Smart Fixtures: Enhanced Team Balancing & Partner Variety

We've just rolled out a major update to our fixture generation system to make our games more competitive, balanced, and diverse. The new "Smart Fixtures" algorithm uses advanced logic to ensure everyone gets a great experience every session.

🏸 How the New System Works

Our scheduler now follows a strict multi-step process for every round:

1. Fairness First: The system automatically selects who plays and who sits out based on total games played and how long it's been since your last rest. No more sitting out twice in a row!
2. Variety-Driven Pairing: We've updated the logic to strongly prioritize new partnerships. The system now uses an exponential penalty for repeat partners, ensuring you rotate through as many teammates as possible.
3. The 12-Point Balance Rule: For every game, the system evaluates all possible ways to split the 4 players into squads. It calculates the team strength difference based on live TrueSkill+ scores:
   • Strict Limit: If a game has more than a 12-point difference, the system "vetoes" it and forces a re-pairing to find a more balanced matchup.
   • Live Decay: We now use dynamic scores that account for inactivity (decay), meaning the scheduler knows if you've been away for a while and adjusts the teams accordingly.

🔄 Flexible Team Swaps

We believe in the "power of the court." If the 4 players assigned to a game feel that a different pairing would result in a more balanced and fun match, you are now free to swap partners!

To support this:

• Editable Scoresheet: When recording a result, you can now tap on the player names to change them. This ensures that even if you swap partners on the court, your TrueSkill+ levels will be updated correctly based on who you actually played with.
• Note: All 4 players must agree to the swap before the game starts.

📊 Consistent Levels

You'll now see player levels displayed directly on the fixtures page. These are the exact same "All-Time" scores you see on the leaderboard, ensuring complete transparency into how teams are balanced.

Enjoy the games! Let us know if you have any feedback on the new balancing.