Fritz 20 ChangeLog

[cc2150dx]

20.1 (published xx.xx.2025)

- Faster AI Chat audio generation.
- Bullet Training: Choice of time management: slow - normal - fast
- Fritz sometimes offered a draw for the user (!) in endgames and then accepted or declined it himself.
- User Elo calculation improved.
- AI Chat when user or engine blunders
- Suppress AI Chat in assisted calculation

- Added Help Topics for Select Personality, Edit Personality, Select VIP, Bullet Training.

[jefk]

well i have Fr 19 and not even an option for upgrade eg ten bucks instead of the full
amount again; why should i, ray tracing doesnt work in my comp,
and how do i know if these new graphics work on my comp.
meanwhile while f19 its probably great for IM level i quickly got bored
of playing against rabbits and dogs in F19 and now reinstalled an
old Shredder which adjust to may rating level and just plays a fine game
and adjust my elo, now after first game 1792 cool (F always tries
to keep me below 1500 somehow)
Tip for Chessbase for average' (club) players, and certainly newbies(*) make a 'simple'
mode (instead of card games lots of verbal bs and whatever noise) just optional
set the whole system optionally to simple, eg at lower club level player
just an idea
(*) yep there's also the now more simple fritz program seen it but also
don't know if it will work on my graphics card and i already have F19
--- Just some simple User Feedback
via this forum ?? yep via this forum, why not. after all its about (computer?) chess
my 2 cnts
PS manwhile after many decades now the Chessbase system (both Fritz and Chessbase) have not
figured out how to (give an appropriate) name to -detailed chess opening (variations)
(besides Eco codes); humans are not computers it can help to know if you
play an Spanish or Italian; and then eg Berlin or Evans gambit or whatever.
so the program Bookbuilder still is the best program to identify opening names for a
variation and soon in the new upgrade (4.4) also with almost all gambit names.
PS2 i'm not affiliated with Shredder chess in any way but as honest revies for the same
amount of bucks as F20 for most chess players this is a cheaper buy
(and not so widely known apparently so i mention it for a change)
https://www.shredderchess.com/windows/d ... er-13.html

[jefk]

in addition (besides the typos i made, was fast reaction) for ordinary players besides the Carlsen and
Uri B (*) levels, in my experience with human players commenting on FB about their efforts trying to get better
on chess.com, it's for them often difficult to get at decent level so they try to beat bots (and post it on facebook)
almost never daring to play to real humans. when taking enough time against the bots on chess.com you might
win but you don't get a rating. Only way to get a rating is to play against real humans (yep that may be a bit
tough in the beginning). Good way to improve is the Dutch steps method and there's also a computerized
method for that, also on Shredderchess coincendentally
https://www.shredderchess.com/windows/chess-tutor.html
Completestep 3 and you should get 1400 or 1500 in slower chess (eg rapid) on chess.com.
They (kahlen/shredderchess) should continue imo with steps 4 5 etc, at least for me

There also are some youtube vids with steps method by Han Schut btw
(didn't have the patience to go through it at st 4)
(*) ironic comment

[jefk]

anyway here's a cheaper Fritz (the coach version)

https://shop.chessbase.com/en/products/ ... hess_coach#

[Yoda Mann]

I upgraded to 20 after coming from Fritz 15, from what, 10 years ago? I figured why not, I'm on Windows 11, and it was on sale for 25% off. And I wouldn't mind using a darker mode to keep from staring at a blazing white screen all the time.

It's really been a disappointment. Do they not test this software before shipping it? Along with the changes that needed to be done immediately, especially the false draw offer, the software downloaded from ChessBase didn't have the opening or endgame training included for it (they sent it to me after complaining that those training modules were blank,) the online help references an older version of the software, so what you see isn't what you get, the Menu File—Options—Training that allow you to choose a training database isn't even in the menu, every time you change an unrelated option, the board and piece design reverts back to the default, so you have to reset that, and there doesn't seem to be a good way to import my repertoires that I've set up in ChessBase 15 into the program without laboriously re-keying it in. I don't know if they're on drugs over there, but it certainly seems like they just don't care.

[cc2150dx]

20.1 (published 22.05.2025)

- Faster AI Chat audio generation.
- Bullet Training: Choice of time management: slow - normal - fast
- Fritz sometimes offered a draw for the user (!) in endgames and then accepted or declined it himself.
- User Elo calculation improved.
- AI Chat when user or engine blunders
- Suppress AI Chat in assisted calculation
- Added Help Topics for Select Personality, Edit Personality, Select VIP, Bullet Training.
- Easy Game opponents all a bit stronger (less tactical blunders).

[cc2150dx]

20.2 (published 16.06.2025)

- Improved layout of VIP opponent selection.
- More chat variety upon start of game, sometimes even a limerick.
- AI Chat greeting when changing the personality.
- Bullet Training switches off "Klick&Check" for maximum board performance
- Some languages produced text display errors in design dialog.
- Synchronize ribbon entry "assisted analyis" and easy game "check & click".
- Inconsistent behaviour on draw offer by user: Rejects and then accepts.
- Play faster in totally lost endgames.
- Advanced settings in training with clock.
- Easy Game opponents again a bit stronger, still too many tactical blunders.
- User Elo calculation was wrong in endgames (when jump to mate eval).
- Right-click on easy game opponent displayed wrong info texts.
- Blunder category annotation in tactical analysis was before last move, not behind.
- Fixed replace game could fail, when game wasn't loaded from database before
- Removed the 100km random noise from the chess server geo coordinates.
- Longitude values for chess server geo coordinates were swapped W/E upon entry.
- Fritz didn't answer after move execution via click in book.
- Fixed language of button texts in message boxes.

[cc2150dx]

20.3 (published xx.xx.xxxx)

- 3D board (DX12): movie generation implemented.
- Raytracer: movie generation fixed.
- 3D board sounds were missing.
- Improved layout of personality dialogs with high DPI scaling.
- Suppress speaking out end of game texts if board sounds are switched off.
- Info "Achievements are switched off" was displayed too often.
- Easy game books are not automatically loaded in classic GUI.