Data, plans, practice – the new Opening Report In ChessBase there are always attempts to show the typical plans of an opening variation. In the age of engines, chess is much more concrete than previously thought. But amateurs in particular love openings with clear plans, see the London System. In ChessBase ’26, three functions deal with the display of plans. The new opening report examines which piece moves or pawn advances are significant for each important variation. In the reference search you can now see on the board where the pieces usually go. If you start the new Monte Carlo analysis, the board also shows the most common figure paths.
The new opening report
The opening report is a comprehensive treatise on all variations of the current board position. Based on historical development, the success statistics of a variation in different Elo ranges are shown. The usual statistics sum up the success and popularity of a variation across all skill levels and thus ignore exciting information. The new report opens your eyes to how different openings work for different skill levels. For example, the Scandinavian is simply bad for Black at top level, but up to Elo1800 it is a convenient, theory-saving way to equalize.
Grandmasters don't like the Scandinavian
After 1.e4 d5 2.exd5 Qxd5 3.Nc3, 3…Qd6 is better than 3…Qa5 in nearly all Elo regions
Furthermore, the opening report shows 3…Qa5 as the most frequently played main system, which is also at the top in all treatises. But the practical chances are higher at every level with 3…Qd6. GMs know this, amateurs apparently don't. The opening report shows that the frequency of 3…Qd6 clearly increases with the Elo rating.
The opening report naturally provides the frequent variations for each main variation. There is a lot of help when deciding what to play: Statistics – of course. But also how popular the system is currently. Then the style of the variation with numerous statements about the positional character, which are known from the style report.
What character does a variation have?
Once you have decided on a move, you play the “instructive” games. These are clear winning games in which a strong player is better or equal against a weaker player after the opening and then shows how to do it right. The report also provides the typical moves of a piece and pawn advances. And finally, the typical tactics. Anyone who has solved all 40 tactical tasks, for example those offered in the Marshall Attack from the Mega Database 2026, has seen the most common motifs. This is practical training!
Plans in the new Reference Search
The new filters catch the eye in the reference search: For example, you can switch off the blitz games with a click. A player filter is also provided, which makes preparation completely easier. With one click you can switch back and forth between a player's repertoire and the overall search.
If you move the mouse over pieces on the board, their typical piece paths and the associated success rate are visualized: The better the results achieved, the greener the move:
The typical knight manoeuvre against Winawer: Nf3-g5-h3-f4-h6. On the other hand, Nf3-h4xg6 is not very successful
Further innovations
Monte Carlo search shows how difficult a position is to win and provides typical figure paths - Fast and easy duplicate search - Elo profile in style report - Instant analysis of a game runs in parallel on several CPUs - New selectable database symbols - New engine management - Faster remote engine with premium account and much more!
ChessBase '26 - Mega package
- ChessBase 26 Program
- 1-year Premium membership
- Mega Database 2026
- Update Service until 31.12.2026 (approx. 5,000 games per week)
- Annual subscription to ChessBase Magazine (6 issues, digital)
* Only in conjunction with a ChessBase Premium account, which is included with the purchase of CB18 (1 year). This also applies to CB18 access to the ChessBase Online Database.
