We’ve been hard at work making some exciting changes to ChessCube – take a look and see:
ChessCube - spot anything new?
And, there is more on its way. Keep watching this space for announcements over the next few days.
Releasing a new version of ChessCube is no small task. We’ve had some great feedback on ChessCube v4 already (thanks!). In case you were wondering what goes into launching a new version of ChessCube, I managed to squeeze in some time with Tracy to ask her a few questions. Tracy is the lead developer working on the ChessCube that you see and love, and below are her thoughts on the new version.
Sarah: ChessCube v4 has quite a few changes from the previous version. What are the major changes?
Tracy: The major change was the new skin itself. We tried to keep functional changes to a minimum to make the transition easier.
Functionality that did change was:
Overall, we tried to clean up the interface to make space for all the new exciting things that we’re going to be adding.
ChessCube Chat v4
Can you talk a little bit about why it was time for an update?
Our previous version was great for its time, but started to get a bit cluttered as we added on new functionality. We also found that some older features were not being used optimally. We had new features that we wanted to implement plus we wanted to make the interface more fun.
So it was high time for a reshape and reconfiguration, to make way for the next era of the interface.
What’s involved with releasing a new version of ChessCube?
A lot of testing, sneak previews and a demo version running in parallel. Enthusiastic players enjoyed hunting for the secret preview URL, and also provided us with some good feedback.
What is your favourite part of the new ChessCube chat?
The player card – which has got lots more coming to it. Also, the fact that the simplified interface makes it easier to view and play on smaller screen resolutions.
There are some new features on the horizon that I have seen in the designs that I absolutely love. I cannot let the cat out the bag yet, but they are going to spice up the interface quite nicely.
Thanks Tracy! We’re looking forward to being able to show off the new features that are on the way!
The latest version of ChessCube has just gone live. The interface has changed quite a bit to make it easier to use. We’re loving the new look, and we hope you are too.
If you haven’t yet, login at www.chesscube.com/play to try out the new version. If you’d like to let us know what you think, head on over to our forum to send us comments, bugs and feedback.
We’ll have a little more for you from the lead developer on the new version of ChessCube later on this week.
If you’re following us on Twitter (and if you’re not, you should! www.twitter.com/chesscube), you’ll have seen some mention of something very exciting: version four of ChessCube Play is on its way! If you manage to find it, you can even take a peek on a secret URL. For those who can’t find the secret URL, here are some screenshots to whet your appetite:
ChessCube Chat v4
Chess game in ChessCube V4
Looking good! We can’t wait for you all to try it out.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Online Chess Business ChessCube Receives VC Funding
Cape Town, South Africa – 10 August 2009. ChessCube has concluded a US$1.25m funding agreement with Venture Capital fund, InVenFin (Pty) Ltd. InVenFin, the VC-focused subsidiary of VenFin Limited, invests in intellectual property-based start-ups with global potential. This transaction brings ChessCube’s total funding to date to US$1.8m.
ChessCube is an online chess site, which allows players of all skill levels to compete and learn chess, while socializing with others. With a potential market of over fifty million active chess players in the world, ChessCube.com has already attracted over 650,000 registered users across 207 countries – making it one of the leaders in the growing online chess market.
Mark Levitt, CEO and founder of ChessCube says, “We are delighted to have InVenFin on board as our partner. Over and above the valuable capital injection, InVenFin gives us access to an international business network, and their team of experts in branding, product strategy, intellectual property management and corporate structuring. This investment allows ChessCube to focus on establishing itself as the world leader in online chess.”
InVenFin’s Stuart Gast says, “ChessCube’s innovative product offering has impressed us, along with the strong team led by Mark. The social gaming space is growing rapidly worldwide, and we believe ChessCube represents an excellent entrance for us into this world. We look forward to assisting ChessCube achieve its aspirations.”
Vinny Lingham, CEO of San Francisco-based Yola.com, was an early investor in ChessCube. “As a keen chess player myself, it is particularly exciting to be part of an innovative chess venture,” said Lingham. “This investment by InVenFin further highlights the potential of Cape Town as the technology hub of Africa – which I like to dub Silicon Cape. ChessCube has enormous potential to dominate the massive global chess players’ market.”
