Chess training apps
The Best Chess Endgame Training Tools in 2026
Endgames are the purest calculation in chess. With few pieces on the board, every move counts exactly, and there is no middlegame fog to hide a mistak…
Antoine · 5 min read
DarkSquares
The DarkSquares Blog
Master the mental board. Progressive guides on blindfold chess, visualization training, chess calculation, and memory drills.
Chess training apps
The Best Chess Opening Trainers in 2026, Compared
Studying openings is easy. Remembering them a week later, in a real game, is the hard part. That is the job of an opening trainer: not just to help yo…
Antoine · 6 min read
Chess Improvement
Is Chess Good for Your Brain? What the Science Actually Says
Short answer: yes, chess is a genuine mental workout, but the popular version of the claim is overhyped. Playing chess reliably trains a cluster of do…
Antoine · 7 min read
Chess Improvement
Is Being Good at Chess a Sign of Intelligence?
Short answer: only partly. Being good at chess correlates modestly with general cognitive ability, but the link is far weaker than most people assume.…
Antoine · 6 min read
Chess Improvement
How to Train Chess Visualization: Pick the Right Trainer and Plan
Most club players lose the position after 2–3 moves when calculating, then blunder under pressure. You can change that in 4–8 weeks with a focused rou…
Antoine · 10 min read
Blindfold Chess
Magnus Carlsen and Blindfold Chess: How the Champion Trains Without the Board
Magnus Carlsen and blindfold chess go beyond a stunt. In New York in 2015 he tracked three boards with clocks, and in Vienna he faced five opponents w…
Antoine · 8 min read
Chess Improvement
Board Vision in Chess: Drills to Instantly See Every Square
Strong board vision chess skills, the ability to take in every square and piece at a glance, can cut your blunders fast. With 10 to 30 minutes a day,…
Antoine · 12 min read
Chess Improvement
How to Calculate in Chess: A 5-Step System for Finding the Right Move
Most blunders start with missed forcing moves. Use a repeatable checklist that searches checks, captures, and threats 2-3 moves deep. How to Calculate…
Antoine · 10 min read
Blindfold Chess
How to Choose a Blindfold Chess Trainer: Features That Actually Matter
Disclosure: Dark Squares is our product. We have aimed for a fair comparison, but readers should weigh our perspective accordingly. Blindfold training…
Antoine · 7 min read
Blindfold Chess
10 Classic Drills Masters Use to Train Blindfold Visualization
Blindfold chess is not magic. Miguel Najdorf played a 45-board blindfold simul in São Paulo in 1947, and George Koltanowski set a 56-game consecutive…
Antoine · 7 min read
Blindfold Chess
Koltanowski vs Najdorf: Two Blindfold Masters, Two Different Methods
Two blindfold records still frame the debate: George Koltanowski's 34 boards in Edinburgh (1937) and Miguel Najdorf's 45 boards in São Paulo (1947, 39…
Antoine · 9 min read
Blindfold Chess
Pawn Endgame Principles for Blindfold Play: Lucena, Philidor, Opposition
Blindfold endgame skill converts half-points in long games. In opposition, kings face each other with one square between them, and the side not to mov…
Antoine · 9 min read