Scotch Gambit, de Riviere Defense

The de Riviere Defense is one of the quieter answers to the Scotch Gambit. Instead of capturing on e4 with 5...Nxe4, or developing actively with 5...Bc5 and risking the Max Lange Attack, Black plays 5...Be7. This covers the kingside and prepares castling, while Black keeps the pawn on d4. The drawback is that the knight on f6 has no immediate support from a central pawn, so it can be driven away by a pawn advance. The engine gives White a slight edge, and in practice the results are fairly even, with White a little ahead.

The usual reply is 6. e5, which hits the knight and gains space. This is White's most common choice by a wide margin and also scores best. The alternative 6. Nxd4 wins back the gambit pawn at once and leads to a more open, roughly symmetrical game where White keeps a small lead in development. 6. Re1 is rarely played; it adds pressure on the e-file, but Black scores slightly better against it.