The partnership between ChessCube.com and InVenfin will allow ChessCube.com to become the most recognized and loved online brand for chess enthusiasts.
ChessCube enables all levels of chess players to play live chess against other like-minded players, in various forms of the game. The focus at ChessCube.com is enjoying the game of chess in a positive and fun environment.
ChessCube.com also offers interactive chess videos written by international grandmasters. Unlike DVDs, these videos interact with each user, offering them personalised instruction – an outstanding innovation that earned ChessCube a Semi-final placing in the 2008 Adobe Max Awards in San Francisco.
World history was recently made by ChessCube when, during its recent sponsorship of the 2009 South African Open, along with the 400 participants at a Cape Town venue, for the first time in history three grandmasters and masters participated from a second venue in Melbourne, Australia. FIDE, the world chess federation, worked with ChessCube to ensure that the games, which were played across the Internet, were officially rated, setting a new precedent that could see tournaments using this technology in the future.
ChessCube continues to innovate and build on its award-winning chess playing platform from its Cape Town headquarters.
Useful links
ChessCube website: www.chesscube.com
ChessCube blog: www.blog.chesscube.com
Downloads
Download .doc version of release
Download ChessCube logo (.png)
Contact information
ChessCube(Pty) Ltd.
Contact: Mark Levitt (CEO)
+27 21 555 2019
mark@chesscube.com
About ChessCube
ChessCube (www.chesscube.com) was launched in May 2007 from its Cape Town headquarters. It has since grown into a community of over 650,000 avid chess players, and continues to grow at a rapid pace. ChessCube is an innovative, live chess platform, allowing competition and education within a social community. Mark Levitt, founder and CEO of ChessCube, is four times South African Chess Champion. ChessCube’s investors include InVenfin, Vinny Lingham and Michael Leeman.
For more information or images, please contact Mark Levitt (mark@chesscube.com) or Sarah Blake (sarah@chesscube.com).
Well, we finished off July with over 640,000 registered users. Almost at the 1 million mark! Almost 
We also keep on improving ChessCube. We’re now on version 3.96 (beta) – and we hope you’ve noticed the improved platform. Fewer disconnects (we hate those too) and faster games. And, it’s gonna keep getting better!
We also launched two new article sections on our blog: Andrew Martin’s regular puzzles (a great way to improve your game), and updates from the WCC.
In July, we were also involved in a chess world-first – FIDE rated online matches in a real world tournament!
So, as we settle into a wintry Cape Town, keep an eye on what is happening on ChessCube in August.
SeanW - Our fearless community manager
If you were asked the question, “How passionate are you about your passions?”, would your answer be, “It’s close to an obsession”? The way I see it, this is what ChessCube is all about. A worldwide community coming together to share a common passion, the love for playing Chess.
ChessCube shares this obsession with its users, by providing an outstanding interface for newcomers to this great game of skill and strategy, as well as for seasoned veterans to perfect their skills. And once the timer has run out or the King has been dropped or pinned, players can engage with each other in one of our many chat rooms. And that’s where ChessCube hits the ball out of the park.
In my view, the social service we offer to our community is second to none. We all have friends in the real world, and so too on the ‘Cube. When we’re online as players, we make friends, and every time a user logs on, the time and opportunity is there to bond as friends. And when the community has fun, we have great fun! Users can socialise in a room dedicated to their own country, or say what’s on their mind in our theme based rooms such as the Music room, Sports room, and our Chess Analysis room, or even engage in our 1000+ user strong Cube Café. It’s so great that we can play against and chat to our neighbours, colleagues and and friends on the Cube, and 5 minutes later be challenging and engaging with someone on the other side of the globe.
The community is lead by a diverse group of Moderators from all over the world. They’ve put a lot into place with regards to helping everyone and leading the community forward as a whole, and are completely uncompromising about the leadership they offer. These Moderators all share a common goal, and that is to make ChessCube’s community a second home to its users.
The growth in the community has been fantastic. This definitely says that we’re doing something right. And although the basic principle of ChessCube will always remain the same, we are constantly moving forward with new advancements and funtionality. With a user base consisting of over 600 000 users from around the world, we have definitely stepped up to the plate by adapting quickly and reacting to this change quite positively.
Managing ChessCube’s community at this size is challenging, but I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.
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