Winning starts with what you know
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The name 'Opening Encyclopedia 2015' should make it an easy item to describe and ultimately review, or so one would think, but the problem is that it is all this and so much more. In a sense the bullet list provided on the product page does a great job, so let's start with that and then take a closer look at each one:
The database that accompanies this library of information is huge and should easily be enough to book up on any opening, with statistics, and games galore. 5.3 million games is absolutely enormous, and while it may be short of the 6.1 million that comes with Mega Database 2015, there won't be any master or grandmaster games missing. What may be lacking are the (near) endless games by much lower-category players, so if you are hoping to use this to book up on that club player you are scheduled to meet, then the online database should help fill the gap. Still, whether it be Ruy Lopez himself, or Magnus Carlsen, it is all there.
The 83,500 commented games is also worth noting on. For one thing, this is far more than Mega, one of its standout features (another would be its year-long subscription to weekly updates). How is this possible? This is where the Opening Encyclopedia concept kicks in: the hundreds of surveys and articles also include games chosen and commented by the respective authors, though with a focus on the openings as opposed to a Plain Jane game commentary. In any case, all the top game commentary that have also made Mega the ultimate database will also be found within, meaning analysis by Alekhine, Spassky, Kasparov, Anand, and even Magnus Carlsen.
Among the millions of games are commented struggles by top players, including Magnus Carlsen
The ECO, the reference in systematic organization of openings, which includes no fewer than 500 codes used to represent a line, is covered through and through. Of course, you will find exhaustive articles by top experts such as GM Ftacnik, Psakhis, Ribli, Khalifman, and Anand (yes, the World Champion) to name a few. It comes with a staggering 5800 opening surveys, of which 400 have been updated especially for the 2015 edition. Does that mean all the others are hopelessly out of date? Hardly. For one thing, new articles are included each time, and one should remember that a similar claim was made of the 2014 edition, so the updating is an ongoing process.
Still, the surveys are hardly the end-all of end-alls. While useful, and detailed, they might not be the ideal starting point to learn a new opening especially if you are not quite of master strength. That is where the 874 articles come in, up from 799 from last year. What is the difference? Frankly, all the difference in the world. One of the greatest resources for deep looks into openings, aside from the specific instructive DVDs in the ChessBase family is ChessBase Magazine with the numerous articles that appear in each edition. As a rule, these really cover the full range of types of openings, and readers will find just about every gambit worth mentioning (and no doubt many you never heard of), but also articles on serious main lines from the Ruy Lopez, to the Slav, to the Gruenfeld. You name it, you will find it.
If you are feeling short of inspiration and seeking something unusual to spring on your opponents online or live, herein you will never ever have an excuse for repetitive opening play again. Above is a sample taken randomly from the list. Ruy Lopez with 9...Rb8. I initially read 9...Nb8 and wondered why it didn't just say the Breyer, until my brain finally registered the rook was moving to b8, not the knight. Fascinating. The author is GM Dejan Bojkov, so however offbeat it may be, you will leave on solid footing.
Note that this also comes with eight commented games, chosen and annotated specifically for the CBM article
Finally, there is a giant opening book, as used by the chess engines, for consulting and of course using. A question that comes up fairly often, especially by the chess engine aficionados, is whether this might not be the ultimate opening book. The answer is: yes and no. Certainly in sheer scope of the openings within it and the size, it is incredibly impressive. However it was not designed as a direct competitive tool, finetuned to trip and defeat. It is designed to give instant statistics with references to all that there is. If you want to be sure Komodo 9, or whatever your opponent is, will be testing you in your opening of choice, then this opening book may be ideal.
What can one say about a database/opening product that covers so many bases and does so many things so well? As a source for new openings, or simply discovering and seeing all that there is, you will be well-served. Feeling bored? Open up the list of articles and choose one at random. Read up on it, and play it. You will be very hard pressed (a euphemism for impossible) to exhaust its wealth.
The Opening Encyclopedia 2015 can be purchased in the ChessBase Shop
