Some chess openings are more powerful than others. Using these powerful chess openings can aid in improving your game, as well as increase your chances of winning.
It's beneficial to recognize and understand the best openings. Having this knowledge can help you know what openings are the best for certain situations, and ultimately lead to your confidence being increased in the game's beginning phase.
Some of the most commonly used chess openings that allow for a great start to any game are:
Ruy Lopez
This chess opening is also known as the “Spanish Game.” The naming behind this opening is after Rodrigo (Ruy) Lopez de Segura, who was a Spanish bishop.
The reason for the chess opening being named after the Spanish bishop is because this particular chess opening was analyzed in his 1561 work, “Libro de la Invencion Liberal y Arte del Juego del Axedrez.” This translated to “The Book of the Liberal Invention and Art of the Game of Chess.”
The chess opening highlighted in this book still remains as one of the most popular chess openings, even after nearly half a millennium of being discovered. Chess experts have formulated numerous variations, and there are a vast amount of strategic plans that are available for black and white.
Ruy Lopez’s started position is reached after these moves:
1. e4, e5
2. Nf3, Nc6
3. Bb5
Some of Ruy Lopez's popular lines are the Berlin defense, Steinitz defense, and the Morphy defense. All of these variations, as well as other variations, led to several sub-variations.
Italian Game
The Italian Game was first developed in the 1600s and also called the “giuoco piano,” which translates to “the quiet game.” Although it remained popular in the 19th century, it has been replaced by the Ruy Lopez as white’s favorite choice on the third move.
Using this opening helps Bc4 threaten black's moderately defenseless f7 pawn. However, there are better defensive techniques nowadays that show this to be less dangerous than Bb5.
The Italian Game can still be a useful move as it leads to open aggressive positions, which can be quite fun. Although the Italian Game isn't seen to be as effective as the Ruy Lopez, it still is very popular with all levels, especially among club players. Variations included in the Italian Game are the Hungarian defense and the two knights defense.
The following moves reach the Italian Game:
1. e4, e5
2. Nf3, Nc6
3. Bc4
The French Defense
This chess opening (1. e4, e6) grants central space to white while limiting the scope of the king's bishop. However, the French Defense also prevents tactics against f7 to be formulated. Added to this, black is allowed activity on the queenside and can counterplay in the center.
After the most standard line of 2. d4, d5, white's 'e' is automatically threatened. This leads to whites deciding how to deal with this pressure. This sparks several variations that can include the advance variation, exchange variation, Tarrasch variation, classical variation, and Winawer variation.
These are just some of the most popular chess opening moves. There are many out there, and the more you play, the easier it is to find out which is your favorite.
