The end of anti-computer chess

Question

In the old days it was possible to beat computers basically by playing slow, closed positions with weaknesses that can be exploited in the long term, beyond the calculation depth of the engine.

As far as algorithms are concerned, what has been done to improve on this weakness of computers? Or is it just the increased calculating power/depth that makes beating computers so much harder nowadays?

Answer 1

Advances in the tactical acuity of the computer programs coupled with hardware improvements to CPU, memory, and disk storage, plus the availability of robust opening book and endgame tables has made them all but unbeatable.

I don't know if computers have strategic "thinking", but their tactical prowess is such that it doesn't really matter.

Answer 2

The development of Monte-Carlo tree-search has been a key element to overcome "horizon-effect" issues for chess softwares in the mid-2000.

Answer 3

Engines like Stockfish (Alphazero may be a different matter) are still not good at finding the best positional moves.

After doing an extensive study of the Fischer game collection, with the help of Stockfish, I just published a book on the theme:

While going through the positional test suite, including 112 test positions, I had to ascertain that Stockfish still fails to solve around one third, but maybe even close to half of the puzzles. With the tactical set, Stockfish has no problems at all, all solved.

Make the conclusions yourselves how weak actually Stockfish is and how strong Fischer.

So, you might just want to forget anything about alleged engine superiority in chess.

Edit: Here comes the FEN:

 [title "Exercice position"]
 [fen "r4rk1/2q1bpp1/pn3n1p/1pp1pP2/6P1/1BP4P/PP1N1P2/R1BQR1K1 w - - 0 17"]

Answer 4

I have explained my strategy in detail in the book.

1. Close the position,

2. Avoid immediate tactics,

3. Use concepts engines don't understand, like compactness of the pawn structure, unsheltered king with closed center,

a very wide range of other sophisticated concepts

[Event "Blitz 2m+2s"]
[Site "Microsoft"]
[Date "2018.02.06"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Lyudmil Tsvetkov, owner"]
[Black "Stockfish 9 64 POPCNT"]
[Result "1-0"]
[Annotator "owner"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "rnbqkbnr/pp1p1ppp/8/8/8/8/PPPPPPPP/RNBQKBNR w KQkq - 0 1"]

 1. e4 {0} Nf6 {2.40/22 12} 2. Nc3 {3} Nc6 {1.75/21 7} 3. Nf3
{2} d5 {1.97/20 3} 4. exd5 {2} Nxd5 {2.15/22 5} 5. Nxd5 {1} Qxd5 {2.09/22 3} 6.
d4 {2} Bf5 {1.92/23 3} 7. c3 {2} Be7 {2.01/20 4} 8. Bd3 {2} O-O {2.02/21 3} 9.
Bxf5 {3} Qxf5 {2.17/19 2} 10. O-O {2} Rfe8 {2.09/22 3} 11. Be3 {2} Bf6 {2.23/
23 22} 12. Qb1 {2} Qd5 {2.07/22 0} 13. Qd3 {3} Rad8 {2.19/20 4} 14. Rfe1 {6} g6
{2.32/21 7} 15. Bd2 {5} Ne5 {2.30/19 3} 16. Nxe5 {3} Bxe5 {2.25/22 2} 17. b3 {
16} b5 {2.18/21 6} 18. Qf1 {0} h5 {2.42/22 19} 19. Rad1 {0} Bf6 {2.70/24 11}
20. Rxe8+ {2} Rxe8 {2.89/23 2} 21. Be3 {0} Rc8 {2.86/24 5} 22. Qd3 {6} Qf5 {3.
01/25 0} 23. Qxf5 {0} gxf5 {3.17/23 3} 24. Rc1 {5} Kf8 {3.24/25 9} 25. c4 {14}
bxc4 {2.46/22 1} 26. Rxc4 {4} Rxc4 {2.79/25 0} 27. bxc4 {1} f4 {3.07/24 4} 28.
Bxf4 {2} Bxd4 {3.31/24 4} 29. Be3 {2} Bb2 {4.06/29 9} 30. Bxa7 {3} Ke7 {5.02/
30 12} 31. Kf1 {9} Kd7 {4.44/28 4} 32. Ke2 {1} Be5 {5.18/28 7} 33. h3 {3} Bd6 {
4.98/23 2} 34. g4 {7} hxg4 {6.03/26 6} 35. hxg4 {1} Ke6 {6.35/26 2} 36. Kd3 {2}
f6 {7.18/25 3} 37. Be3 {8} f5 {7.21/21 0} 38. gxf5+ {4} Kxf5 {10.49/27 0} 39.
c5 {3} 1-0

