FICS ratings are higher?

Is it just me, or are ratings on FICS higher than at other servers?

Originally posted by YUG0slav
Is it just me, or are ratings on FICS higher than at other servers?

My rating is about 1500 on FICS, 1700 on yahoo, 1800-1900 on pogo, around 1700 on uchess, don't play at ICC and haven't been at playchess in a long time.

depends...usually FICS blitz ratings are lower than anywhere else...
and the standard ratings are fine (somehow similar to ELO ratings, maybe a bit higher...anyway, higher than RHP ratings)

Originally posted by vipiu
anyway, higher than RHP ratings)

actually, most people seem to have around 200 pts higher RHP ratings, but yea, it depends a lot. some people 200 pts lower here crush me there. the blitz crowd on FICS is very tough, at least on the lower end. don't know if the competition is as hard over 1500, as when I followed the kramnik-topalov match, many of the 2000's analysed like 1500-1600's here. occasionally even talking incredible rubbish.

but I guess it's reasonable to assume CC players do a lot more analysis than blitz players, on average.

FICS is funny and their ratings are hard to judge.

I've played blitz against 1400s that play like OTB A players (1800-1999) and had 1800 opponents play like complete patzers. My FICS blitz rating usually hovers 50-100 below my USCF OTB, but has been as much as 100 higher.

I've seen many players over 1700 miss elementary tactics, such as a mate in one as well as suffering against a dazzling combination by a few 1300 players.

The wide variabilty suggests than cheaters only cheat part of the time, or that, like me, other folks may play at 3:00 am because they cannot sleep as well as playing when they are rested, awake, and alert.

My rating is higher on playchess and USCL. I stopped playing on ICC about the time I started on FICS, and at the time had ratings higher than I've ever achieved on FICS.

My experience is that blitz ratings of FICS is lower than ICC by 50-100 pts, suggesting that the player pool is better than ICC.

Ratings vary too much from site to site for them to mean anything at all. My rating here is 1500+, on Playchess it vacillates between 1800 to 2000 depending on whether I beat 1800's or lose to 1400's, and Chessworld is 2300+. where I recently played a 2400+ who gave me control of the d-file, then the 7th rank, then overlooked a fork on both R's...all in 24 moves. As Wulebgr points out, the level of play often does not correlate with ratings. So. I don’t think you can begin to cross reference them.

Originally posted by buddy2
suggesting that the player pool is better than ICC.

actually it doesn't, they're just measured by a different kind of 'ruler'. different metrics. - the other guys are running 100 meter dash, the other guys 100 yard, and we don't even know which is which.

if the median player of FICS scored statistically meaningfully better against the median player of ICC, I guess there could be some base to think FICS players were stronger. but even that requires certain statistical similarities between the two pools to hold, which might not exist as the other one is free and the other commercial, thus likely have different kind of player distributions.

Standard FICS I bounce around anywhere from 1600-1800 (blitz 14-15) these days.

I miss simple tactics, and whats worse, I miss simple wins -- like for example, being a whole 4 pawns up (no compensation) and still loosing.

there are often two reasons for this:- 1. I often play tired, and 2. i'll calculate 1 0r 2 moves ahead and just assume It works.

Ratings on blitz servers can be misleading as some players adopt a hit and run approach while on others there is a high concentration of newbies and guests.

My FICS rating is probably higher than my normal rating.. standard 1663, blitz 1331.. and my RHP is at 1546 (still rising though). I think blitz ratings have always been a few 100 points lower than the standard..

It has to do with the player-pool and rating system, I suppose.

I think you can only compare with players on the same site, never cross-site.

Originally posted by YUG0slav
Is it just me, or are ratings on FICS higher than at other servers?

Standard rating are wayyy too high on FICS.

Think about it, on FICS almost everyone has a standard rating above 1500, and we know the average fide rating is 1100 and 1400 for tournament players.

Originally posted by LanndonKane
Standard rating are wayyy too high on FICS.

Think about it, on FICS almost everyone has a standard rating above 1500, and we know the average fide rating is 1100 and 1400 for tournament players.

According to "survey bot" standard ratings at FICS are below elo ratings.

because I am 1700-1800 standard, (a according to surverybot) I should be 1900-2000 elo -- so, a top class A, or low level 'expert'.

the bell curve only seems to drop at "GM" level -- so, a 2500 FICS players is more likely to be 2400 Elo

I don't know anything about statistics. I just get beat more often at FICS. Everyone i've communicated with says their FICS rating is lower than ICC. As for everyone being 1500 or more at FICS, i'm lower than 1500 and half the people i play (approsimately) are lower than me. I don't know how they figure the rating, nor do i care. I would like to get beat less often. And that's what i'm working on.

Originally posted by LanndonKane
Standard rating are wayyy too high on FICS.

Think about it, on FICS almost everyone has a standard rating above 1500, and we know the average fide rating is 1100 and 1400 for tournament players.

I agree, my standard rating on FICS hovers between 1900-2000 (a level that I know I am NOT) and some 1800-2000 guys there are idiots

btw my FICS handle isn't YUG0slav so don't bother trying to check