We focused this release on social features and UI polish so you can connect with friends and join games with less friction and more clarity. Friends & social - Full friends workflow: Send friend requests, accept or reject incoming requests, cancel sent requests, and remove friends — all from the redesigned Friends screens. - Invite to play: Invite friends to a match, accept or reject invites, and join an invited game seamlessly. Invite pop-ups and loading states are polished and clear. - Better search & requests: A search field helps find people; if nobody matches, the UI guides you to send a request. Request lists and inbox flows are handled directly in the Friends screens. - Online & rich friend info: Friend rows now show display name, ELO and icon; friends are ordered with online players surfaced first so you can spot available opponents quickly. Notifications & panel - Panel badges: New badge indicators on the top panel show unread friend requests and notifications at a glance. - Notification improvements: Notification list visuals and animations are refined; accepting or deleting notifications removes the entry cleanly and reliably. UI, animations & visuals - Polished sprites & prefabs: Multiple new sprites and prefabs were added to improve clarity across Friends, Notifications, Menu and other panels — backgrounds, buttons and icons feel sharper and more consistent. - Smoother animations: Entry and popup animations (friends, notifications, panels, and invite popups) were re-timed and polished for a cleaner, more satisfying feel. - Masking & hit-area fixes: Raycast/mask and tap-area issues were fixed across screens so touches behave predictably and modal panels block underlying taps correctly. Startup & Check screen - Clearer startup feedback: The Check screen now conveys each startup step with progress text and percentage. Visuals were refreshed so health/version/resource checks feel informative rather than opaque. The progress bar is more descriptive and easier to follow. Stability & usability - Robust UI flows: Back-button and panel hierarchy issues were fixed so navigation no longer leaves screens in inconsistent states. - Data-driven UI: Friend list and request displays now handle edge cases gracefully (empty states show helpful illustrations and copy). - Reduced friction: Buttons, input fields and scroll alignment were tuned so lists snap correctly and tapping items consistently opens the intended view. Why you’ll love it - Faster matchmaking with friends, clearer invite feedback, and visible badges make social play feel immediate. - Cleaner visuals and smoother animations make the app more pleasant to use and easier to navigate. - Improved startup messaging helps you get into a game with confidence. If you run into any issue, please use the in-app Bug Report so we can track and fix it quickly. Enjoy your games — see you on the board!

We focused this update on polish, reliability and smoother customization — little changes that make Chessmax feel faster, cleaner and more dependable. Highlights for players - Redesigned Shop: The Shop UI got a visual refresh — cleaner layouts, refreshed item art and animations, improved masks, and larger, more reliable tap areas for boards, pieces, icons and emotes so browsing and buying feels smoother and more satisfying. - Safer finisher video handling: Finisher videos were moved out of the bundled streaming assets and now run from the game's persistent data storage. This reduces initial bundle size and enables safer updates. The client now downloads finisher assets reliably and plays them from disk, reducing playback errors and improving startup performance. - Robust download & file-write logic: Under-the-hood improvements make file downloads and saves far more resilient. Temporary files, safe move/copy fallbacks and overwrite checks prevent corrupted or incomplete downloads — you’ll experience fewer interrupted media loads and more reliable asset updates. - Improved startup Check screen: The startup Check flow now shows clearer progress with an extended progress bar and smart wait steps so the app reports health/version/resource checks in a way that’s easy to follow. The flow tolerates partial downloads and still allows the game to start when possible. - Polished Menu & animations: Menu panels and entry animations were tightened up — counters, prize visuals and the tournament button now animate in with better timing and hierarchy so navigation feels more deliberate and polished. - Buy screen & naming fixes: The Buy screen visuals were updated to a cornerless design and masking was applied across content for a cleaner look. Numerous naming and animation hierarchy fixes reduce visual glitches and improve consistency during shopping. - Loadout & Shop hit-area improvements: Scroll interaction and clickable areas were refined so removed or rearranged items no longer break alignment; tapping items now aligns correctly and scrolls behave more naturally. - Editor cleanup (user-visible benefits): Old, redundant finisher assets were removed from the project and the asset pipeline cleaned up — this keeps the app leaner and reduces risk of stale resources reaching players. Why this matters - Faster, more reliable launches and media playback. - A cleaner, smoother shopping and customization experience. - Fewer visual glitches and more consistent animations across devices. Enjoy the update — if you notice anything odd, please use the in-app Bug Report so we can fix it quickly. See you on the board!

