![fritz chess tutorial fritz chess tutorial](https://img.youtube.com/vi/RJOxo53mIgI/0.jpg)
The one downside to Fritz's chess-playing skills is that it seems that, when you set it to play a weaker game in the normal gameplay modes, it simply plays at a very strong level, but with more random blunders, as opposed to being weaker across the board. This is a great training mode, since this is the way humans normally play (that is, a good player making a couple of mistakes in the course of an otherwise well-played game). Sparring mode also has an option to point the error out to you as you play, or to tell you afterward that you missed an opportunity on a specific move and allow you to search for what you missed. You can set the level of sparring mode so that the mistake is a glaring gaffe, or something subtler and thus much easier to overlook.
![fritz chess tutorial fritz chess tutorial](https://en.chessbase.com/portals/all/2019/Tutorials/ENG-2019-22a-Fat-Fritz-engine/openings4.png)
Sparring mode is another innovative concept, in which Fritz plays at a high overall level but at some point in the game will make a tactical mistake, much as a human might do. You can manually set the playing strength of Fritz, or you can play in "friend mode." Friend mode is a great concept in which the game analyzes your play and adapts its strength to approximately match your playing level. Fritz 8 offers a wide variety of playing modes, including every time control you can think of, a blitz mode, several tournament setups, and even a "shuffle" mode in which the back pieces are rearranged in a random manner. Let's start with the basics: playing chess. While most of the chess sets in Fritz 8 Deluxe are more practical, some exotic sets are also included. It will certainly play a great game of chess with you, but that's only the tip of the iceberg. When you play Chessmaster, you feel like you're playing a well-done game, while Fritz 8 Deluxe gives you the feeling that you are using a superb set of chess tools and utilities. Fritz 8 Deluxe, on the other hand, in spite of its new 3D board sets and chatty AI opponent, is filled with in-depth analysis tools, serious database capabilities, and even tools to allow you to analyze various chess engines' capabilities (Fritz 8 allows you to choose from a variety of playing engines). Chessmaster is focused on "fun," with kiddie boards and tutorials, a plethora of fanciful 3D board sets, dozens of "characters" (with photos and biographies) to play against, tutorials that are mostly targeted at beginners and lower-level players, and a generally lighthearted atmosphere. But, while just reading the feature sets on the boxes would lead you to believe that Chessmaster and Fritz 8 Deluxe are very similar, there's still a difference between the two. Chessmaster's playing engine is extremely powerful, to the point that pure playing strength is no longer an issue unless you're a grand master, while Fritz has added numerous bells and whistles and is now priced in the mass-market range. But in many ways the two categories have begun to merge. Chessmaster was the standard-bearer for the first category Fritz and Rebel were the key titles for the latter. There was a time in which you had to choose between chess programs that were accessible, filled with features, and affordable, and those that were clunky, powerful, and extremely expensive. In friend mode, Fritz will adapt its playing style to your strength. But if you ask someone in the serious chess community to recommend a program, the name that most often comes up is "Fritz." Fritz 8 Deluxe is easily the best chess program for the seasoned chess player, and, if you can work through its occasionally clumsy interface, it may well be the best overall chess program for any pawn pusher. If you ask the average computer owner to recommend a chess program, it's a safe bet that you'll hear the name "Chessmaster" far more than any other.