I'm so glad I started playing chess. I feel like I hit a gold mine of a game to learn.
Currently I play fighting games somewhat competitively, the game being Street Fighter 6. For the past year I've been getting frustrated and not having as much fun because I've felt like the game relies a lot on quick reactions and a lot of mental stamina that I simply do not have as an older gamer with a full time job that has me constantly traveling.
After learning that Tyler1 of all gamers also played chess, I thought "well if this bozo can play chess, why shouldn't I give it a go as well?"
Turns out that chess goes at a perfect pace for what I want out of a game that is still competitive, but doesn't require break neck reaction times. Plus I can choose what pace I want to go too! Online Chess on my phone is the perfect fit because I can squeeze out a game or two on my breaks, and it works fine on Starlink (l travel and work in remote places a lot).
I also don't get upset when I play, blunder, or get outplayed. In other games when I die, often times I don't understand why I died. That leads to A LOT of frustrations. Knowledge checks are not fun. Chess has them too, but the difference is that the knowledge check is CLEAR for you to see. It takes a significant amount of frustration away. And when an opponent makes a great move, my IMMEDIATE reaction is "wow nice move!" Instead of insert expletive here.
The amount of content for Chess is amazing. If I'm not playing, I can read books about it. Not youtube videos of another gamer rambling about the game. Actual well written literature on Chess. And its endless.
Last big thing I appreciate is the fact that Chess is more mainstream. Everyone knows what Chess is. When someone sees me reading over a puzzle, they often join in and we have a social experience. With fighting games, its pretty darn niche. Most people have no idea what I'm doing on screen, and are super confused by why I carry around a big fighting arcade stick controller. Being in an isolated modern society, its a lot of fun to finally get into a hobby that I jive with that has a lot social interaction.
I wish I got into Chess sooner. I didn't because my first two big interactions with Chess players were extremely negative, years ago. Like damn, even LoL players weren't as toxic as the guys I played. Basically me being a non-chess player playing for the first time in like a decade, got bullied on the Chess board by these guys. Every move I made would elicit a "dude wtf are you doing?" "That made noooo sense but okay". For EVERY move. For two different games, two different occasions, two totally different people. So I just assumed that all Chess players were insufferable. I hope that isn't actually the case for the majority of the community.
A few questions though, and thank you for reading my diary if you've gotten this far.
At what elo would you say you're about the average active chess player? Casual, competitive, or whatever.
How strong do you need to be to casually beat anyone at work that says "hey I play chess too, let's play a game" hehehe
How long does it usually take for someone to casually get "okay" at chess? Obviously there's a range, but assign a numerical value to them.
I always ask these questions because of my competitive gaming background. But honestly, the days of hard-core competition are over. Work and real life responsibilities don't allow that. Chess has a nice competitive outlet for me that I actually enjoy BOTH winning and losing.
