Hello community! I've been a user of the platform for a few years now, and I really enjoy the features and quality of everything that is done here. The app is light, fast and the most beautiful chess app on the app store, period. Despite all those qualities, I'd like to suggest some really small improvements (all personal suggestions) to enhance even more the online chess playing experience of every user that installs lichess. With that said, here are the list of tweaks that I believe will make a difference:
- distorted logo on small screens
the first thing we see after downloading and opening the app, is the lichess gorgeous new logo; the thing is, the elegance of it is lost by the adaptation that happens in different screens sizes. The taller ones stretch it, and the small ones crush it. So the beautiful knight in form of a "C" looses its form and power. The solution: set some anchor parameters on the engine to compensate the logo size based on any screen ratio, that will display the same logo for everyone who opens the app, independent of the device.
- players' country flag right beside their name
one of the most interesting thing to know about your opponent is to guess where they are from. Having this info right beside their name or username during a match (when the player informs and allows it to the system), would really be nice even to know which language to use with that user.
- in bullet games, auto select new opponents after a game option
fast players do everything fast! what if it were possible to check and option for the system to automatically look for a new opponent after a bullet or ultra bullet game ended? this would save time for them, more games would be played and users would stay on the app/website much longer for sure.
- new opponent option while waiting for first move (no need to abort)
waiting for the last second or having to abort a game before being able to ask for a new opponent is a really two-step process that could be much simpler by adding the new opponent option always available before (or even during) a match.
- folders to save games
every time we finish a memorable game, wouldn't it be nice to be able to save and find it quickly? Having an option not only to share it but also to save it just like a pin on a pinterest board like: "epic wins", "dumb loses", "lucky mistakes", "quickest mates" would create some really interesting possibilities to search for a specific player game, or just archive the games having more fun. Also, these folders could be public or private, the user chooses.
- first move countdown out of the board
I know that this one might be due to some devices that are really small, but having the countdown to start the match inside the board is a no-no; of course, the only back arrow piece that can be moved is the knight but for new users that can be a signal of limitation; so placing the countdown outside the board (when possible) or just as the clock but on the opposite side of the screen (left or right), would be a really and elegant touch.
- option: coordinates inside all squares
we already have the coordinates shown separately, on the first column and last line, but for some amateur players (like me) having the option to display the full coordinate (A1, D5, G7, E8) inside all squares, would really assist on the understanding and reading of the board. even for old people, like my mother, who lives playing and this would make it easier to point a piece direction and position without having to describe it out loud or worse, point it with fingers.
- be able to play a puzzle while waiting for opponent after custom game creation
this is a minor idea, but also something that can happen; while I'm typing this message, I see there is a nice simple puzzle to solve on the bottom of the screen. that feature would be a nice one when we wait for the system to find a very specific game for us... since leaving the app will do no help, staying in it and being productive, is a nice incentive for a challenge.
- name the opening during the game so players can learn playing
this might be a more difficult task for the programmers... but if you think about it, the number of openings compared to the infinite number of possible games is really small. so what if, players could have the option to be informed which opening they are using, even for experienced players this might be a nice info to inform, educate and make a nice original feature on the platform.
- when rewinding games, rewind the time clock as well
wouldn't it be nice to see at which time moves were made during the game? relating these two aspects: the move and the moment it was made, would really improve the analysis not just for the system, but for the player to be able to see when the move was made. this would match the clock and the current move on the board precisely, giving an important feedback for players who would like to see that info.
- auto back to tournament
this idea is similar to the "auto new opponent" feature; I might be redundant here, and the feature might already exist, but while on tournaments, I always have to tap that option "go back to tournament", while I never left it in first place. So this would make it clear that the game is on! also, a stronger highlight on the player's position on the ranking would be a nice touch (the whole line in green, for example).
- vibrate on puzzle moves too
this one is something that I miss while playing on the cellphone; the vibration on games is already active, so playing on the street while listening to music, my turn is really obvious. however, on puzzle mode, this doesn't happen and boy, do I miss it.
- on puzzles, you have to press the graph button twice to update your score
I don't know if it's just me, but my score doesn't update right away. If you guys fix this..... thank you!!
- on the browser, have a replay button for puzzles as well, the current format is too counter-intuitive
really, clicking on the points "button" of the previous puzzle was something someone thought would be intuitive? I think that is not the case, it really took me some time to figure it out how to replay a puzzle on a PC browser; but anyways, the ap format is just right. make it the same ;)
SO...
This is it.
