Great Post, I think style is more important than "who was best". However, I think you have the wrong game shown between Kasparov and Deep Blue. The game is over on move 45 and nowhere could Kasparov put the king in check safely by moving his queen to Qe3.
Who is the True King of Chess of the Modern Era?
Sort:
very nice
:) Oh Kacparov - to be so young and as brilliant as you.
i still confuse?
apparently, of course it is the True King who is the true king, look as his name...^
Mikhail Tal
This is a game that I played against the king earlier this year, and his skill on the board was dazzling. He is going to take the next candidate cycle by storm, I can guarantee it. His technique is flawless as you can see in the game above.
EDIT: I'm trying to fix the board so that you can play through the moves 
I found your satire funny and informative, assuming that the biographies were accurate. Was the introduction supposed to be written from the perspective of the "new king"? I assume so, but I haven't gone back and reread it, and it took a few paragraphs to figure out what we were doing. In short, well done sir or maam.
AWW YEAH - this was really well written.
Dec 3, 2010
0
#18
I think i'm not good player enough to vote for one these other planet's players.I don't understand 5 % of there games, so choose the bettter of them seems "Impossible mission" for a plyer like me.
Friendly
The True King of Chess of the Modern Era (1969 - 2010)
Dear Prawns of Cyber World Chess,
Due to the resounding, yet not unexpected popularity, of the original True King of Chess article (see http://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/the-true-king-of-chess ) this follow up piece is for all serious and non serious chess enthusiasts. Royal and loyal subjects are of course interested in the True King’s superstar status as well as his spectacular displays of chess mastery. Therefore, your Liege writes this follow up article in order to satisfy the curiosity of his court.
This article is unlike the original article in a number of ways. For those who suffer from attention deficit disorder, I have included a number of pictures. These pictures are not only of yours truly, depicting my meteor majestic rise in the chess world but also of other notable chess players. Perhaps, it might well be agreed, these players are less famous and certainly less flamboyant than myself, yet I include them for your disloyal consideration. If you are firing on less than 6 brain cells and/or suffer from ADD, then I suggest you go immediately to the pictures, which will tell their own story in splendid visual fashion.
For those of you who are more apt to remain more or less focused to the end of this article, I can assure you of a semi-chronological and short factual tournament history of known chess grandmasters of the modern era. And take it for granted that you can decipher for yourself, where the fictitious/comedy part interweaves its noble thread.
So the investigation we are undertaking here, the query, is this, ‘who is the real True King of Chess of the modern era?’ ( 1969-2010)
Let us first look in summary form who the contestants are. The dates in brackets of when they were world champions After which we shall take a detailed look, one by one, of their most prestigious achievements and titles.
There are 7 candidates to review. One might say the ‘magnificent 7’.
Boris Spassky (1969-1972)
Robert James "Bobby" Fischer (1972-1975)
Anatoly Karpov (1975-1985)
Garry Kasparov (1985-2000)
Vladimir Kramnik (2000-2007)
Viswanathan Anand (2007-2010)
The True King (1962 - 2010)
1) Boris Spassky

