Daniel Esquivel
ICC CHESS CLUB
(the question)
How does the club that put chess online in the 90s look like it belongs in 2024?
(the idea)
Bring the scout spirit to the board. A playful, badge-inspired identity on the outside; on the board itself, pieces drawn to be read at a glance, game after game.
(services)
UI design · Web design · Game UI · Component library
(client)
ICC · Internet Chess Club
(role)
UI design lead
(year)
2024
01 · A PIONEER THAT LOST THE PLOT
ICC was there before chess.com, but never built a brand around it. The repositioning aimed at young players and schools: «We are the scouts of online chess.» My job was to make that live where players spend their time, on the board.
02 · FIVE SCREENS THAT CARRY THE PRODUCT
Home, the board, the board with widgets, the game tools and the widget set: pieces, boards and clocks. Few screens, but they’re the ones players live in.
03 · FROM A CHESS SET TO A GAME INTERFACE
The brand team drew the pieces. My job was to make them play: board, clocks, move list and widgets built around them, so a set designed on paper works at every size, in light and dark, with seconds on the clock. The final pieces, boards and clocks became a kit in Figma, the one the developers built from. Colour and type were built as tokens from the start, alongside the website and the play zone.
04 · DESIGN THAT OUTLIVED TWO DEV TEAMS
The platform was built by external teams, and the team changed mid-project. Across two years I reviewed each build against the design and sent feedback in Figma, so the system made it to launch.
(the result)
Live in September 2024, with the new identity, the play zone and the full piece set.
