LeeRoth wrote on 07/10/10 at 18:03:05:


Pinski gives 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nxe5 Nxe5 5.d4 Nc6 6.d5 Bb4 7.dxc6 Nxe4 8.Qd4 Qe7 9.Qxg7(?!) Nxc3+ 10.Be3 Nd5+ 11.c3 Rf8 12.cxb4 Nxe3 13.fxe3 Qxb4+ as "very close to winning," and I don't have Kaufman on hand to see if he adds anything (IIRC, he succinctly repeats Pinski). 

More analysis is given in this very extensive PDF file on the Halloween Gambit by Paul Keiser. 

In short, I think most lines are roughly equal or thereabouts after 9.Be3! Nxc3

[9...0-0 10.Bd3 Nxc3 11.bxc3 Bd6 12.cxd7 (12.cxb7 Bxb7 13.0-0) Bxd7 13.Qe4 Qxe4 14.Bxe4
9...f5 10.Bd3 Bc5 11.Qc4 Bxe3 12.Bxe4]

10.a3 Nd5

[10...Bd6 11.cxd7+ Bxd7 12.Qxc3]

11.axb4 Nxe3

[11...Qxb4+ 12.Qxb4 Nxb4 13.cxb7 Bxb7 14.0-0-0]

12.cxd7+ (or 12.fxe3) Bxd7 13.Qxe3 Qxe3 14.fxe3

At any rate, this antidote isn't very troublesome, and there are better ways to give the piece back if one doesn't want to try to refute the gambit outright.

Conquistador wrote on 07/04/10 at 18:32:50:


I haven't read anything recent about it, such as the articles in Kaissiber, but I assume you mean the counterattack after 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Nxe5 Nxe5 5.d4 Nc6 6.d5 Ne5 7.f4 Ng6 8.e5 Ng8 9.d6 cxd6 10.exd6 Qf6 11.Nb5 Nxf4! (as opposed to 11...Kd8 12.Be3 Nh6 previously)

After fondly analyzing the Halloween as a hobby for a couple of years, indeed, the other "refutations" are hardly such, but I've yet to find much of anything hopeful against that line.

Wikipedia gives some ideas for Black:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Knights_Game,_Halloween_Gambit

There's a lengthy analysis of the Halloween Gambit in a couple of the back issues of Kaissiber that I purchased earlier this year- the bottom line is that Black has a few ways to get an =+ (but probably no more) and some ways to return the piece to reach an equal position, but also a large array of sub-optimal choices that give White a decent game.

I would never employ this opening in a serious slow game, but having said that, I've tried it out occasionally in casual games with good results, and it reflects well on chess that such an outrageous piece sac can yield a playable game against good play.

gewgaw wrote on 07/03/10 at 09:54:27:

Interesting don't know this gambit!
5.-Nc6 seem inadequate 5.-Ng6 6.e5 Ng8 7.Bc4 d5 is a better try

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4.
Nxe5 Nxe5 5. d4 Nc6 6. d5 Nb8 7. e5 Ng8 8. d6 cxd6 9. exd6 Qa5 10. Bb5 a6 11.
O-O axb5 12. Re1+ Be7 13. Qg4 Kf8 14. dxe7+ Nxe7 15. Rxe7 Nc6 16. Re8+ Kxe8 17.
Qxg7 d6 18. Qxh8+ Kd7 19. Bf4 1-0

It seems black made no real blunder ^-^