Play fast chess games without leaving your editor. Queue up while your build runs, reconnect if you drop, and chat with your opponent—all inside VS Code.
What's New in v1.0.2
🤖 Stockfish Bot (~2000 ELO)
If no human opponent is available, you'll be matched with a challenging Stockfish-powered bot
The bot plays at approximately 2000 ELO strength—perfect for serious practice
👥 Friends System
Add opponents as friends directly from the game
Send and receive friend requests
View online status and ratings of your friends
Invite friends to private matches
⚡ Premoves
Queue your next move while waiting for your opponent
Visual feedback shows your premove on the board (including captures)
Premoves execute automatically when it's your turn
Cancel premoves by clicking elsewhere
Premove ghost now shows the correct piece (no more auto-queen unless promoting)
🔊 Sound Effects
Distinct sounds for moves, captures, checks, and game start
Audio feedback for premove set and cancelled
Immersive gameplay experience
🎨 Enhanced UI
Polished dark theme optimized for VS Code
Smooth animations and transitions
Collapsible panels for chat, friends, and recent games
Toast notifications for friend requests and match invites
Pawn promotion modal with piece selection
King-in-check highlights to make danger obvious
Highlights
Instant matchmaking with GitHub sign-in (no extra accounts)
Automatic bot fallback with strong Stockfish AI if no opponent is available
Reconnect-and-resume if you get disconnected
Clean board UI with clocks, move history, and lightweight in-game chat
Friends & social features to play with people you know
Premove support for faster gameplay
How to Play
Install the extension and open the AwaitChess view from the Activity Bar.
Sign in with GitHub when prompted so we can place you in the global pool.
Hit New Game. If another player is online, you'll be paired; otherwise you'll get a bot game after a short delay.
Play by clicking pieces/squares. Use Resign to end early. Chat is available during the game.
If you disconnect, reopen the view—your game will resume automatically during the grace period.
Friends & Social
During a game, click the friend button next to your opponent's name to send a friend request.
Accept or decline incoming requests from the sidebar.
Invite friends to matches directly—no queue needed.
See who's online and ready to play.
Notes & Privacy
We use your GitHub session from VS Code for authentication and basic profile info (name, avatar) to show to opponents.
Moves, results, and ratings are processed on the hosted server; no local data beyond extension state is persisted.
Chat messages are filtered to prevent links and inappropriate content.