Born: January 30, 1937 in Leningrad, USSR
Playing Style and Legacy:
Boris Spassky was a well-rounded champion who excelled in all areas of the game. He was not an opening expert in terms of depth of knowledge, but he did play a wide variety of systems well throughout his career. His play was flexible and adaptable to the situation at hand, which made him a difficult opponent to prepare for.
World Championship Matches:
1966: Lost to Tigran Petrosian 12.5-11.5 (+3 -4 =17)
1969: Defeated Petrosian 12.5-10.5 (+6 -4 =13) to become World Chess Champion
1972: Lost to Bobby Fischer 12.5-8.5 (+3 -7 =11); Fischer becomes World Chess Champion
Notable Accomplishments:
Won two USSR Chess Championships (1961, 1973)
Won 1955 World Junior Chess Championship
Won 1966 Piatigorsky Cup with 11.5/18 score
Played on seven Olympiad teams for the USSR, winning 13 medals and losing just one game (+45 -1 =48)
2) Robert James "Bobby" Fischer
Born: March 9, 1943 in Chicago, USA
Died: January 17, 2008 in Reykjavik, Iceland
Playing Style and Legacy:
Bobby Fischer is usually found near the top of lists of the all-time greatest chess players. For a short period of time (roughly from 1970-1972), he was as dominant as any player has ever been over other world-class competition. His energetic style was designed to put maximum pressure on his opponents; combined with his near flawless technique and his insatiable desire to finding winning chances in each game, this made him a difficult opponent to face psychologically for many players.
Fischer was known for his deep opening preparation, so it comes as no surprise that he made many contributions to opening theory. He also made other innovations, such as Fischer Random Chess (today better known as Chess960) and the Fischer chess clock. His insistence that chess players perform under more professional conditions helped raise the amount of money and prestige for elite chess players as well.
Unfortunately, Fischer's legacy was tarnished by his anti-Semitic views as well as his reclusive nature after winning the World Championship in 1972.
World Championship Matches:
1972: Defeated Boris Spassky 12.5-8.5 (+7 -3 =11, including one forfeit loss) to become World Chess Champion
1975: Forfeited title to Anatoly Karpov by refusing to play match due to disagreements with FIDE over match conditions; Karpov becomes World Chess Champion
Notable Accomplishments:
Won each of the eight US Chess Championships he played in, including winning with a perfect 11/11 score in 1963-64 Championship
Won 1962 Interzonal Tournament in Stockholm (17.5/22)
Won 1970 Interzonal in Palma de Mallorca (18.5/23)
Defeated both Mark Taimanov and Bent Larsen in 1971 Candidates Matches, each by 6-0 score
Won Chess Oscar in 1970, 1971 and 1972
 Spassky & Fischer 1972
3) Anatoly Karpov

Born: May 23, 1951 in Zlatoust, USSR (now Russia)
Playing Style and Legacy:
Karpov is known as a positional player, one who looked to squeeze every small advantage out of a position and torture his opponent by building pressure. This logical, strategic style made Karpov very difficult to defeat, as he rarely went for complex tactical lines or made major errors, preferring to gain a slight edge with no chance of defeat.
World Championship Matches:
1975: Won World Chess Championship by default from Bobby Fischer, who refused to defend his title
1978: Defeated Viktor Korchnoi 16.5-15.5 (+6 -5 =21) to retain World Chess Championship
1981: Defeated Korchnoi 11-7 (+6 -2 =10) to retain World Chess Championship
1984: Match with Garry Kasparov halted after 48 games with Karpov leading 25-23 (+5 -3 =40); neither player had the six wins required for victory under the match rules
1985: Lost to Kasparov 13-11 (+3 -5 =16); Kasparov becomes World Chess Champion
1986: Lost to Kasparov 12.5-11.5 (+4 -5 =15); Kasparov retains World Chess Championship
1987: Drew Kasparov 12-12 (+4 -4 =16); Kasparov retains World Chess Championship
1990: Lost to Kasparov 12.5-11.5 (+3 -4 =17); Kasparov retains World Chess Championship
1993: Defeated Jan Timman 12.5-8.5 (+6 -2 =13) in FIDE World Championship Match to become FIDE World Chess Champion
1996: Defeated Gata Kamsky 10.5-7.5 (+6 -3 =9) to retain FIDE World Championship
1998: Defeated Viswanathan Anand 5-3 (+2 -2 =2 in regular match; +2 in rapid tiebreaks) in knockout tournament final to retain FIDE World Championship
1999: Refused to defend FIDE title, as World Champion would no longer be seeded into the finals of the knockout tournament format
Notable Achievements:
Won World Junior Chess Championship in 1969
Won three USSR Chess Championships
Won nine consecutive major tournaments during his time as World Champion

