Filter
Top Products
preference for attack at all costs, and
Anderssen was one of the most ingenious
attackers of all time. After
18. Bd6, he gives
away both of his rooks and his queen! In the
final position, his tiny force is deployed in
just the right way to bring the complete Black
army to its knees.
2. Adolf Anderssen vs. J. Dufresne,
Berlin, 1852
Again we see Anderssen bamboozling his
opponent. The game starts as an Evan's
Gambit, a form of the Giuoco Piano. White's
19th move, Rad1!! is one of the most cele-
brated in the history of the game. With his
reply, … Qxf3, Black actually wins a knight
and threatens mate. You'd think that would
be enough! But Anderssen follows with a
rook and queen sacrifice that forces check-
mate in a shower of brilliant blows. This
classic is known as the "Evergreen Game."
3. Paul Morphy vs. Duke Karl
& Count Isouard, Paris, 1858
While in Paris at the opera, the brilliant,
unofficial world champion from New
Orleans plays an offhand game against two
noblemen. In this case, we're sure it was over
before the fat lady sang! In a Philidor
Defense, the team of two played a weak 3.
… Bg5 that left Morphy with superior devel-
opment (more of his pieces are deployed)
and the bishop pair (two bishops against a
bishop and knight). These two important
advantages were all Morphy needed. After
Black wastes even more time with another
pawn move, 9. … b5?, Morphy hits the duo
with a series of brilliant sacrifices to mate.
Victory of mind over material is the poetry
of chess.
4.Wilhelm Steinitz vs. Kurt von
Bardeleben, Hastings, 1895
Wilhelm Steinitz, the first official world
champion, begins this game as a Giuoco
Piano. He maneuvers deftly to keep his
opponent from castling into safety. Then he
sacrifices his pawn on d5 so that he can
make the square available for his knight. But
the most brilliant move of the game is 22.
Rxe7+. At first glance, it simply looks like a
blunder. All of White's pieces are attacked,
and if Black wasn't in check, he could play
… Rxc1+ with mate next. But if Black can't
take the rook—with either his king or
queen—he loses in all variations. And by not
taking it, he is eventually mated anyway. If
you're interested in these complex lines, you
can find a complete explanation of this clas-
sic game in many books.
5. Alexander Alekhine vs.
O. Tenner, Cologne, 1911
World Champion Alekhine was a chess
fanatic (he even named his cat "Chess") and
one of the greatest attacking players of all
time. Here he plays the unusual Bishop's
Opening and seems to be developing quietly.
Black even appears to be getting a good
game just at the time Alekhine is able to play
the swashbuckling 11. Nxe5, allowing Black
to capture his queen. Black's king is forced
to march to the center of the board, an
unhealthy spot for a monarch when so many
pieces are still on the board, where he is
mated. It's important to understand that such
sacrifices don't just happen illogically.
White's pieces again had a dominating com-
mand of the board, and Black allowed
White's pressure on f7, Black's most sensi-
tive defensive square when he hasn't castled,
to build into an explosion.
6. Gaudersen vs. Paul, Melbourne, 1928
This "miniature" of only 15 moves, starts off
as a French Defense in which White plays
the Advance Variation, placing his pawns on
d4 and e5. Black's 8th move, castling, was in
this case a blunder because his kingside is
attacked by many pieces and not effectively
defended. White's sparkling 9. Bxh7+ is an
example of a bishop sacrifice that's hap-
pened so often it has a name—the "Greek
Gift." White's 14. Nxe6+ is an example of a
discovered check, the dive bomber of the
chessboard. White's amusing 15th move is a
very rare example of checkmate with the en
passant capture.
31
ENGLISH
the world’s most brilliant
games!)
To access this feature, at the
beginning of a game, press
MODE until “GA ME” is dis-
played. Then press
> until the
number of the great game (see
list below) you want to see is
displayed in the upper left of the
display. (You can use
< to
“loop” backward in the list. For
example, if you want to select
Great Game 15, it’s faster to use
the
< key.)
Along with the game number,
you will see the position of the
game after the first two moves
were played. King Arthur will
automatically give you the win-
ning side. Make the best move
you find!
King Arthur will give you
points for each correct move
that you make. The display will
show your total great-game
score in two digits (zero at the
start) on the left. On the right,
the display also shows the
amount of points you will win if
you play the correct next great-
game move.
If you don’t play the correct
great-game move, an error buzz
will sound, the incorrect move
will NOT be played, and the
points for this move will be
divided in half. If the bonus goes
to zero, the correct move will
automatically flash. Most moves
start with 4 bonus points, but
some brilliant moves start with 8
points.
These famous games by some
of the most brilliant chess mas-
ters of all time can be found,
along with full explanations of
the reasoning behind the bril-
liant moves, in many books on
chess.
The numbers, players, loca-
tions, and dates of the great
games are given below, along
with a brief explanation of each
game by popular chess writer Al
Lawrence. (All game explana-
tions are ©2000, 2003, 2006 by
Al Lawrence; all rights
reserved.)
1. Adolf Anderssen vs. Lionel
Kieseritsky, London, 1851
This marvelous attacking game, a King's
Gambit, is widely known as "The Immortal
Game." Both players show the 19th-century
30
ENGLISH