Good vs Bad Bishops

One of the most misunderstood pieces in chess is the bishop. You sometimes will hear that bishops are better than knights. You sometimes will hear that knights are better than bishops. Some people will never trade their bishops because they think they are really good pieces.

The truth is the chess game itself will tell you whether a bishop is a good bishop or a bad bishop. If a chess game is open then bishops will reign supreme. If the game is closed, then bishops no longer are as valuable. Also if your bishop can only attack your own pawns and none of your opponent’s, then it’s a bad bishop. You would like a bishop in either an open game or in a game where it can attack all of your opponents pieces instead of being blocked in and can only attack its own pieces.

Watch the video below to see more detailed explanations of good and bad bishops.