How to Play Chess on Your Computer with a Real Board

Nothing really stops us from using a real chessboard for digital games, whether online or not. The problem is that we must reproduce every move manually to reflect the game state accurately on the board. However, Alper Karayaman's project automates part of those moves, using a webcam to record our moves on the real board and bring them to the online game.

The only thing the chessboard needs is to become an input interface for the player in front of a computer. Think about it: we have steering wheels and pedal systems that turn our machines into simulators. The same happens with levers and joysticks for flying virtual planes and ships. Why not do something similar with chess? Instead of using the mouse, the player moves the pieces and the program takes care of recording them automatically.

Playing chess on your PC with a real board

The main limitation is that we are responsible for the opponent's moves, but programmer Alper Karayaman has created Python software that takes care of the rest. All it asks for beyond the chessboard is a webcam to detect and “dump” our moves onto the computer game. Another very interesting aspect is that the software works with the most relevant chess platforms, such as Stockfish, Chess.com and Lichess.

Configuration tips

• Disable any animations or special effects so the board is as simple as possible.
• Create two screenshots: one for playing as white and another for black.
• Calibration is the most delicate step: the webcam must see a well-lit board with no interference. Ideally, place the webcam directly above the board, though it may be uncomfortable for some players. Good lighting and contrast should be enough.

The software was recently updated, and all builds in the Releases section on GitHub are prepared for Windows, but since it's written in Python, I imagine Linux users won't have much difficulty running it on their favorite distros.

Official site: Click here