This update sharpens the tournament experience, cleans up menus and panels, and makes reporting and startup smoother and more reliable. We focused on visible improvements that help you find events, understand prize info at a glance, and navigate the game with confidence. Key player-facing improvements - Tournament prize board: Prize information is now front-and-center in the Overview and tournament buttons — you’ll see prize amounts in-context where they matter. - Clearer, faster Overview & Menu: Layouts, counters and entry animations were reworked for better visual hierarchy. Tournament counters and titles now appear where you expect them, and the tournament button includes the prize header so taps feel more natural. - New Information pop-ups: Helpful info panels were added to Menu, Profile and Shop top panels. They have polished open/close animations and play UI sounds for a satisfying, consistent experience. - Smarter messaging: In-app message text now appears slightly higher and animates in/out smoothly so alerts are easier to read without blocking other UI elements. - Improved reporting workflow: The player report and bug-report screens were simplified — report buttons are disabled until you enter a description, toggles behave consistently, and the flow prevents accidental or empty reports. - Loadout & style continuity: Loadout entry points restore previous scroll position and tab buttons clearly indicate which section is active, so customizing your pieces, boards and icons is faster and less confusing. - Touch & interaction fixes: Touch events no longer pass through modal panels; hit areas and anchors were corrected, scroll views now use elastic behavior, and removed buttons no longer break alignment. - New "Check" startup flow: A guided startup screen now shows progress (health/version/resource checks) with a clear progress bar and icons so app startup feels informative and polished. Version and timestamp info are displayed where relevant. - Visual polish & assets: New and refreshed sprites and animations across Menu, Overview, Message and Info panels give the UI a cleaner, more modern look. The splash branding art was refined for a better first impression. - Stability & cleanup: Various layout masking, padding and hierarchy bugs were fixed so elements no longer overlap or hide unexpectedly. Unused editor assets were removed to keep the project tidy and focused. Why you’ll enjoy this update - See tournament prizes immediately and join the action faster. - Report issues with confidence — the UI guides you to submit useful info. - Enjoy a smoother first-run experience with clearer startup feedback and consistent UI polish throughout menus and tournament screens. As always, thank you for playing Chessmax — if you spot anything odd, use the in-app Bug Report so we can keep improving the experience. Happy playing!

This release focuses on tournament visibility, clearer navigation, and UI polish across Menu, Overview and reporting flows. Small but meaningful UX fixes and new visuals make it easier to see prizes, join events and report issues. Highlights - Pass screen visuals removed to reduce clutter and streamline menus. - Tournament prize board: a new prize table graphic is visible in the Overview so prize amounts are easier to spot from every tournament tab. Prize text is now assigned dynamically in the client UI. - Dynamic tournament counters: tournament counters and titles were added to Menu and Overview so key event timers and values appear where you expect them. - Menu & Overview polish: - New and refreshed sprites and entry animations for Menu and Overview panels for a clearer, more polished look. - Play button, prize table and counter now animate in together for stronger visual hierarchy. - Information text in Overview now shows up-to-date, contextual tournament info. - Rounds panels and related opening animations were refined for a smoother experience. - Improved navigation & hit areas: - Tournament button now includes the tournament image for a larger, more reliable tap area. - Scroll views were adjusted so removed buttons don’t break alignment; tapping a menu item now aligns the list correctly. - Right-side scroll content and visual indicators were resized and reflowed for better readability. - Loadout / Style continuity: - Loadout and Loadout-AI entry points restore the previous scroll position so you land where you expect. - Tab buttons now visually show which section is selected for faster customization workflows. - Reporting & settings UX: - Bug Report flow simplified: the Report button is initially disabled and only becomes active once the issue description is provided. This reduces accidental empty reports. - Player report screen defaults to a disabled state and requires deliberate input before sending. - Settings pop-up sizing refined for consistent visual proportions. - Visual cleanup & editor hygiene: - Many outdated assets and animation fragments were removed from the project to keep the editor tidy and reduce clutter. - Several sprites and font assets were refreshed to improve readability across devices and screen sizes. - Performance & small fixes: - Utility timing functions were optimized for more efficient countdown and timer rendering. - Masking, padding and anchor bugs in Menu and Overview were fixed so elements no longer overlap or hide unexpectedly. - Frame glitches in entry animations were corrected for a consistent presentation on entry. Quality & testing - UI and animation changes were validated on target device classes and adjusted for consistent behavior when resuming paused games. - Tender adjustments were made to ensure tournament visuals and counters persist correctly when returning to the app from background or when resuming a match. Thanks for playing Chessmax — this update improves tournament visibility, tightens navigation, and simplifies reporting. If something looks off, please use the in-app Bug Report so we can fix it quickly.

