National Chess Day: The Original Strategy Game That’s Still Undefeated

October 11th is National Chess Day—and before you roll your eyes and think “that’s for old guys in parks,” hear me out.

As someone who’s spent thousands of hours gaming (yes, I have opinions about the latest RPG releases) and equally as many hours helping people navigate their mental health, I can tell you this: chess is the OG mind game that hits different.

It’s like Dark Souls met therapy and they had a baby on a checkered board.

Why Chess Slaps (And I’m Not Just Saying That)

Look, I love a good video game boss fight as much as the next person. But chess? Chess is the ultimate PvP experience that’s been running for over 1,500 years without a single patch or DLC.

Here’s what makes it special:

It’s Pure Strategy, Zero RNG: No lucky crits. No random loot drops. No “the algorithm decided you lose today.” Just you, your opponent, and whoever makes better decisions. It’s brutally fair in a way that most games aren’t.

Every Game is Different: There are more possible chess games than atoms in the observable universe. Read that again. You could play every single day for the rest of your life and never play the same game twice.

The Mental Workout is Real: As a therapist, I geek out over things that build cognitive skills. Chess improves pattern recognition, impulse control, planning ahead, and dealing with consequences. Basically, it’s executive function training disguised as fun.

The Comeback Potential: Down material? Position looks hopeless? One brilliant move can flip everything. If that’s not a metaphor for life, I don’t know what is.

The Mental Health Angle (Because I Can’t Help Myself)

Chess teaches some genuinely valuable life skills:

Patience: You can’t button-mash your way to victory. You have to think, wait, plan. In our instant-gratification world, this is actually radical.

Accepting Mistakes: You’re going to blunder. Everyone does. Even grandmasters hang pieces sometimes. Learning to move forward after a mistake instead of rage-quitting? That’s emotional regulation, baby.

Sitting with Discomfort: That feeling when your opponent makes a move you didn’t expect and you have to figure out what they’re planning? That’s anxiety tolerance training. You learn to stay calm and think clearly even when things feel uncertain.

The Joy of Improvement: Chess has a rating system that tracks your progress. Watching your rating climb because you’re actually getting better? Chef’s kiss. That’s some good dopamine right there.

Getting Started (Without Feeling Dumb)

Learn the Basics: Each piece moves differently. That’s literally it to start. The rest is just practice and pattern recognition.

• Pawns are your adorable forward-only babies
• Rooks are your straight-line powerhouses
• Knights are chaotic and jump around (love them)
• Bishops are the diagonal queens
• The Queen is an absolute unit (most powerful piece)
• The King is precious and must be protected at all costs

Where to Play:

Chess.com or Lichess.org are your go-to spots. Both have:

• Tutorials that don’t make you feel like an idiot
• Puzzles (these are addictive)
• Players at every level
• Analysis tools that show you where you messed up (ouch but helpful)

Lichess is completely free. Chess.com has a freemium model. Both are excellent.

Start with Puzzles: Seriously, do chess puzzles. They’re like brain teasers but actually useful. You’ll learn tactics without the pressure of a full game. Plus, they’re weirdly satisfying when you spot the winning move.

The Cool Chess Things Nobody Told You

The Speedrun Genre Started Here: Bullet chess (1 minute total per player) and Blitz (3-5 minutes) are absolute chaos. It’s like speedrunning but against another human who’s also speedrunning. The adrenaline is real.

Chess Boxing is a Thing: Literally alternating rounds of chess and boxing. I am not making this up. It’s as wild as it sounds.

The Drama is Unmatched: Chess has beef, controversies, and plot twists that rival any gaming community. Google “Hans Niemann controversy” if you want to fall down a rabbit hole.

Streamers are Hilarious: GothamChess, Botez sisters, Hikaru—the chess streaming community is surprisingly entertaining. They make it accessible and funny.

The Lore Goes Deep: Every opening has a name and a history. The Italian Game. The Sicilian Defense. The Queen’s Gambit (yes, like the show). Learning these feels like unlocking achievement lore.

Make it Your Thing

Play with Friends: Nothing beats talking trash over a chess board. Set up a game during lunch, after school, or while hanging out. Loser buys coffee.

Join a Club: Most schools and communities have chess clubs. They’re usually super welcoming to beginners. Plus, you’ll meet people who appreciate a good strategic mind.

Set Small Goals:

• Learn one new opening
• Solve 10 puzzles a day
• Play one game where you don’t blunder a piece
• Reach a specific rating milestone

Watch Content: Honestly, chess YouTube is peak content. You’ll learn without even realizing it.

Why This Matters (Getting Serious for a Second)

In my therapy practice, I see a lot of people—especially teens and young adults—struggling with feeling capable and competent. Everything moves so fast, and there’s so much pressure to be instantly good at things.

Chess teaches you that mastery takes time. That losing is part of learning. That thinking before acting matters. That you can recover from mistakes and still win.

These aren’t just chess skills. These are life skills.

Plus, it’s one of those rare things where age, size, and physical ability don’t matter. Your 70-year-old neighbor can absolutely destroy you on the board, and that’s beautiful.

Bottom Line

National Chess Day (October 11th) is your invitation to try something that’s simultaneously ancient and timeless, simple and infinitely complex, frustrating and deeply rewarding.

It’s a game that respects your intelligence. That rewards patience and planning. That teaches you to think several moves ahead—in chess and in life.

So download an app. Play a game. Solve a puzzle. Join the millions of people who’ve discovered that moving pieces on a board is somehow one of the most engaging things you can do with your brain.

And who knows? Maybe you’ll find your new obsession.

Just don’t blame me when it’s 2 AM and you’re muttering “just one more game” for the fifteenth time.

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Real talk: I’m around 1400 rated on Lichess and I still hang pieces regularly. We’re all just out here doing our best. Happy National Chess Day! 🎮♟️