Reviewing the new-look ChessBase Magazine

by Davide Nastasio
1/30/2019 – Daily training to improve and keep us in shape has to be fun as well as intellectually enlightening. We need to keep up our interest in order to perform well in tournaments. Reviewer DAVIDE NASTASIO likes to do that by engaging with a variety of learning tools. This time he turns his training eye on the new ChessBase Magazine. CBM encompasses different training methods covering all areas, from theoretical opening articles, to tactical and endgame training with video feedback. CBM 187 is a great way to translate your training time into practical success. Here's an overview with examples.

Anand, So, Gelfand, Duda, Shankland, Navara, Adams, etc. annotate the games of the WCh match. Chess Olympiad with video specials by Pelletier. Plus 11 opening articles with new repertoire idesas, e.g. 1.e4 Nc6 or a new recipe in the London System!

A review of CBM 187

I love books and magazines on paper but there's a problem on the horizon. A week ago my wife came into my office, and began the conversation with: "I don't want to start an argument...but you have a lot of chess books, shouldn't you sell some?" For those not married, ask a married friend to decipher this conversation. In a nutshell, she wanted me to get rid of my chess books and...it is not going to happen!

CBM 187 coverHowever, I must admit I receive a lot of magazines, they often occupy a huge amount of space, so I cleaned that part of the office. Before throwing them away (and throwing a piece of my hoarder heart with them!) I asked my friend Jeff if he wanted them. Jeff is married too, and for more years than me, and obviously he didn't fall for the trap I was setting (their marriage is safe!).

Now, I don't want to throw them away, but I couldn't keep them either. Unfortunately, I don't have time to scan them as PDFs. And yet, there is a magazine I truly love, because I have all the copies — from the day I first subscribed until today — on a special 200 GB Micro SD memory card. And my wife doesn't even know it! Yes, as you've surmised, I'm talking about ChessBase Magazine!

When the sheer volume of my growing CBM library gets too big for my Micro SD, I will simply switch to a bigger memory card to keep my CBMs safe, and out of reach of any cruel party-pooper well-meaning soul who suggests that I throw them away!

After revealing my daily ordeal (TMI?), let's come to review the latest edition of this great product — now with a new upgraded layout!

Ideas for your repertoire

The first thing I do when I get the new CBM is to go directly to the opening section called: "Ideas for your repertoire." I have a tournament every other weekend, so I use this section to review my openings, plan to update them or just to get new ideas to fight against the usual suspects I face. This basic opening repertoire maintenance is important for every tournament player.

One funny thing which has happened is the following: the first four articles of issue 187 were articles I was actually very interested in reading and learning from. There are a total of eleven theoretical articles, plus a section dedicated to opening traps and a collection of opening videos. The section on traps is based on eight positions, three of which are also presented in video form — if I understood well, the videos are part of a larger video series on opening traps which may be released in the future.

The section on Opening videos is made up of three videos, for a total of an hour on the French, the Ruy Lopez and the Reti

GM Daniel Naroditsky is a new addition to the list of CBM contributors

Returning to the theoretical articles, GM Naroditsky came out with an interesting idea for playing the London system. Practically if Black plays aggressively trying to immediately attack the centre with c7-c5, White will take on c5 and try to keep the pawn in a kind of reversed Queen's Gambit Accepted. The article is based on five extremely well-annotated games, which cover all possible Black replies — even sidelines.​

The article covers the lines after the moves 1.d4 d5 2. Bf4 Nf6 3.e3 c5 4.dxc5:

 
"London System revisited"

While I don't want to spoil the article, I'd like to share some interesting games I found thanks to my Mega Database 2019. The reason I share them is related to the fact that in the next two weeks I have a pair of tournaments, so I can give an example on how one can prepare thanks to the ChessBase's tools together with CBM. Practically speaking, the article is our guide, but then we must complete our preparation by seeing additional games, and playing the lines studied online or against Fritz.