This update focuses on control responsiveness, Loadout usability, and clearer tournament presentation — small changes that make playing, customizing and competing smoother. Highlights - Always-on camera rotation and improved pinch controls for touch devices: rotate the board with two fingers just like pinch-to-zoom — a more natural, uninterrupted viewing experience. - Loadout & Style improvements: Loadout buttons and visuals refreshed; opening Loadout/Loadout AI via multiple entry points now restores the previous scroll position so you land where you expect. - Clearer tab feedback: tab buttons now visibly indicate which section is selected, making customization and navigation faster and less confusing. - Prize visibility in Tournament Overview: a prize table graphic has been added to the tournament Overview and now displays the prize amount in-context. Prize values update in the Overview UI so players see current prize info at the right moment. - Overview polish & animations: new animations for rounds panels and updated overview visuals add clarity and polish. Information panels and prize UI alignment issues were fixed so content is no longer hidden behind other elements. - Interaction fixes: corrected several hierarchy/anchor issues so buttons and counters stack correctly; play/queue and info button placement behave as intended. - Loadout content fixes: fixed naming/hierarchy problems in the icon scroll view to ensure items render and behave correctly. - Bug-report access: opening the in-app Bug Report and Report User screens is now more reliable from the UI — the flow has been simplified so reporting issues is quicker. Stability & Polish - Multiple new sprites and updated UI assets for Overview and Loadout improve visual clarity across tournament screens and style menus. - UI padding, masks and anchors were adjusted across overview and tournament screens to deliver consistent layout across different devices and orientations. - Miscellaneous unused assets were removed to keep the build tidy and reduce clutter in the editor. Thanks for playing Chessmax — this release tightens controls, speeds up customization, and makes tournament info easier to read. If you see anything odd, please use the in-app Bug Report so we can fix it quickly.

This release brings tournament-focused improvements, AI opponents for tournaments, and a range of UI, reliability, and backend optimizations to make competitive play faster, clearer and more dependable. Player-facing highlights: - Tournament AI: AI players are now supported inside tournaments. When human opponents aren't available, AI competitors will be matched reliably so tournaments progress smoothly. - Unified Tournament Overview: Clients can now request a single overview endpoint that returns prize pool, leaderboard, league elo totals and relevant match history — reducing network round-trips and improving load times. - Scoreboard & Prize UI rebuilt: The Prize Pool and Scoreboard sections were redesigned and integrated into the Overview screen (no separate pop-ups). Scoreboard content is now visible directly on the tournament screen for faster access. - Overview UX polish: Removed obsolete General pop-ups and the “last update” message from prize & scoreboard areas; tab flows and back-button behavior were corrected so navigation feels consistent and predictable. - Visual updates: New overview buttons, prize/scoreboard backgrounds, lines and animations added for clearer, more polished presentation. - Gameplay fixes: Fixed a race condition in ranged-attack animations that could leave a just-dead piece clickable and trigger invalid-move errors. Dead pieces are now properly disabled during and after their death animation. - Hierarchy & layout fixes: Fixed play button/queue stacking and information button hierarchy issues; adjusted scoreboard slider ranges and tab padding for better visual balance. Server & systems improvements: - Tournament AI backend: New tournament AI services manage AI players, auto-moves and match timing; AI player identifiers and name generation are robustly handled and logged. - Robust AI auto-move: Match ID extraction and logging for AI auto-moves were hardened to reduce parsing errors and improve observability. - Resilient leaderboard sync: Leaderboard sync logic gained safer error handling (try/catch + logging) so Redis sync problems are caught and monitored without impacting availability. - Centralized version & caching: Version and leaderboard data flows were further refined with Redis-backed endpoints and clearer logging for easier operations and faster client responses. - API simplification: Deprecated or redundant tournament endpoints were removed in favor of the new overview endpoint, simplifying client-server integration. Polish & cleanup: - Many unused animations and assets were identified and removed (via our EditorUnused tool) to reduce build size and clutter. - Overview and tournament screens had padding, mask, and anchor corrections across Azure / Crimson / Jade / Topaz variants. - New prize/scoreboard opening animations and overview animations were added for a smoother UX. Stability & QA: - UI and feature changes were deployed with improved logging and tested across target device classes. Error conditions in tournament sync, AI match handling, and overview assembly are now logged for quick detection and resolution. Thanks for playing Chessmax. This update improves tournament flow — AI opponents keep events moving, the new Overview gives instant access to prize and leaderboard info, and numerous fixes make matches more reliable. As always, please report any issues via the in-app Bug Report so we can continue improving the experience.