4) Garry Kasparov
Born: April 13, 1963 in Baku, Azerbaijan
Playing Style and Legacy:
Garry Kasparov was known as a dynamic, aggressive and energetic player -- a style that has made him very popular among chess fans. While his long reign as the world's top player and World Champion rank him at or near the top of most all-time greatest player lists, he may be best known to the general public for his 3.5-2.5 (+1 -2 =3) match loss to the computer Deep Blue, the first time a World Chess Champion was defeated in match play by a computer. His relatively early retirement from chess has left him with more time to write and involve himself in Russian politics.
World Championship Matches:
1984: Match against Anatoly Karpov terminated by FIDE after 48 games, with Kasparov trailing 25-23 (+3 -5 =40); the first player to 6 wins was to be declared the winner.
1985: Defeated Karpov 13-11 (+5 -3 =16) to become World Chess Champion
1986: Defeated Karpov 12.5-11.5 (+5 -4 =15) to retain World Chess Championship
1987: Drew Karpov 12-12 (+4 -4 =16) to retain World Chess Championship
1990: Defeated Karpov 12.5-11.5 (+4 -3 =17) to retain World Chess Championship
1993: Defeated Nigel Short 12.5-7.5 (+6 -1 =13) to retain World Chess Championship
1995: Defeated Viswanathan Anand 10.5-7.5 (+4 -1 =13) to retain World Chess Championship
2000: Lost to Vladimir Kramnik 8.5-6.5 (-2 =13); Kramnik becomes World Chess Championship
Notable Accomplishments:
Won the Chess Oscar award a record 11 times
Maintained his standing as the highest-rated player in the world from 1986-2005
Achieved the highest FIDE rating ever (2851)
Finished 1st (alone or shared) in every individual tournament he participated in from 1981-1990 (a total of 15 events)
Kramnik- kasparov- 2000 world championship
5) Vladimir Kramnik

Born: June 25, 1975
in Tuapse, Russia
Playing Style:
Kramnik is usually described as a solid, tenacious and pragmatic player. His style is often compared to that of Anatoly Karpov -- not surprising, since Kramnik has mentioned many times that his first chess book was a collection of Karpov's games.
World Championship Matches and Tournaments:
2000: Defeated Garry Kasparov 8.5-6.5 (+2 =13) to become Classical World Champion
2004: Drew Peter Leko 7-7 (+2 -2 =10), retaining Classical World Championship
2006: Drew FIDE World Champion Veselin Topalov 6-6 (+3 -3 =6, including one loss by forfeit); defeated Topalov 2.5-1.5 (+2 -1 =1) in four game rapid playoff to become undisputed World Chess Champion
2007: Finished second in World Chess Championship tournament with score of 8/14, losing title to tournament winner Viswanathan Anand
2008: Lost to Viswanathan Anand 6.5-4.5 (+1 -3 =7)
Notable Accomplishments:
Won World U18 Championship in 1991, at age 16
Won or shared first place at Dortmund 8 times
Won or shared first place at Linares 3 times
Won or shared first place at Monaco Amber Medley 6 times
Shared first place at Wijk aan Zee in 1998
Won gold medal at 2006 Olympiad for top performance

6) Viswanathan Anand

Born: December 11, 1969
Playing Style:
Anand is known as a strong all-around player, with great tactical acumen. He is also notable for the speed of his play; he often makes very accurate moves quite quickly, and only very rarely finds himself in time trouble. His quick play has made him a clear leader in rapid chess, where at times he has been dominant over even other world class players.
World Championship Matches and Tournaments:
1995: Lost to Garry Kasparov 10.5-7.5 (+1 -4 =13) in Classical World Championship match
2000: Defeated Alexei Shirov 3.5-0.5 (+3 =1) to become FIDE World Champion
2005: Tied for second with 8.5/14 in FIDE World Championship Tournament (won by Veselin Topalov)
2007: Won World Championship Tournament with 9/14 score to become Classical World Champion
2008: Defeated Vladimir Kramnik 6.5-4.5 (+3 -1 =7) to retain World Championship
2010: Defeated Veselin Topalov 6.5-5.5 (+3 -2 =7) to retain World Championship
Notable Accomplishments:
Five-time winner of the Chess Oscar
World Junior Champion (1987)
Won or shared first place at Wijk aan Zee 5 times
Won or shared first place at Linares 3 times
Won or shared first place at Dortmund 3 times
Won or shared first place at Monaco Amber Medley 5 times
Won FIDE World Rapid Chess Championship (2003)
7) The True King

