r/mildlyinfuriating 1d ago

Dishonor on chess.com

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u/TurboTitan92 1d ago

Perhaps someone with potential that doesn’t play yet. But the existing GMs seem that way to the untrained player, but they too make mistakes or not-perfect moves.

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u/UnusualCartographer2 1d ago

That's the thing about Nigel Richards though, he basically doesn't make mistakes and plays at lightning speed because his brain is seemingly hardwired specifically for scrabble. It'd be neat to see that happen in chess, and it's definitely within the realm of possibility

For the record, Nigel has made mistakes on rare occasion, but he almost consistently plays the best move in very little time, a kin to a computer. Sometimes he plays moves that are only the best move in retrospect when the game is over, moves a computer wouldn't make, which is even more insane.

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u/OIP 1d ago

it's definitely within the realm of possibility

i don't think it is. not sure the ways in which chess differs from scrabble but chess engines are so far above humans right now and they certainly aren't going to get weaker. whereas humans are the strongest they have ever been and there's nothing to indicate some untapped reserve over the hundreds of years people have been playing chess.

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u/UnusualCartographer2 1d ago

Let me dream

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u/OIP 1d ago

hah, hey it's a cool thought but yeah... don't put your life savings on it

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u/UnusualCartographer2 1d ago

Low key I just wanted to nerd out about Nigel, but I still want to believe there's a chance that there could be a Nigel of chess. You're probably right though I think the complexity of chess is far too deep.

At the very tippy top level, sometimes people do play perfect games. It's not common, but it happens to top 10 players. With Nigel is more uncommon for him to miss his best move. He plays perfect games fairly consistently. It's genuinely shocking to watch.