Sometimes a top player has cooked up a nice surprise for a strong opponent. It won't stay unnoticed, and so it can only be used once. But who cares, when the point has been scored? Last weekend Nisipeanu won a nice game in the Bundesliga with 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bb5 Nd4 and now 5.Nxe5!? - find out more about this in ChessVibes Openings #113. Also this week: play aggressively against that annoying Alekhine (1...Nf6) with the Four Pawns Attack!

The latest novelties in your mailbox

Which openings are hot in top level chess? Which are not? Receive the latest opening novelties right in your mailbox with ChessVibes Openings, a weekly PDF magazine (+ PGN!) covering the latest openings news, co-authored by International Masters Merijn van Delft and Robert Ris and published by ChessVibes.

What is ChessVibes Openings?

Every issue consists of a PDF Magazine and the accompanying PGN file. The PDF consists of four pages (A4 size) with the following contents:

• What's hot? A round-up of this week's important opening developments, with statistics about the frequence and score of the week's most important opening novelty (page 1)
• What's not? Which openings are not recommended at the moment, according to the top players? And why not? (page 1)
• Game of the week Each week you'll find the theoretically most important game analysed by our two IMs, with a detailed survey of the opening phase (page 2).
• This week's harvest Four more new important opening ideas from this week (page 3) revealed and described with explanation of the opening and early middlegame (page 3).
• It's Your Move An interactive element: every week two exercises, of which the solutions/explanations will follow one week later. This will improve your understanding of certain opening, middlegame or even endgame themes even further.

How to pay? Click on one of the buttons:

Payments can be done directly via Paypal, or by credit card after creating a Paypal account which takes a minute. Please drop us an email if you prefer to pay by bank transfer!

For Dutch clients it's possible to pay via iDEAL, the Dutch online bank system with which you can pay safely, secure and comfortably.

This week's issue: #113, March 2, 2011

ChessVibes Openings #113 Instead of one major tournament, this week there were many different events. In this issue we mainly focus on the German Bundesliga and also take a look at the 6th Women's Grand Prix. The final event of the series is held in Doha, Qatar. All about the Spanish Four Knights (5.Nxe5!?) which was analysed in our Game of the Week Nisipeanu-Gonda, Bundesliga 2011.

Other lines that are covered:

• Najdorf, 6.Bg5 Nbd7
• Alekhine, Four Pawns
• Slav, Anti-Meran
• English, 1...e5 Four Knights

Last week's issue: #112, February 23, 2011

ChessVibes Openings #112 Le Quang Liem again won the strongest open in the world, despite a loss in the eighth round against the ever-uncompromising Bulgarian Cheparinov - our Game of the Week, featuring the King's Indian Main Line with 11.g4. The Polish Championship was won convincingly by Bartel, ahead of Wojtaszek.

Other lines that are covered:

• Ruy Lopez, 4...Nge7
• Queen's Gambit Accepted, 3.e4
• Bogo-Indian, 4.Nbd2
• Nimzo-Indian, 4.f3 Nc6

Previous issue: #111, February 16, 2011

ChessVibes Openings #111 Just as he did last year, Le Quang Liem is dominating the mega-strong Aeroflot Open in Moscow. This tournament is a real jungle, in which young GMs acquire experience and toughness. Meanwhile, the Polish Championship has started. All about the Semi-Slav with 4.Qb3 which was analysed in our Game of the Week Le Quang Liem-Kamsky, Moscow 2011.

Other lines that are covered:

• Sicilian, Brazilian Taimanov (1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6 5.Nc3 Qc7 6.Be3 a6 7.Qd2 Nf6 8.0–0–0 Be7 9.f3 0–0 10.g4 b5 11.g5 Nh5 12.Nce2 Rd8)
• Semi-Slav (6.Qc2 Bd6 7.Bd3)
• Gruenfeld, Russian System (7...a6)
• King's Indian, 5.h3

Previous issue: #110, February 9, 2011

ChessVibes Openings #110 Ivanchuk won Gibraltar with 9/10, ahead of Short with an equally amazing 8.5/10. Korchnoi also played a great tournament. Anand and Karpov played blitz on a high-speed train and we also take a look at the Moscow Open and the German Bundesliga. All about the Blumenfeld Gambit which was analysed in our Game of the Week Korchnoi - Vallejo Pons, Gibraltar 2011.

Other lines that are covered:

• Ruy Lopez, Exchange (5.0–0 f6 6.d4 Bg4 7.c3 Qe7)
• Scotch Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.c3 dxc3 5.Bc4 cxb2 6.Bxb2)
• QGD, 5.Bf4
• Nimzo-Indian, 4.Qc2

Previous issue: #109, February 2, 2011

ChessVibes Openings #109 In this issue we cover rounds 9-13 of the Tata Steel Chess Tournament in Wijk aan Zee. After the last round Anand said that Nakamura was a bit more unpredictable in his choice of openings. We also have a look at the Gibraltar Masters. All about the Exchange Grünfeld which was analysed in our Game of the Week Nakamura - Vachier-Lagrave, Wijk aan Zee 2011.