We've focused this release on profile & customization polish, stability, and backend performance so you can play, personalize and compete more smoothly. User-facing highlights - Profile revamp: Match History is now the default tab; left-panel layout, visuals and opening animation improved. Profile data loads reliably via the new /profile/me endpoint. - Loadout & Style: Emote, icon, board and piece customization flows reorganized—new tabs and buttons make equipping and browsing faster. Loadout UI updated for clearer interaction and fewer accidental requests. - Randomize inventory: Backend + client updates prepare randomize to include emotes and icons; responses are simplified and more robust. - Tournament & leaderboards: Redis-backed caching dramatically speeds tournament queries and leaderboard reads for snappier, more reliable results. - IAP & versioning: IAP verification hardened (timeouts tuned) and store version sync moved to Redis for safer, faster checks. - Polish & size: Many UI assets and animations refreshed; unused assets were removed to reduce build size and improve load times. - Stability & testing: Profile/tournament services and device-aware inventory responses were optimized. UI fixes and layout/padding corrections applied across screens. This update was tested across 83 device configurations (phones, tablets, folded/expanded). Bug fixes & performance - Fixed profile mask/padding, clickable profile/loadout behaviors, Overview slider/anchor issues and several edge-case UI bugs. - Reduced local memory access for selected style items by ~50% for smoother interactions. - Removed obsolete endpoints and cleaned unused code to simplify future updates. Thanks for playing Chessmax—please keep feedback coming via the in-app Bug Report. See you on the board!

Hey Chessmaxers — this is a build packed with polish! We focused on making matches smoother, menus prettier, and purchases clearer so you can get back to the game faster. What’s new and improved Custom Match & Redeem Code — Both pop-ups got a visual and usability refresh. Creating custom games and redeeming codes is now cleaner and easier to use. Loading & Connection — Loading visuals updated and connection screens now behave more reliably. The app gives clearer feedback when your connection changes so you won’t be left guessing. Ticket purchases — When you buy a ticket, you’ll now see a clear message telling you exactly what happened. No more mystery responses — just straightforward info. Rating prompt behavior — The in-app rating flow has been refined so it appears at appropriate times and respects platform rules. If you want to reward us with a star, the prompt will be friendly and unobtrusive. Menu & UI polish — Visual touches across the top menu: battery slider issues fixed, notification badge behavior corrected, and refreshed icons for Settings, Friends and Wi-Fi. Little things, big difference. Loading art & buttons — Fresh loading frames and updated button artwork give the app a more cohesive look and feel. Stability & network improvements — Better handling of network errors and more responsive connectivity checks help the game recover faster from hiccups. Under-the-hood fixes — Miscellaneous performance and stability tweaks to make gameplay snappier and more reliable. Thanks for playing and reporting issues — your feedback drives these improvements. Update now and enjoy a tidier, smoother Chessmax experience. If you spot anything odd, send us a bug report from Settings so we can squish it fast.

This update delivers a broad set of UI optimizations, asset clean-ups, new animations, improved camera and zoom behavior, and stability upgrades to enhance gameplay clarity and overall performance. We performed a major visual refactor: outdated sprites, tournament-related artwork, unused backgrounds, and legacy UI assets were removed. More than 45 unused textures and 1 outdated animation were identified and deleted using a custom-built Unity Editor extension (“EditorUnused.cs”), which now exists solely in the Editor and is excluded from builds. Several new sprites were added to support updated panels, loading animations, and connection/version control screens. A number of functional issues were also addressed. A long-standing animation conflict within the “Chibi Pirates” piece skin (pawn animations triggering on the wrong square) was resolved. Scroll view content in multiple “Overview” ranking tabs now renders fully on all device sizes. Several pop-ups, including Grand Final, Prize Pool, and Scoreboard, were visually refreshed or fully removed where outdated. Camera behavior received important fixes: camera movement no longer continues while an in-match panel is open, and zoom mechanics were rewritten to behave consistently across touch and mouse input. Zoom correction now follows a 1-second easing window rather than an instantaneous reset, improving user experience. Zoom is now always available during matches and indicated accordingly in Settings. Loading screen performance was improved by replacing image-based backgrounds with a Unity-generated solid color and refreshing loading animation sprites. Additional UI elements and icons (Connection Lost, Version Control, Tournament buttons, etc.) were redesigned through newly generated AI prompts and integrated via Figma. A new iOS-native rating flow was introduced. A lightweight Objective-C bridge (“StoreReviewBridge.m”) routes Unity’s DllImport call directly to SKStoreReviewController without requiring any extra entitlements. Rating prompts now appear once per device, triggered contextually from match-end screens for iPhone and iPad users. All related behavior has been tested on iOS and iPadOS to confirm correct presentation. Bug reporting also received improvements: visibility overrides were removed, Win/Lose screens now play correct audio feedback, Settings closes automatically when a report is sent, and a loading overlay appears while awaiting server responses. The project’s POST endpoint for “.../user/bug-report” was fully implemented with dedicated request/response classes. Finally, Unity Purchasing was updated to version 5.0.4, resolving the known product-fetching issue in 5.0.3. In-app purchases, rating prompts, and the updated UI have been successfully validated on both iOS and iPad test builds. This update focuses on polish, stability, asset hygiene, and cross-device consistency—preparing the foundation for upcoming tournament and match systems.

We've given the Settings pop-up a new look and improved usability. A bug that caused tiles to be moved while panels like Settings, Report User, and Bug Report are open has been fixed. Some padding and clickable area issues have been fixed.