 
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1.d4 d5 2.Bf4 Nf6 3.e3 c5 4.dxc5 Nc6 5.Bb5 e6 6.b4 a5 7.c3 Bd7 8.Qe2 axb4 9.Bxc6 Bxc6 10.cxb4 d4 11.Nf3 Nd5 12.0-0 Nxb4 13.Nxd4 Bxc5 14.Nxe6 fxe6 15.Qh5+ g6 16.Qxc5 Qd5 17.Qxd5 Nxd5 18.Be5 0-0 19.Nd2 Ra4 20.a3 Nb6 21.Rfc1 Rd8 22.Rc2 Rd3 23.Bb2 g5 24.h3 h6 25.Bd4 Nd7 26.Nc4 Rb3 27.Rb2 Rxb2 28.Nxb2 Ra6 29.Nd3 Bb5 30.Nb4 Ra8 31.Rb1 Kf7 32.Nc2 Bc6 33.Rc1 Bb5 34.Rb1 Bc6 35.Bb2 Nb6 36.Nd4 Be4 37.Rc1 Rc8 38.Rxc8 Nxc8 39.f3 Bd3 40.Nb3 Bb5 41.Nc5 b6 42.Ne4 Bc6 43.Nd2 b5 44.Kf2 Nb6 45.e4 h5 46.Bd4 Nd7 47.Nb3 Nb8 48.Be5 Nd7 49.Bc7 Nf8 50.g4 hxg4 51.hxg4 Ke7 52.Ke3 Ng6 53.Kd4 Nh4 54.Nd2 Be8 55.Bg3 Bd7 56.e5 Bc6 57.Bxh4 gxh4 58.Ke3 Kf7 59.Kf2 Kg6 60.f4 1–0
  • Start an analysis engine:
  • Try maximizing the board:
  • Use the four cursor keys to replay the game. Make moves to analyse yourself.
  • Press Ctrl-B to rotate the board.
  • Drag the split bars between window panes.
  • Download&Clip PGN/GIF/FEN/QR Codes. Share the game.
  • Games viewed here will automatically be stored in your cloud clipboard (if you are logged in). Use the cloud clipboard also in ChessBase.
  • Create an account to access the games cloud.
WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Rowson,J2572Dorfman,J26031–02005D00FRA-chT Top 16 GpA9
Winants,L2519Brenninkmeijer,J2508½–½2004D00NED-chT 04053.3
Winants,L2529Doettling,F2542½–½2005D00NED-chT 05064.2
Schlindwein,R2407Hess,M21891–02006D00Oberliga Baden 05068.2
Georgiev,V2586Byron,A21901–02010D00South Wales op 7th1

It's no overstatement to say that thanks to ChessBase, my preparation — as an adult with limited time to use for studying chess — has never been easier.

The second article I studied was written by GM Igor Stohl, he explains how White can play against the reversed Sicilian: 1.c4 e5 without the need of playing a kingside fianchetto with g3 and Bg2. He gives a practical repertoire based on 1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.e3

 
English without Kingside Fianchetto

This article includes nine deeply annotated games, which would fill more than 50 pages if printed! Here's another advantage of not having the magazine on paper, it can go quite deep into the theory, without occupying half a bookshelf in the process!

Another important article, which I do recommend you study is by GM Evgeny Postny on the symmetrical English. His idea was to find a way to break the symmetry (when Black's copying White's moves) and consequently bring Black into a dark forest where he could get lost.

I began to learn the English because last year few books were devoted to it, and I was trying to find a weapon for White which would oblige the opponent to think instead of just following the published theory. However, while my results with 1.c4 e5 were good, I found it difficult to break down the wall of 1.c4 c5. One can imagine my happiness in finding this article! Many of the ideas in it are quite enlightening on precisely this topic.

The article begins with the moves: 1.Nf3 c5 2.c4 Nc6 3.Nc3 e5 4.e3, Nf6 5.d4:

 
New Ideas on the Symmetrical English

It is based on ten games and, as mentioned before, they are well annotated. Here is just one of the games from the article to show the level of annotation:

 
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1.Nf3 c5 2.c4 Nc6 3.Nc3 e5 4.e3 Nf6 5.d4 e4 6.Ne5 g6 7.g4 Typical of the aggressive style of Mamedyarov. 7.Be2 Bg7 8.0-0 8.Rb1 0-0 9.Nxc6 dxc6 10.dxc5 Qxd1+ 11.Kxd1 Re8 12.Kc2 Re5 13.b4 Rg5 14.g3 Bh3 15.Kb3 15.Bf1 Be6 16.Bb2 Rf5 17.Nd1 Ng4 18.Be2 h5 1/2-1/2 (36) Wang,H (2735) -Grischuk,A (2783) Beijing 2013 15...Rf5?! 15...a5! 16.a3 Rf5 17.Bf1 Bg4 18.h3 a4+! This is the point. 19.Ka2 19.Nxa4? Bd1+-+ 19...Rxf2+ and Black is on top. 16.Bf1 Bg4 17.h3 Bf3 18.Rg1 1-0 (48) Wang,H (2700)-Yu,Y (2734) Shenzhen 2015 8.Nxc6 dxc6 9.dxc5 Qa5 is perfectly okay for Black. 8.b3 0-0 9.Bb2 cxd4 10.exd4 Re8 11.0-0 d6 12.Nxc6 bxc6= 0-1 (43) Prohaszka,P (2583)-Almasi,Z (2707) Germany 2013 8...0-0 9.b3 9.Nxc6 dxc6 10.dxc5 Qa5 11.Qc2 11.Na4 Rd8 12.Qc2 Bg4 13.b4 Qxb4 14.Bxg4 Nxg4 15.Rb1 Qa5 16.Rxb7 Ne5= 0-1 (40) Kaufman,R (2315) -Shabalov,A (2520) Bethesda 2015 11...Qxc5 12.Rd1 Re8 13.b3 h5 14.Bb2 h4 15.Qd2 Qg5 0-1 (34) Mozharov,M (2510)-Belov,V (2641) Moscow 2013 9...Ne7 9...cxd4?! 10.exd4 Re8 11.Bf4 d6 12.Nxc6 bxc6 13.Rc1 d5 14.Qd2 1-0 (53) Kramnik,V (2781)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2711) Moscow 2011 10.Bb2 10.Ng4 Nxg4 11.Bxg4 f5 12.Be2 Nc6 13.Ba3 d6 1-0 (50) Petrov,N (2573) -Gabrielian,A (2502) Lisbon 2018 10.f3?! d6 11.Ng4 Nxg4 12.fxg4 Nc6 1/2-1/2 (41) Ding,L (2702)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2705) Saint Louis 2012 10...d6 11.Ng4 Bxg4 12.Bxg4 Nxg4 13.Qxg4 f5 14.Qe2 cxd4 15.exd4 d5 15...Bxd4?! 16.Rad1 Be5 17.c5 16.Rfd1 Qa5= 1/2-1/2 (28) Zlotkowski,A (2401) -Ingersol,H (2400) ICCF email 2015 7.Rb1 Bg7 7...h5 8.Be2 Qe7 9.b3! cxd4 10.exd4 d6 11.Nxc6 bxc6 12.Bg5 Bf5 13.0-0 Bh6 14.Bxh6 Rxh6 15.Qc1 Rh8 16.Qf4 Kf8 17.b4 1/2-1/2 (65) Kramnik,V (2785)-Grischuk,A (2747) Kazan 2011 8.Nxc6 dxc6 9.dxc5 Qxd1+ 10.Kxd1 10.Nxd1 Nd7 11.Bd2 a5 12.Bc3 Bxc3+ 13.Nxc3 1/2-1/2 (13) Buhmann,R (2578)-Hamdouchi,H (2602) Haguenau 2013 10...0-0 11.h3 Re8 12.Bd2 Nd7 13.Na4 a5 13...Ne5?! 14.Bc3 Be6 15.b3 Rad8+ 16.Kc2 Nd3 17.Bxd3 exd3+ 18.Kd2± 1-0 (80) Meier,G (2647) -Vachier Lagrave,M (2793) chess.com INT 2018 14.Be2 Bf8 15.Bc3 Nxc5 16.Nb6 Ra6 17.Nxc8 Rxc8= 1/2-1/2 (21) Loeffler,W (2100)-Offenborn,H (2133) GER email 2014 7...h6 8.Bg2 Bg7 9.h3 9.h4 d5 9...cxd4?! 10.exd4 d5 11.g5 hxg5 12.hxg5 Rxh1+ 13.Bxh1 Nh5 14.cxd5 14.Qa4± 14...Nxe5 15.dxe5 Bxe5 16.Be3 Nf4 17.Qa4+ Kf8 18.0-0-0?! 18.Nxe4± 18...Bg4∞ 1/2-1/2 (44) Buhmann,R (2569)-Bosiocic,M (2542) Austria 2014 9...Qe7 is an interesting computer suggestion. It looks very risky to allow g4-g5, followed by the knight move to d5, but Black has counter-chances. 10.g5 hxg5 11.hxg5 Rxh1+ 12.Bxh1 Nh7 12...Nh5 13.Nxe4 cxd4 14.exd4 Nxd4 15.Qxd4 Bxe5 16.Qd3 13.Nd5 Qd8 14.Nxg6 fxg6 15.Bxe4 Qxg5 16.Nc7+ Kd8 17.Nxa8 cxd4 with a total mess on the board. 