Born: by divine intervention in 1962
Dies: on the board regularly
Playing Style and Legacy:
The acclaimed True King of Chess has an unorthodox style of play, known as the ‘crash & burn method’. This has worked quite effectively in certain matches, much less effectively in others. Except of course in imaginary chess, where all the above mentioned champions all succumbed to crushing defeats, relinquishing to his ingenuity on the board. His unenergetic style was designed to put minimum pressure on his opponents; combined with his near terrible technique and his insatiable desire of finding losing chances in each game, this has made his opponents difficult to face psychologically.
World Championship Matches: 0
Notable Achievements:
Made it onto the first page of a tournament on Chess.com (round 1)
Top of group leader board (two guys got timed out- round 1)
Defeated a 2080 rated player (no show)
Imaginary wins against: Spassky, Fischer, Karpov, Kasparov, Kramnik, Anand and Deep Blue (played them all simultaneously)
Highest rating achieved - 1090 (but says he is on a come back)
*N.B. Does not include junior titles (see below)
Picture History of the True King
 First chess victory against Goldie
Below left: Nursery school champ
Below right: Junior school champ
The Power in the True King's games are obvious to all
 
Preparing for the big match
Having read the above body of evidence, you may think it is time for you to decide who the title of the True King of Chess of the modern era rightfully belongs to. But before you prematurely make your choice, give a thought for yet another possible contender:
8) Deep Blue

Deep Blue
versus
Garry Kasparov
On February 10, 1996, Deep Blue became the first machine to win a chess game against a reigning world champion (Garry Kasparov) under regular time controls. However, Kasparov won three and drew two of the following five games, beating Deep Blue by a score of 4–2 (wins count 1 point, draws count ½ point). The match concluded on February 17, 1996.
Deep Blue was then heavily upgraded (unofficially nicknamed "Deeper Blue")[11] and played Kasparov again in May 1997, winning the six-game rematch 3½–2½, ending on May 11. Deep Blue won the deciding game six after Kasparov made a mistake in the opening, becoming the first computer system to defeat a reigning world champion in a match under standard chess tournament time controls.
Above game 2 of Deep Blue -Kasparov
It was discovered after the game that Kasparov could have drawn this game with perpetual check beginning 45...Qe3 46.Qxd6 Re8! 47.h4! h5!. It seems that he trusted the computer's analysis too much and just did not believe the computer would let the position be drawn!
I didn't play the opening very well - I was passive, because I thought the computer would not be able to understand and handle well the resulting position. I wish I would have played otherwise, however, in order to play 'normal' openings you have to spend a couple of months checking your openings with your computer. Every line. Because one mistake in the Najdorf Sicilian could be fatal. The level of preparation would be different. Obviously Deep Blue had a large team behind it studying the openings.
The rest of the game is history. Including my resignation in a drawn position. The truth is that I was very tired and couldn't believe the way the machine had just played. I trusted its calculations. I assumed that if the machine allowed a move such as Qe3 at the end, it had calculated everything that could follow and found wins, so I didn't even bother checking it. Costly error, as I soon found out. - Kasparov
So dear reader, I will leave it for you to decide who is the True King of Chess of the modern era. Is it man or machine? Russian or American, perhaps Indian or Welsh (UK)? We all have our favorites I am sure. Would Fischer have taken Kasparov when he was in his prime? We can argue and debate such theoretical matches, we will never real know for sure.
References:
Chess.com, Ed Scimia, Various Internet Chess sites