Just because you're stuck at home doesn't mean you can't play games with your friends—and I don't just mean through Steam! Maker Lewis from DIY Machines has created a smart chessboard with the help of a Raspberry Pi. This board allows you to play both online or in single-player mode against a computer opponent hosted on the Pi.
Some of the best Raspberry Pi projects are ones you can play with at home and Lewis was kind enough to provide everything you need to recreate it with a full project demo and breakdown video on YouTube.
The smart chessboard does much more than just monitor the gameplay. It interjects like a referee if the rules aren't properly followed. Users can also request hints while planning their next move. It's also easy to tote around as it can be powered using a USB battery pack.
The project can use a Raspberry Pi Zero W (it has to be a W for the online support) but Lewis recommends at least a Raspberry Pi 3 A+. It also uses an Arduino Nano, along with 86 individual Neo Pixels to backlight the squares on the board. A .96-inch OLED is mounted on the side above the button panel.
Users can download the 3D printable parts of this project from Thingiverse, check out the code used on GitHub, and see how it all goes together on the official DIY Machines website.