10.g5 10.cxd5 Nxd5 11.Nxe4 cxd4 12.exd4 0-0 12...Nxe5 13.dxe5 Bxe5 14.h5 13.h5 13.Nxc6?! bxc6 14.h5 f5 13...Nxe5 14.dxe5 Nb4 15.Bxh6 Bxh6 16.hxg6 Qxd1+ 17.Rxd1 Bg7 18.gxf7+ Rxf7 19.Rd8+ Rf8 20.Nf6+ Bxf6 21.Rxf8+ Kxf8 22.exf6 Kf7 23.Rh8 Kxf6 and this exciting stuff should end in a draw. 10...hxg5 11.hxg5 Rxh1+ 12.Bxh1 Nd7 12...Nh7! 13.cxd5 Nxe5 14.dxe5 Nxg5 15.Nxe4 Bxe5 13.Nxd7 cxd4 14.Nf6+ Bxf6 15.gxf6? Wrong recapture. 15.exd4 is in White's favour. 15...dxc3 16.cxd5 Ne5 17.Qa4+ Kf8 18.Bxe4 Qxf6 19.bxc3 Bg4 1/2-1/2 (25) Li,C (2722)-Borovikov,V (2556) Heusenstamm 2014 9.0-0?! Qe7 10.f4 exf3 11.Qxf3 0-0 12.Nxc6 dxc6 13.h3 h5 14.gxh5 Nxh5 15.d5 Bd7 16.Bd2 Rae8 0-1 (42) Fridman,D (2602)-Almasi,Z (2707) Bastia 2013 9...Qe7 9...d5?! 10.cxd5 Nxd5 11.Nxe4 Nxe5 12.dxe5 Bxe5 13.0-0 and Black can't protect the Pc5. But 13.Nxc5? is premature: Qa5+ 14.Kf1 Nb4 10.b3 cxd4?! 10...Nxe5?! 11.dxe5 Qxe5 12.Bb2± 10...d6? 11.Nxc6 bxc6 12.dxc5 dxc5 13.Qc2 0-0 14.Bb2± 10...Nb4! This awkward move is the real test for White's idea. The point is to move the knight away from the exchange and then to trap the white knight by d7-d6. 11.a3 Na6 12.0-0 d6 The knight is trapped, but White can pin his hopes on his heavy mass in the centre. 13.f4 dxe5 Black doesn't have to grab the knight immediatly. After 13...0-0 White should bring his queenside rook into play by 14.Ra2! 14.fxe5 14.dxe5 Nh7 15.Nxe4 0-0 16.Qd6 Qxd6 17.Nxd6 14...Nh7 15.Nxe4 0-0 16.Ra2 f6 with a double-edged position. All three results are possible. 11.exd4 Nxe5?! 11...0-0 12.0-0 Nxe5 13.dxe5 Qxe5 14.Bb2 d5 15.Qc1 d4 16.Ne2 Rd8 17.Rd1 12.dxe5 Qxe5 13.Bb2 d5 14.Qe2 Qe7 15.cxd5 0-0 16.0-0 Re8 17.Rfe1 Bd7 18.Nxe4 Nxe4 19.Bxg7 Kxg7 20.Qxe4 Qxe4 21.Bxe4 White is a pawn up, but Black keeps reasonable chances for a draw. h5? 21...Rac8 would be a normal continuation. 22.gxh5 gxh5 23.h4! Now Black has another weakness. Mamedyarov convincingly brought home the full point. Rac8 24.Bf3 Rxe1+ 25.Rxe1 Kf6 26.d6 b6 27.Re7 Rd8 28.Bxh5 Be6 29.Rxa7 Rxd6 30.Kg2 Rd8 31.Bf3 Ke5 32.Ra4 1–0
  • Start an analysis engine:
  • Try maximizing the board:
  • Use the four cursor keys to replay the game. Make moves to analyse yourself.
  • Press Ctrl-B to rotate the board.
  • Drag the split bars between window panes.
  • Download&Clip PGN/GIF/FEN/QR Codes. Share the game.
  • Games viewed here will automatically be stored in your cloud clipboard (if you are logged in). Use the cloud clipboard also in ChessBase.
  • Create an account to access the games cloud.
WhiteEloWBlackEloBResYearECOEventRnd
Mamedyarov,S2801Vachier Lagrave,M27791–02018A34Biel GM 51st3

