Barcza System


The Barcza System is a chess played by White, comprising the moves Nf3, g3, Bg2 and 0-0, regarded as non-committal moves whilst Black exposes their intention. It is named after the Hungarian grandmaster Gedeon Barcza who employed the opening on many occasions throughout his career.
After playing the four moves outlined above White will usually choose to direct play into another opening system such as the Réti Opening, the King's Indian Attack, the Catalan, or the Hippopotamus. The Barcza System is thus essentially a transpositional tool where White delays committing to a specific structure until it is clear how Black intends to develop. The Barcza System only has independent significance on the rare occasions where play does not enter another opening complex.
The Barcza System has been suggested as a universal system ideal for club players by grandmasters such as Lajos Portisch, David Bronstein and Yasser Seirawan.