2D vs 3D

It seems that when I am playing 2D chess (on line) I make many mistakes I would never make in a 3D (real pieces) world.  I wonder if this is a common phenomenon.  I just don’t seem to be able to see the board as well.  Have others experienced this?

Its the other way round for me. I guess our minds just work differently.

I've learned that I get used to whichever way I play, if I play it exclusively. For instance, if I only play 2D I'll get used to it and stop making the types of mistakes it sounds like you're making. If I play 3D at all then I just can't get fully used to 2D. I prefer a real board with real men and I often mirror a PC game on a real board so I don't have to play in 2D. I think the patterns and positions of a chess game are more beautiful in 3D.

Maybe it is not the board. Maybe the reason your sufferring on the internet is you like psychological warfare and u can't easily do that over the internet because they can't see your face. Maybe using the chat box more would bring some of that back to the game.

On a computer, I much prefer playing with a 2D board - if I try to use the artificially 3D sets in programs it's just horrible. Obviously, in real life this isn't an issue.

I agree with Gomer Pyle, when I first discovered internet chess it was hard to get used to 2D, but now I play a lot more on chess.com than OTB and I have to adjust to OTB. Also, gabrielconroy is right, artificial 3D is the worst. 

I see both equally well/poorly, assuming I've been practicing with each.

Some calculate purely in their mind, but most mix visual image and mental images because it's easier. Yes, it's a good idea before any event to familiarize yourself with the board you will be using. If you do that most of your chess skill will transfer to the new medium.

Interesting discussion.  I have to admit, I have been playing online a lot more than 3D lately.  And the last game I played, I threw my queen away for nothing.  So I wonder if I really do need to re-acclimate to the board.  Interesting.

On a related note, does anyone else hate playing with these novelty sets with fantasy pieces, or soldiers from the Napoleonic era, and so on? If I have to sepnd time thinking about which piece is a bishop or a knight, that's not good for calculation.

gabriel - Yep. I enjoy looking at them but I do not play on them.

I don't see much of a difference in 2D/3D play, it doesn't hurt vision. But I'm hands down better here because there is no clock and I have an analysis board.

I like looking at some of the fantasy sets but I don't like playing them. There are a few non-Staunton sets I don't mind playing and a few others I'd like to try but I'd get confused on pure fantasy sets.

I learned chess using Ganine's Conqueror and Gothic sets so I don't have much trouble with those. I still have the Gothic and I'd like to get the Conqueror set again. I'd like to play something like the "New Washington" or "Edinburgh" sets from thechessstore.com.

P.S. When I said 3D in my previous post I meant real board and men. I agree with gabrielconroy that computer modeled 3D sets suck. (at least the ones I've seen)

I do just about the same on either type, although I nomrally play witha 3d board when I get the chance.

i have oposit problem, i gues it is only the thing of visualisation, i get used more on 2D..

I haven't notice a problem with visualization, but I prefer the real boards for analysis. It's much easier to grab the actual pieces and move them around to see where lines go, rather than trying to drag and drop with a mouse.

When I play chess on line against the computer, I almost always lose on medium.  And generally because I made a couple of really stupid moves.  But when I play against the chess computer that has actually pieces I can move around the board, I almost always win on medium strength, and don't make those same stupid moves.  I think it has to do with the three dimensional images.  It just seems easier, as you said, to see the lanes/lines.  I rarely lose my queen to a knight fork in 3d chess, but it happens all the time with the on-line chess game.

Interesting !!

The theme chess sets for me are a no go.

It is a good topic.  I seem to only play on the computer, usually, so I am losing touch with 3D.  It took a bit to get use to here on the computer.  I look forward to my next 3D game and will remember this post.

For me 2D computer chess is the best, OTB is second and 3D computer is horrible for me.

I tried playing with the 3D pieces on this site because I was finding the adjustment to OTB hard and thought it might smooth the transition. But I actually think 2D is closer to OTB, because in OTB you can move around the pieces and get a sense of them from all angles (for some reason I think this is better represented by the "flat" pieces). On this site the 3D view is fixed (on some programs you can tilt/rotate the board, but who wants to do that all the time?) and I'm forming the opinion it's just a novelty really.  Whatever the answer, I agree with you that 3D computer is the worst to use.