Other theoretical articles presented in issue 187 deal with the Pirc, Caro Kann, Sicilian Dragon, Najdorf, Petroff, Two Knights, Queen's Gambit accepted, and the Queen's Indian.

Top tournaments

If I were an average player, following chess rarely, I think the amount of information presented in an issue of CBM could last me for a year! The section on top tournaments includes the World Championship in London, with all the games annotated by players among the world — like of Anand, Gelfand, Adams, etc. to take turns commenting the games.

Then there is a section dedicated to the Chess Olympiad in Batumi, the Chess.com Isle of Man Open and the European Club Cup.
The tournaments have the entire collection of games played, and the crosstables with results.

Additional videos and more

After checking the theoretical opening articles there are two videos from regular contributors that I never miss. One is by GM Simon Williams who's series Move by Move, explains games, pausing at critical moments to ask the viewer to find the correct continuation while giving feedback if one misses the right move.

The other by GM Dorian Rogozenco is also interesting. Rogozenco analyzes a game, generally one played a long time ago — in this issue, it was Steinitz vs Sellmann played over 100 years ago. CBM 187 is worth its price just for these two videos! I love the coaching by Williams, while learning more about classical games from Rogozenco is also great fun.

The "Tune your tactics" section is based on nine games, in which a position is chosen by IM Oliver Reeh, the tactical expert at ChessBase, who is now also co-editor of CBM. When one clicks on the game a new screen opens like the following, and one has about 7 minutes to find the right move or series of moves.

In the "Tune your tactics" section there is also a trio of videos made by IM Reeh, quizzing you to find the right moves, with feedback.

ChessBase Magazine comes in two forms, one which is downloadable, with a PDF of the booklet, and one in actual paper and disk form. The paper one comes with some positions where one must find the right combination. In the "Tune your tactics" section there are also the solutions and the explanation. Here's an example of a position found inside the printed booklet:

 
Find the best move
White to play

And here an example of how they look in the printed booklet:

In the above mentioned tactical section, we can find a part which is based on games. When a game is opened it immediately enters training mode, asking a question based on a move. This type of training is more interesting than just solving tactics online because it obliges a player to use the same thinking patterns we use during a tournament game.

By the way, they don't neglect training in the endgame too! In fact, there are two whole sections dedicated to it: one on the endgames from the Olympiad (14 endgames plus 9 positions one can find in the booklet), and one of endgame videos (four of them) in which GM Karsten Mueller tests the viewer!

This is an example of a position coming from the endgame section, which can be also found inside the CBM booklet:

 
How did White cash in his advantage?

Here you can see how the endgame positions are presented in the booklet (remember there's also a PDF for those downloaders who, like me, prefer to CBM digitally instead of having a physical copy!):

The booklet in PDF format also mentions some news, like the fact that GM Christian Bauer is making a video series on 1.e4 Nc6!?.


The Scandinavian is a rarely employed opening on the hightest level und guides your opponent on much less familiar terrain than for example the Sicilian, French or any 1.e4 e5 system. After 1.e4 d5 Black fights for the initiative from move one.


Changing of the guard

This new issue (number 187) is also important for a change in editorial staff. Dr. Steffen Giehring and IM Oliver Reeh are now responsible for editing the magazine now that GM Rainer Knaak has retired after decades of service. I wish them all the best in continuing to give us such good quality and thank them for the huge amount of material.

Indeed, I believe there is arguably too much material in one issue, compared to what a common amateur can actually absorb. The quality of the articles is quite high. Honestly, I cannot even write a complete review of everything one will find inside just this issue of CBM! In a world where people lose interest and focus after 170 characters, pat yourself on the back if you got this far — I could write ten pages for all the material one will find (but don't worry I won't!).

Final thoughts

When I finished my medical nursing degree one advice we all received was to subscribe to a magazine in our professional sector, because it would help us to keep updated with laws and practices. I believe CBM is serving the same fundamental function for the improvement of chess players. Through the many different sections created by professionals, a player can receive an all-around chess education be it the endgame, tactics, or the good-old "guess the move" videos, and get feedback along the way. The opening articles are important because one doesn't have to look for the information alone and instead work efficiently, just focusing on what a titled player recommends in terms of the latest novelties and ideas. Thanks to the integration of ChessBase products, like Fritz, one can play the lines found in the magazine against the engine, and discover potential problems, before they materialize at the board in one's next tournament. I know I will!


Anand, So, Gelfand, Duda, Shankland, Navara, Adams, etc. annotate the games of the WCh match. Chess Olympiad with video specials by Pelletier. Plus 11 opening articles with new repertoire idesas, e.g. 1.e4 Nc6 or a new recipe in the London System!


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Davide is a chess aficionado who regularly reviews books and DVDs.

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