Every strategy in chess is important, especially chess opening strategies. There are basically two ways to think about your opening chess strategy; classical and hypermodern.
When opening the game in a classical style you will:
1. establish a strong pawn center,
2. develop both knights to their most influential squares
3. develop both bishops along their central diagonals
4. keep the king side pawns on their original squares and castled behind them.
When opening with a hypermodern style you will:
1. keep the pawns on or behind the third rank
2. develop the knights in a reserved manner
3. place the dark squares bishop in “fianchetto” formation with specific pawns and one bishop.
So which is better to use? Well, it’s a toss up really and depends largely on the players. The classical approach has been suggested for use by beginner and novice players, while the hypermodern approach as a bit more sophisticated and suggested to be used by more advanced players.
Now that we have differentiated between the two main chess openings, let’s take a look at some tried and true opening strategies to increase your chances of winning.
1. Control the center of the board. A good opening strategy is to try and take control over the center board. Generally, the center of the board refers to the center most four squares. The twelve squares adjacent to those four are sometimes called “the extended center.” This can be done by developing a piece that will threaten an opponent’s piece right away so you can take control of the center. The center of the board is where most of the action happens. Pieces usually have to move through or around the center board and with center board control you have more freedom and flexibility in movement over the rest of the board. The person that controls the center of the board during the opening of the game will most likely have more control over the game in whole.
2. Develop your chess pieces. Try not to move a piece more than one time during the opening unless you are certain you can capture an enemy piece and gain something important in return. You need to take some time to develop your pieces before you make too many moves and find yourself regretting your decisions.
3. Knights before Bishops. Always move your knights before you move the bishop. Why? Because it is more clear as to where the knights need to be and where they will best serve their duty than it is with the bishop. The best squares for the bishop usually don’t become apparent until later on in the game.
4. Keep your queen. Bringing the queen out early on in the game will only increase your chances of losing her; and that would be bad. And if you don’t lose her right away you will waste precious time by keeping her from being captured. Don’t move her until you know exactly what you want her to do and where you want her to go.
5. Keep your king safe. This should be quite obvious but sometimes novice players forget about their king because he doesn’t move much. Don’t forget that if you lose the king, you lose the game. Make sure you do everything in your power to safeguard the king.
Chess opening strategies are extremely important, and can sometimes determine the fate of the game itself. Hopefully these basic opening strategies will help you gain control of your chess game and take the win.