Category: Articles

Shogi material odds games are played to make Shogi more enjoyable for players at any level. Adjusting material odds is aimed at minimizing the skill difference between two Shogi players. In Japan, there are many Shogi classes, and teachers often play Shogi against their students with material odds.

Material odds games are highly instructive and involved fundamental Shogi concepts. Learning Shogi with material odds is more accessible because you don’t have to memorize countless openings. As the side that removes its pieces has limited material, you can focus on developing pieces and offense, and also you can find weaknesses from where the piece is removed in the enemy position. Usually, your first target is to maneuver your major pieces.

You may struggle to keep up with your study of Shogi when you feel like you’re not progressing. It’s natural to wonder, ‘Am I getting better at Shogi?’ learning Shogi with material odds would make you less worried because you’ll clearly notice your improvement as your handicap diminishes.

Neglecting to learn the basics can make it more challenging to become a strong player. Therefore, if you’re genuinely committed to improving your Shogi skills, I highly recommend playing Shogi with material odds.

Do you want learn some book moves in material odds games? check the links below.

2 pieces odds game

4 pieces odds game

6 pieces odds game

8 pieces odds game

10 pieces odds game

Special material odds game

1 Tactics

a Tactic is used to make the most of the pieces or to put it simply, a Tactic is a good move or sequence of moves that gain an advantage. Knowing Tactics tells you where you need to go in your games. In the middle game, you may be confused about what to think, but if you can recognize or smell that something tactical is there, you can start thinking to make it happen. On the other hand, you might be stuck with what to think if you don’t know that tactics exist. You need to learn Tactics to gain an advantage to win!

2 Solve mate puzzles.

Since the purpose of Shogi is to checkmate your opponent king, enhance recognition of matting patterns is essential. Let’s say, you’re winning in your games, and your opponent king is exposed, but you don’t know checkmate patterns, you could let your opponent turn the tables at ease. Shogi positions are reversed often. If you work hard on solving mate puzzles, you’re going to eventually have different aspects of endgames. It would be a great feeling. Solving mate puzzles also Improves your ability of visualization, because you have to visualize at least the last position to make sure that the king is trapped. If you have a big goal of Shogi, keep solving mate puzzles until finding mate in 5 becomes second nature.

3 Analyze your games

Why going over your games is important is that you can learn from your mistakes to try not to make the same mistake in your future games. You’re going to come across familiar positions that you’ve had, so reviewing your games never be a waste of time. Identify bad moves, recall your thought process, and find hidden Tactics. Those your effort develop your intuition. If it’s hard for you to analyze, you can look back on any thought or any feeling of the game you play. You don’t need to stick to get done it perfectly from the start. You can do it step by step until analyzing your games becomes a habit.

1 Pay attention to your move what you are about to play. At the beginner level, most Shogi games are decided by simply giving away pieces, therefore making sure that you don’t put pieces on squares where they can be captured is quite Important. Especially, be careful with the Rook, the Bishop, the Knight, and the Lance. Avoiding blunders is one of the first steps to win.

2 Think about what is your opponent’s threats. Most people tend to assume what your opponent thinks and then allow something simple that gains an advantage. Trying not to lose is a helpful mindset as trying to win.

3 Try to calculate and Don’t play quickly. I know that It’s hard to calculate, especially when you see good moves or when positions are complicated. It’s no problem that even if your calculation is incorrect. It’s a part of the process of improvement.

4 Castle your king before attacking. If your king is exposed or your king is near the battlefield, you may lose at ease.

5 Develop your pieces. Don’t move the same piece in a row if you don’t have a good reason. Try not to make your pieces out of play.