Development Update
The past month has been incredible! The MVP is shining from polish while we rapidly approaching launch readiness. Our focus has been largely directed at bringing QOL improvements, completing core functionality and user experience refinements while empowering teams with more autonomy. Here’s what we’ve been building:
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Self-Reporting System is live! Teams can now use out match meta support to report their own match scores, with automatic resolution when both teams agree. Various community requirements such as post-match screenshots can now be supported. -
Big Ominous Countdown Timers create healthy pressure for captains to respond to challenges promptly, complete with llama warnings to keep things moving.. all possible because of additional per-ladder configurations (such as response time limits!) -
Visual Polish Everywhere with alternating row colors for rosters, consistent button states, responsive design improvements, and better mobile experiences -
Accidental Action Prevention through confirmation dialogs that require typing ‘yes’ for critical actions like challenging teams or roster management -
Enhanced Mobile UX with modal ladder history, responsive admin panels, and optimized touch interactions -
Advanced Timezone Support with user preferences, automatic conversions, and toggle between local time and UTC for proposed match dates -
Historical Archives for legacy TWL data, letting longtime community members revisit the glory days while we build the future
Teams Taking Control
The enhanced timezone support has been a major step and should help in the task of coordinating players and teams in different TZs, no more confusion about when matches are supposed to happen or doing the math to convert to TZs you don’t know about. Users can just set their timezone in their profile and the system does the rest.
That said, the biggest game-changer this month has been giving teams more autonomy. Our self-reporting system means matches can resolve instantly when both teams agree on scores, and the new confirmation dialogs prevent accidental challenges. Combined with the countdown timers and useful on-page alerts for ladder admins, we’re excited to see smoother ladder flow for everyone.
UI/UX Revolution
We’ve transformed the user experience with dozens of small but impactful improvements. The new direct linking system means you can bookmark your team’s position or share exciting matches with friends. Mobile users finally have a better experience, and the visual consistency improvements make everything feel more polished and put together. There’s still a long way to go as we’ve been focused on function over form but it’s feeling a lot nicer now.
Opened Test Ladder
The Chronophoto Test Ladder is now open for public testers, the actual matches themselves are optional (we’ve been resolving some with a throw of the dice!) because we’re seeking to iterate as quickly as possible to find/fix bugs. If you’d like to contribute regularly just get in touch and we’ll add you to the testers role.
Ready for More Games
With our core ladder system kicking up fewer bugs, we’re excited to announce new game queues opening! We’ve opened up a queing ladder for Battlefield 6 10v10 NA which you can use right now to create a team or join any of the existing ones. Our flexible platform architecture means we can support any competitive multiplayer game the community wants, please message dox on Discord to talk about your game, get help with or ask anything about TWL!
It’s not just about comp
Part of the vision for the TWL reboot is to accommodate all gamers - whether you’re looking for intense ladder competition, casual pickup games, community events, or just want to hang out with fellow gaming enthusiasts who appreciate quality matches and good sportsmanship. Stop by discord and let us know what you’re playing or are interested in playing!
Looking Forward
We’re now in the final sprint toward our public launch! The foundation is much more solid, the features are polished, and we’re ready to welcome both old TWL veterans and new competitive gamers looking for that perfect blend of skill-based matchmaking and community engagement.
Come test drive our improvements in our discord - we’re looking for more teams to put our self-reporting system through its paces and help us fine-tune the final details before we open the floodgates!
Still Looking for Admins
As we prepare for launch, we’re actively seeking experienced community leaders to help admin our growing collection of ladders. If you have experience running competitive gaming communities and want to help shape the future of TWL, reach out in our discord!