How play blind chess online?

For visualisation exercise, I wish it were possible to play blind chess, where each player writes their move with no visible board. Ideally the program would tell you if you wrote an illegal move. At the end of the game one could see the board and all the moves with the regular analysis. Does anyone have an idea how best to approximate this currently?

lichess.org/account/preferences/game-display

Scroll down to the bottom and you'll see the option for blindfold chess. Your opponent won't be blindfolded unless they also have the option on.

Terrific, thanks!!!

@biscuitfiend

So I have two questions. Does a loss in blindfold chess affect your rating in that speed category or is it rated separately (as it should be)?

Also, are you shown whether your opponent has activated his blindfold?

@nayf It is not rated separately, but you could just play casual. Otherwise, I think the next best option, if you care about rating, is to make a separate account on which you only play blindfold.

I don't think you are shown. I played a game once against Eric Rosen in which he played blindfolded, and the interface didn't look different at all on my end.

Your opponent won't know if you're playing blindfolded unless you tell them. I would suggest making a seperate account for blindfold, as @biscuitfiend said, but it's up to you.

Also, I do like the idea of having blindfold mode with no visible board, as that can help with visualization. One option could be to somehow hide the board, where you can only view the notation, and input moves with a keyboard, as available in settings, or download a chess theme that makes the board transparent.

But your opponent knowing you are playing blindfold might subconsciously make them play different, such as playing more complicated.

@OldPalHappy

Yes, that was my idea: no visual board, and inputing moves by notation. It would be nice if Lichess had such a feature, as well as a separate blindfold rating and where both players could see that each are playing blindfold, or know it because it was a separate category where blind plays blind.

@biscuitfiend

I'm not at Rosen's level where he could play a strong game blind against a viewing player. I'm currently more at the level where after move 10 it will be a challenge to make only legal moves and not hang all my pieces. I need the practice!

Thanks all for the suggestions. Yes, I might make a new blind identity, named Helen Keller or Ray Charles or Stevie Wonder. (The three most famous blind people I can think of). Incidentally, someone should write a novel about a blind genius who rises to the top of the chess world playing only blind - without feeling the pieces on the board. I wonder if blind players might typically have good "visualisation" skills.

Most chess programs have options like White blindfold, Black blindfold or both, so you can practice with half of the pieces or all pieces invisible. Moreover, nobody oversees it because there‘s no second human involved. You can get started offline + blindfold.

Great suggestion, thanks. Yes, I found it now in the stockfish settings, although it's too bad one has to return always to settings to turn it off of on . I find I can hold my own blind with stockfish until around move 20, when my position begins to crumble. Come to think of it, I don't do much better against Stockfish when sighted. I can usually beat stockfish by removing either of its rooks at the beginning, I mean not blind. I'll aspire to do that blind. I aim to be able to beat it by removing just a minor piece; can't do it yet.