---

[Event "Blitz 2m+2s"]
[Site "Microsoft"]
[Date "2018.02.05"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Stockfish 9 64 POPCNT"]
[Black "Lyudmil Tsvetkov, owner"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D94"]
[Annotator "owner"]
[PlyCount "111"]
[EventDate "2018.??.??"]
[TimeControl "120+2"]
[fen ""]

1. d4 {0.55/22 17} d5 {2} 2. c4 {0.51/22 8} c6 {3} 3. Nf3 {
0.54/23 8} Nf6 {2} 4. e3 {0.31/24 16} g6 {2} 5. Nc3 {0.59/21 3} Bg7 {2} 6. Be2
{0.45/23 6} O-O {2} 7. O-O {0.35/21 3} Bg4 {3} 8. a4 {0.53/21 5} a5 {0} 9. b3 {
0.47/22 7} e6 {11} 10. Ba3 {0.44/28 0} Re8 {2} 11. h3 {0.39/25 4} Bxf3 {3} 12.
Bxf3 {0.33/24 1} Bf8 {5} 13. Bb2 {0.42/22 2} Na6 {0} 14. Qc2 {0.34/21 3} Nb4 {3
} 15. Qb1 {0.35/22 13} Nd7 {23} 16. Na2 {0.24/28 0} f5 {11} 17. Nxb4 {0.31/24
11} Bxb4 {1} 18. g3 {0.66/19 2} Nf6 {3} 19. Kg2 {0.38/25 23} Ne4 {14} 20. Qd3 {
0.17/26 0} Qg5 {10} 21. Rh1 {0.48/22 10} h5 {2} 22. h4 {0.67/17 1} Qh6 {10} 23.
Rhc1 {0.57/22 3} Rf8 {0} 24. Qc2 {0.57/26 5} Rf7 {3} 25. Rh1 {0.49/25 13} Raf8
{2} 26. Be2 {0.40/20 3} Kh7 {0} 27. Bd3 {0.39/22 2} Qg7 {9} 28. Qd1 {0.39/25 3}
Qh6 {2} 29. Bc1 {0.39/26 6} Qg7 {2} 30. Qc2 {0.39/25 0} Rd7 {4} 31. Bb2 {0.39/
27 2} Rfd8 {4} 32. Rhc1 {0.39/23 3} Nf6 {4} 33. Be2 {0.39/20 4} Rg8 {9} 34. Bf3
{0.39/20 2} Qh6 {5} 35. Qe2 {0.39/20 2} Rdg7 {8} 36. Rf1 {0.39/22 2} Rd7 {9}
37. Rac1 {0.39/23 3} Kh8 {4} 38. Rh1 {0.39/23 2} Kh7 {4} 39. Bc3 {0.55/19 1}
Bxc3 {0} 40. Rxc3 {0.41/24 1} Ne4 {5} 41. Rd3 {0.41/21 2} Ra8 {6} 42. Rb1 {0.
41/22 1} Ra6 {3} 43. Qb2 {0.40/23 3} Rb6 {3} 44. Qc2 {0.36/21 3} Rb4 {5} 45.
Rf1 {0.12/23 2} Kg8 {9} 46. Rdd1 {0.12/21 1} Rf7 {0} 47. Be2 {0.12/25 2} Qf8 {
17} 48. Bd3 {0.11/35 0} Qd6 {3} 49. Ra1 {0.11/25 2} Rg7 {7} 50. Rab1 {0.11/24 2
} Kh8 {0} 51. Rfe1 {0.11/26 3} Qb8 {12} 52. Qb2 {0.11/21 2} Rf7 {2} 53. Rg1 {
0.11/27 2} Kh7 {3} 54. Qc2 {0.11/27 2} Qd6 {2} 55. Rgc1 {0.11/27 2} Rf8 {5} 56.
Qd1 {0.11/27 4} 1/2-1/2

Above the pgns for my first handicap win and my first draw with SF 9. Anticomputer chess still works, but you need more time to beat the very top without handicap.

Maybe someone is interested in such games.