify when they do arise. It's likely that when doing the tactics trainer you KNOW there is an answer somewhere, but in a real game you might miss that very same tactic 99% of the time because you dont expect every single position in the game to be a tactic trainer problem.

@patriotgames - well said. It does serve its purpose here. The only thing I kept noticing, however, was some of these positions, i.e. Queen takes a knight but puts itself right into a bishops pathway is an easy take, which most players wouldn't ever do. However with your logic, as amateur mistake as that is, they do arise and people do miss those opportunities. So now, with these new perspectives, I will take the time to seek the best move, rather than get frustrated it only likes one option. Thank you!!

Each tactic on the Tactics Trainer has a name or names. If you are not thinking of a name for the tactic, then looking at the Tags after each problem to see what others thought the tactic was, you are not getting the most out of the Tactics Trainer. The point is to recognize patterns and knowing their names provides a link in your brain that helps you recall and see them faster in real games.

Yes, the rating system is goofy, so concentrate on the problems and their ID's, not the rating.

You should memorize all the tactics interactively-listed on these two sites:

https://www.chess.com/article/view/chess-tactics--definitions-and-examples

https://chesstempo.com/tactical-motifs.html