Does anyone else hate how popular chess has gotten recently?

I have been playing chess for almost ten years and recently I've seen that a lot of people just started playing because of things like "The queens gambit" and popular twitch streamers, I don't know why but I don't like how superficially people are looking at it, and it makes me not want to play anymore because it doesn't feel as special as it used to

Chess hipsters on my lichess? It's more likely than you think.

Well unless you're playing these superficial newcomers, it shouldn't make any difference to you right? I'm new to chess and I'm trying to learn because I wanted to be good at it and I'm competitive. People who start because it's a fad, typically don't stay around long to make a difference in the long run.

I feel it's great that something I got really good in finally got popular. I once carried a chessboard under my arm and people where fascinated by it and asked me to play a game on the streets directly in front of a bar. They were amazed by a checkmate, they were so into someone being able to play that and beat them so fast. It made me feel special instead of some outsider that played a nerdy sport. Getting compliments by a girl for playing good chess? That's pretty cool :D

On the other side I completely understand you, especially when it comes to twitch and their popular twitch streamers that are nothing but beginners pretending to be someone. What they do is mostly milking money. People like watching others fail more than win and twitch also got a soft**** platform. They want to be entertained. On Youtube people realised how much money they could make by luring all those new chess players into learning pointless openings like the London System and Caro-Kann "to win in 10 moves" while in fact those are the most drawish openings you could think of. It led to a massive increase of opening studies and those openings being played. I don't like that part either.

However I don't start hating something just because it got popular. There was this wave in Harry Potter once, where there were those "Harry Potter fans" that liked it "before it was cool" - now should you suddenly not like it anymore just because others like it too? That would be pretty weird. No, you are still special as a chess player and let others admire your skill instead of searching for a new hobby just because others joined. You don't need to hide in a niche.

I hated Harry Potter before it was cool!

And actually, yeah I'm glad to see chess in ads and that sort of thing. It might even become as popular as it looked like it was gonna be back when Bobby Fischer was leading the way (and before he tweaked out totally).

@MrPushwood said in #5:
> I hated Harry Potter before it was cool!
What! You hate Harry Potter?!?!

@MrPushwood yea same

As someone who has played chess on and off for about 40 years, I'm grateful to streamers for getting the younger generation hooked on the game.

Who in their right mind would want their hobby to fall out of fashion and become irrelevant?

i think it has created more casual cheaters