I hope this humble suggestions are read, considered, pondered, discussed with the design and tech team and some of them, put into action to make this app better than it already is. I hope I could contribute for this amazing platform and I'll wait to se if any of this comes true.
Thank you so very much,
Carlos Alberto Andres
- distorted logo on small screens
the first thing we see after downloading and opening the app, is the lichess gorgeous new logo; the thing is, the elegance of it is lost by the adaptation that happens in different screens sizes. The taller ones stretch it, and the small ones crush it. So the beautiful knight in form of a "C" looses its form and power. The solution: set some anchor parameters on the engine to compensate the logo size based on any screen ratio, that will display the same logo for everyone who opens the app, independent of the device.
- players' country flag right beside their name
one of the most interesting thing to know about your opponent is to guess where they are from. Having this info right beside their name or username during a match (when the player informs and allows it to the system), would really be nice even to know which language to use with that user.
- in bullet games, auto select new opponents after a game option
fast players do everything fast! what if it were possible to check and option for the system to automatically look for a new opponent after a bullet or ultra bullet game ended? this would save time for them, more games would be played and users would stay on the app/website much longer for sure.
- new opponent option while waiting for first move (no need to abort)
waiting for the last second or having to abort a game before being able to ask for a new opponent is a really two-step process that could be much simpler by adding the new opponent option always available before (or even during) a match.
- folders to save games
every time we finish a memorable game, wouldn't it be nice to be able to save and find it quickly? Having an option not only to share it but also to save it just like a pin on a pinterest board like: "epic wins", "dumb loses", "lucky mistakes", "quickest mates" would create some really interesting possibilities to search for a specific player game, or just archive the games having more fun. Also, these folders could be public or private, the user chooses.
- first move countdown out of the board
I know that this one might be due to some devices that are really small, but having the countdown to start the match inside the board is a no-no; of course, the only back arrow piece that can be moved is the knight but for new users that can be a signal of limitation; so placing the countdown outside the board (when possible) or just as the clock but on the opposite side of the screen (left or right), would be a really and elegant touch.
- option: coordinates inside all squares
we already have the coordinates shown separately, on the first column and last line, but for some amateur players (like me) having the option to display the full coordinate (A1, D5, G7, E8) inside all squares, would really assist on the understanding and reading of the board. even for old people, like my mother, who lives playing and this would make it easier to point a piece direction and position without having to describe it out loud or worse, point it with fingers.
- be able to play a puzzle while waiting for opponent after custom game creation
this is a minor idea, but also something that can happen; while I'm typing this message, I see there is a nice simple puzzle to solve on the bottom of the screen. that feature would be a nice one when we wait for the system to find a very specific game for us... since leaving the app will do no help, staying in it and being productive, is a nice incentive for a challenge.
- name the opening during the game so players can learn playing
this might be a more difficult task for the programmers... but if you think about it, the number of openings compared to the infinite number of possible games is really small. so what if, players could have the option to be informed which opening they are using, even for experienced players this might be a nice info to inform, educate and make a nice original feature on the platform.
- when rewinding games, rewind the time clock as well
wouldn't it be nice to see at which time moves were made during the game? relating these two aspects: the move and the moment it was made, would really improve the analysis not just for the system, but for the player to be able to see when the move was made. this would match the clock and the current move on the board precisely, giving an important feedback for players who would like to see that info.
- auto back to tournament
this idea is similar to the "auto new opponent" feature; I might be redundant here, and the feature might already exist, but while on tournaments, I always have to tap that option "go back to tournament", while I never left it in first place. So this would make it clear that the game is on! also, a stronger highlight on the player's position on the ranking would be a nice touch (the whole line in green, for example).
- vibrate on puzzle moves too
this one is something that I miss while playing on the cellphone; the vibration on games is already active, so playing on the street while listening to music, my turn is really obvious. however, on puzzle mode, this doesn't happen and boy, do I miss it.
- on puzzles, you have to press the graph button twice to update your score
I don't know if it's just me, but my score doesn't update right away. If you guys fix this..... thank you!!
- on the browser, have a replay button for puzzles as well, the current format is too counter-intuitive
really, clicking on the points "button" of the previous puzzle was something someone thought would be intuitive? I think that is not the case, it really took me some time to figure it out how to replay a puzzle on a PC browser; but anyways, the ap format is just right. make it the same ;)
SO...
This is it.
I hope this humble suggestions are read, considered, pondered, discussed with the design and tech team and some of them, put into action to make this app better than it already is. I hope I could contribute for this amazing platform and I'll wait to se if any of this comes true.
Thank you so very much,
Carlos Alberto Andres
