Hey everyone, solo dev here! I've been polishing the multiplayer experience to make matches more strategic, visual, and stable. Here is a quick, to-the-point list of what is now live:
⏱️ Clocks & Turn HUD
- Right HUD Thematic Clocks: Moved timers to custom, board-themed clock cards on the right side of the board. Features dynamic Steam name displays and a centerpiece turn banner ("YOUR MOVE" / "OPPONENT'S MOVE") that pulses colors using sine-wave animations.
- Desync-free Timers: Changed to client clock authority. Your client ticks down your clock, and your opponent's ticks down theirs, syncing the remaining time and +5s increment on every move. No more false timeouts due to packet latency.
- Clean UI: Hidden campaign passive displays ("+10/s") in multiplayer.
🔌 Reconnections & Game Flow
- Inactivity Warning: Added a "RECONNECTING..." overlay if no packets are received from the opponent for 60 seconds. Transitions to a disconnect screen after a 5-second grace period where you can claim a victory immediately.
- Color-Swap Rematch: Added a "REMATCH (X/2)" button. Voting resets the board and swaps player colors (former Host plays White, former Joiner plays Black).
- Instant Re-queue: Added a "PLAY AGAIN" button on match completion that leaves the lobby and queues you up for a new matchmaking lobby immediately.
🧠 Self-Play (Analysis) Mode
- Local Opening Study: Added a "Self-Play (Analysis)" button at the bottom of the multiplayer mode menu. Move pieces for BOTH colors locally turn-by-turn to test opening combinations.
- Balanced Stats: Uses multiplayer base stats (King HP 15, Queen HP 12, flat damage, Pawn front attacks) without clocks or network replication.
- Reset & Quit Actions: Includes a quick Reset Board button to clear the board and restore pieces, plus a Quit button to return to the menu cleanly.