I'm an 1100 player
Submitted by
Niven42 on Sat, 04/12/2008 at 10:41am.
What does your rating reflect? So many people think of their rating as "points", and get upset if they win or lose "points". I think your rating is sort of like an indication of your growth (as a Chess player in this case) and is kind of like the rings in a tree.
I play World of Warcraft (abbreviated WoW) as well as Chess, and in WoW, there are arenas where you can duel other players. There are two points systems there. One system, you get some amount of points whether you win or lose. You get more if you win, but you'll get something just for playing. There is also a system of team-based arenas, which is taken more seriously. In the team-based arenas, you have a ranking that goes up or down based on your team's record. There is also a personal ranking. What is very different from the other systems is that points are assigned once a week, based on your ranking. You also have to play a minimum of 10 games that week to get your weekly points. Teams often stop playing at 10 games because they did poorly and don't want to "lose" points, but they are then compelled to play next week, or not get any points. I like this system.
How many Chess.com players would play in an arena system? I think it would be fun, but Chess has never really had something like it. It would take an adjustment in how the casual player views their personal growth. Some players would welcome the challenge, while I think others would shy away. In the meantime, we have our conventional system, with no "points" to ponder, and hopefully everyone gets a little better every day.
As for me, I'm an 1100 player. 