Ratings & formats
Bullet, blitz, rapid, classical
The time-control categories, from a minute a side (bullet) to hours (classical).
Roughly: bullet is under three minutes each, blitz is three to ten, rapid is ten to sixty, and classical is longer still. Faster games reward pattern recognition and nerve; slower games reward calculation and depth.
Many controls add an increment — a few seconds back per move — so you are not flagged purely on the clock.
Why it matters
Different controls train different skills; playing slower games is the classic advice for actually improving.
The mistake everyone makes
Only ever playing bullet and wondering why deep calculation never improves.
Related terms
Increment
Time added to your clock after each move, so you are not flagged with a winning position.
Elo rating
A number measuring playing strength; you gain points for beating higher-rated players and lose them for losing to lower-rated ones.
Glicko rating
A refinement of Elo that also tracks how certain your rating is (your 'rating deviation').
Strategy
The long-term plan — where pieces belong and which structures to aim for — as opposed to tactics.
See Bullet, blitz, rapid, classical in your own games
Play the engine, train tactics, and analyse your games — ChessRanger points out these patterns as they come up so the word turns into a skill. Free to start.
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