Open games & French

Center Game

1.e4 e5 2.d4

The Center Game starts with 1.e4 e5 2.d4 and is catalogued under ECO C20, in the open games & french half of the book. The catalog indexes 18 lines inside it, grouped into 15 named variations.

8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h

Current setup

Move ideas

  1. 1.e4

    Claims the center with a pawn and opens lines for the queen and king’s bishop.

    Idea: Build quick development and make early castling possible.

  2. 1…e5

    Meets White’s center directly and opens lines for Black’s queen and bishop.

    Idea: Fight for equal central space in a balanced, open position.

  3. 2.d4

    Advances to d4 to claim central space and control nearby key squares.

    Idea: Give the pieces room to develop behind a durable central foothold.

  4. 2…exd4

    Captures the pawn on d4 and changes the local pawn or piece balance.

    Idea: Open lines in the center and reshape the center for the next phase.

  5. 3.Bc4

    Develops the bishop to c4, bringing it into the game.

    Idea: Improve piece coordination and clear the back rank for castling and the rooks.

Book continuations

Waiting for Lichess game popularity.

0 moves
This is the end of the indexed line.

Named variations

Each line below is an indexed entry under Center Game. Open one to load it on the board and keep exploring from that position.

Openings from the same volume

ECO groups openings by the structures they lead to, so these families tend to share plans with the Center Game.