juliangarnier/3d-hartwig-chess-set

This project is a 3D chess game that runs right in your web browser. Instead of the flat, top-down board you'd see on most chess websites, this renders the pieces and board in full 3D, letting you view the game from different angles. It was built by Julian Garnier as a visual showcase, and you can play it directly online without installing anything. Under the hood, it combines a few tools to pull off the 3D effect using standard web technologies, HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. One library, called Photon, handles the 3D lighting and rendering directly through CSS, which is a somewhat unusual approach. Another library, Chess.js, manages the actual game logic, tracking where pieces can legally move, validating turns, and keeping the board state accurate. So while Photon makes it look three-dimensional, Chess.js makes sure the game actually plays by the rules. The audience here is mostly people who want to see what's visually possible in a browser. A founder or designer might look at it as inspiration for how to make a product feel premium and interactive. A beginner learning web development could study it to understand how creative coding can push beyond typical layouts. It's less of a production-ready chess platform and more of a striking demonstration. One notable tradeoff: the game only works in WebKit-based browsers like Safari. If you're on Firefox or another non-WebKit browser, it won't render correctly. The README doesn't go into detail on why this limitation exists, but it likely stems from relying on experimental CSS 3D features that only WebKit supported at the time.