Other lines that are covered:

• Najdorf, 6.Be3 e5 7.Nf3
• Chinese Dragon
• QGD, Cambridge-Springs
• Slav, 4.Qb3

Previous issue: #108, January 26, 2011

ChessVibes Openings #108 This week we discuss the games of the Tata tournament played between the first and second rest day, that is, rounds 5-8. Next week we'll cover the final part. With the exception of Grischuk, all the favorites are still in the running for tournament victory. All about the Sicilian Najdorf with an early g4 which was analysed in our Game of the Week Carlsen-Nakamura, Wijk aan Zee 2011.

Other lines that are covered:

• Ruy Lopez, Moeller
• Scotch, Mieses
• Gruenfeld, Exchange
• Gruenfeld, Fianchetto

Previous issue: #107, January 19, 2011

ChessVibes Openings #107 The Tata Steel Chess Tournament has a very attractive field again this year. World Champion Anand seems to be very focused, while Carlsen makes a rather distracted impression. We cover the main theoretical issues of the first four rounds. All about hypersharp Botvinnik Variation of the Semi-Slav which was analysed in our Game of the Week Giri-Smeets, Wijk aan Zee 2011.

Other lines that are covered:

• Ruy Lopez, Archangelsk
• Scotch, Mieses
• Nimzo-Indian, 4.Qc2
• Nimzo-Indian, Saemisch

Ehm... can I have a look?

Here's what ChessVibes Openings #16 (April 22, 2009) looks like:



FREE SAMPLE ISSUE - ChessVibes Openings #16 - click to download!

• What's hot? A round-up of the most important opening developments of mid-April, including statistics about the frequence and score of the Chebanenko position after 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 a6 5.c5 Nbd7 6.Bf4 Nh5 7.Bd2 Nhf6
• What's not? This week 1.e4 e5 was hot, as the top players categorically avoided the Semi-Open Games. Interestingly, the classical 1...d5 was also much more popular than the more modern answers to 1.d4, at the FIDE Grand Prix in Nalchik.
• Game of the week "I didn't spend much time on it before the game, but I prepared seriously for this tournament and we did investigate this line", Peter Leko said at the press conference in Nalchik, after his game against Sergei Karjakin. Page two has a closer look at this highly interesting draw in the Chebanenko.
• This week's harvest For more opening ideas from the Ruy Lopez Marshall, Sicilian Taimanov, Queen's Indian and Ragozin Defence.
• Opening expert This week Rustam Kasimdzhanov is highlighted. The former FIDE World Champion and current second of Anand has a broad repertoire, switching from hypersharp openings like Dragon and Anti-Moscow to positional Queen‚Äôs Gambit lines.

FREE SAMPLE ISSUE - ChessVibes Openings #16 - click to download!

What does it cost?

As a subscriber you'll receive the PDF Magazine and accompanying PGN files in your mailbox every week.

A one-year subscription is € 25 (that's less than € 0.50 per issue!) - for price in US $ click here

How to pay? Click on one of the buttons:

Payments can be done directly via Paypal, or by credit card after creating a Paypal account which takes a minute. Please drop us an email if you prefer to pay by bank transfer!

For Dutch clients it's possible to pay via iDEAL, the Dutch online bank system with which you can pay safely, secure and comfortably.

July 1, 2009: Eugene Manchester reviews ChessVibes Openings for ChessCafe

In the July 1 issue of ChessCafe's Book Review (mirror here) ChessVibes Openings was reviewed by Eugene Manchester. Some quotes: "So, who-ya-gonna-call? Opening busters? Not quite. For the reasonable price of 25 euros per year, once a week you can receive intelligent, interesting opening surveys and analysis presented by a team lead by Dutch IMs Merijn van Delft & Robert Ris."

"The format and presentation are consistently of high quality, with variety of coverage and opening analysis."

"The cost per year is roughly equivalent to a good chess book. Each week you get a four- page issue packed with opening analysis, at least two thoroughly annotated games with one or more of that week's featured openings, a glimpse into the world of the latest opening novelties, in short, a quality weekly opening report."

May 7, 2009: GM Hedinn Steingrimsson reviews ChessVibes Openings for Chess Today

In issues 3103 (Thursday, May 7) of Chess Today, the daily chess newspaper which also comes into your inbox by email in PDF, ChessVibes Openings was reviewed by GM Hedinn Steingrimsson from Iceland. Some quotes: "What I like about ChessVibes Openings is their focus on the trend and discoveries that are revealed in super tournaments and by very strong players. It makes sense for all tournament chess players and opening theoreticians to follow these developments and getting an overview from ChessVibes Openings definitely saves time."

"I find it positive that there is consistency in the openings covered so that the readers will with time have a certain repertoire available based on different theoretical articles from ChessVibes about e.g. the Anti-Moscow Variation."

"For those that really want to find out how to get a better position out of the opening and are willing to enter complications and do some homework in order to succeed, ChessVibes Openings can be recommended."