Symmetrical Variation, Two Knights, Fianchetto Variation

After 1. c4 c5 2. Nc3 Nc6, the move 3. g3 commits White to the kingside fianchetto before deciding where the g1-knight belongs. The bishop on g2 will bear down on d5 along the long diagonal and add to the knight's grip on that square, which makes ...d5 harder still for Black. Delaying Nf3 leaves several schemes available: the Botvinnik setup with e4 and Nge2, a plan with e3 and Nge2 to support d4, or the more conventional Nf3 followed by d4.

Black's most frequent answer by a wide margin is 3...g6. After 4. Bg2 Bg7 it leads to the mirrored fianchetto positions that contain the Ultra-Symmetrical and Full Symmetry lines. The main alternatives are 3...Nf6 and 3...e6. The latter prepares ...d5 to contest the center directly instead of copying White's setup. The engine considers the position roughly balanced, and White scores slightly better in practice, in line with the Symmetrical English as a whole. The play is generally slow and structural, with both sides completing development before committing to a pawn break.