In March 2011, I wrote an article on the benefits of playing Chess. The article was very well received and is currently the Daily Waffle’s second most read article. In the article I covered mostly the benefits you can get from playing Chess, but not where you can go to play. In this article, I will discuss the different routes you can take to playing Chess and hopefully give you a way you can get yourself playing.
Play Online
One of the easiest ways to begin playing Chess again is to play online. This way you can play at any time of the day or night, against players of any skill level from all over the world. There are two ways of playing chess online; Live Chess, where you play against someone who is online at the same time as you, as if you were in the same room; or Turn-based Chess, where you play your turn and then wait for the individual to make their turn within a set time frame. With literally hundreds of Chess sites in which you can register for free and play against people over the internet, I have chosen my favourite three to share with you:
Chess.com – My favourite site to play on. Offers the chance to either play live or play turn based. Has a number of turn-based tournaments in which you can test your hand against other players from around the globe. Uses the standard Chess ranking system so you can be sure the strength of the player you are playing against. This also means you are never out of your comfort zone or playing players who are either too easy or too hard. They also offer a premium registration which offers a whole host of added extras from as little as £3 a month. The reason I love this site the most is they have a very good iPhone app which allows you to keep up to date with games wherever you are.
ChessCube.com – ChessCube’s website is probably the most advanced I have found from a chess site. The interface is very modern and it feels like a Chess site that young players would be appealed too rather than mid-aged players. The site focuses solely on live games and tends to have a lot of timed, speed chess games. I’ve found that these games have pros and cons, mostly as you don’t really have time to do much thinking.
InstantChess.com – No frills, no registration, no messing about. You basically go to the site, choose a name, click play and you will be instantly pitted against someone live around the world. Perfect for the times you just fancy a game and don’t want to mess about logging in or chossing opponent.
Join a Chess Club
If playing on the computer is not your thing but you don’t have any Chess playing friends, you can always join a local Chess club. Now I know what you are thinking, Chess clubs will be full of academic’s who are all too good and will look down at little old me playing. This is not the case as many chess clubs cater for players of all skill sets and are more than welcoming for new players. If you are looking for somewhere to start, this is the best list of Chess associations and clubs in the UK that I have found and has very comprehensive list.
It is always a daunting experience when joining a new club or starting a new sport or hobby, but just remember that each member of these clubs was in a similar position to you when they first started. The thing that everyone has in common is a love to play Chess and to get others involved in the game, so give a club near you a call and see what they have to say.
Play with your friends
You could be in the position to play chess with a friend or friends. Take advantage of this and arrange a game, or if you have a group of friends then you could always set up a little competition. It maybe that you could teach an enthusiastic friend or partner how to play Chess, this way creating a new player to play with on a regular basis. You never know, they may get bitten with the Chess bug and decide they would like to join a club with you.
These are just a few routes that you can take to get back involved with playing Chess. I hope they help you on your way and get you back involved with the game.