The ChessBase Mega Database 2020 is the premiere chess database with over eight million games from 1560 to 2019 in high quality. Packing more than 85,000 annotated games, Mega 2020 contains the world‘s largest collection of high-class analysed games. Train like a pro! Prepare for your opponents with ChessBase and the Mega Database 2020. Let grandmasters explain how to best handle your favorite variations, improve your repertoire and much more.
Here's how the automatic update of the Mega Database 2020 with ChessBase 15 works!
When you have started ChessBase, first make sure that you are logged in with your ChessBase account.
The arrow (and your user profile picture) indicates that you are logged in
If you are not yet logged in, the "golden key" icon would, of course, indicate "login". Click on it and the following dialogue box opens to enter your username and password:
When starting ChessBase 15, you'll be prompted to login
A current database with around 5,000 current games will be available each Wednesday. If you miss the update, you will be automatically informed that there are new games the next time you start the program. The notification appears in a small window, bottom left.
To start the Mega-Update-Service, click on the button "New Games"
You will be connected to the update server and be taken to the following program view:
At the top of the screen is the menu to manage and activate your individual update service
In the two windows below, you can see the status of your update service. First, it shows for which years the update service was activated (subscribed) and below you can see which of the databases have you have already downloaded. In the window on the right you will find a table of contents for the respective databases, showing which events are included.
To activate the update service for a calendar year, select the desired calendar year and then click on the "Activate subscription" button in the menu bar:
Note: You must be logged in or else the activation button will be greyed out
Now you will be prompted to enter the activation key, i.e. the serial number of your Mega Database 2020 (for the calendar year 2020). These can be found printed in the DVD box directly under the DVD or, if you installed the download version from our shop, you'll see it in the "MyDownloads" section of your ChessBase Shop account under Mega DataBase 2020.
ChessBase is a personal, stand-alone chess database that has become the standard throughout the world. Everyone uses ChessBase, from the World Champion to the amateur next door. It is the program of choice for anyone who loves the game and wants to know more about it. Start your personal success story with ChessBase and enjoy the game even more.
Click on "OK" to activate delivery for the calendar year 2020
The simplest method to add all new games is to click on the button, "Download Games":
Files marked "Not downloaded " will now be downloaded and automatically imported into your reference database — which should be the Mega Database 2020 (if not, see our earlier tutorial on reference databases). All games of the Mega Database 2020 will be loaded and compared with the "new" games. If the program finds already existing games, they will be displayed separately along with a prompt to indicate which games were skipped. If you click on "Copy", these already existing games will be also be copied into the reference database. Click on "Close" and the menu will be closed.
A progress bar shows the status of the download and import process
The download and import process may take a while depending on how many updates were missing. After downloading the current games, your Mega Database is up to date and includes games played as recently as last week. This is the simplest option for keeping the Mega 2020 current.
But there are alternatives!
The ChessBase Mega Database 2020 is the premiere chess database with over eight million games from 1560 to 2019 in high quality. Packing more than 85,000 annotated games, Mega 2020 contains the world‘s largest collection of high-class analysed games. Train like a pro! Prepare for your opponents with ChessBase and the Mega Database 2020. Let grandmasters explain how to best handle your favorite variations, improve your repertoire and much more.
In addition to the possibility to download the "New Games", you can also download each of the update databases individually by clicking on the desired databases and using "Download selected entries":
If you click on the "Download selected entries" button, only the selected updates will download
This is an option even if they were previously imported into the MegaBase by clicking on "New Games". After the download of the selected games has ended, the program asks where the games of the update should be stored. As a user, you have the option of attaching these to any database — presumably a different database than the reference database. Alternatively, you can also save the individual database(s) locally on your computer.
In the latter case, the database is stored in the ChessBase database path under:
Download → Subscription:
Here the update databases can be edited individually, e.g. with the help of a repertoire report on new developments for your own opening repertoire.
ChessBase Account Premium annual subscription
At the airport, in the hotel or at home on your couch: with the new ChessBase you always have access to the whole ChessBase world: the new ChessBase video library, tactics server, opening training App, the live database with eight million games, Let’s Check and web access to playchess.com
Use of the update service requires a ChessBase Account. Creating an account is free. However, if you wish, you can also activate various paid services with the ChessBase Account.
The ChessBase account is linked to your e-mail address, which means that only one ChessBase Account can be created per e-mail address.
When starting ChessBase 15, the following menu appears:
Click on the option "Create New Account" and follow the steps indicated. That's it!
If you already have a Mega Database Update activated and would like to transfer it to the ChessBase Account, please click on the option "Transfer subscriptions" at the top of the Update menu:
Under "Old name" please enter the e-mail address under which the update service was previously running. And in the "Old password" field, enter your previous password for the update service. After a final click on "OK" you now have access to all old updates via your ChessBase Account.
TIP: All games of the old updates have been added to the Megabase 2020! So in most cases it will not be necessary to download the old updates!
Have an older version of Mega? Then there is an upgrade for you!
The ChessBase Mega Database 2020 is the premiere chess database with over eight million games from 1560 to 2019 in high quality. Packing more than 85,000 annotated games, Mega 2020 contains the world‘s largest collection of high-class analysed games. Train like a pro! Prepare for your opponents with ChessBase and the Mega Database 2020. Let grandmasters explain how to best handle your favorite variations, improve your repertoire and much more.
