Some basic and not so basic requests… some of these have been suggested but I figure I’d add my $.02. Loving the Beta!
Create separate KOMS/Sprints for male/female, age, and power meter users. I use a fairly accurate power meter and although I want to make a run at a KOM or Sprint, 99% of the time they are held by non PM users who have done unobtainable numbers.
Stats, stats, stats! Record, sort, and rank everything possible. I want to know who has the current best 20’ power in the session I’m in, highest peak watts by age/gender, average speed for the session I’m in… anything and everything! If we’re using Zwift we probably have a predisposition to geeking out over numbers :).
The ability to flag certain riders or efforts. I’d hope that people don’t want to “troll” during their ride, but I’m sure it will happen. Maybe build in a passive monitoring system (a la PunkBuster) or give users the ability to anonymously report certain riders. I wouldn’t implement a “kick” option. Maybe have a separate “time out” session where people who a turning 15 w/kg can still ride until whatever technical issue is causing weird numbers gets sorted out.
Opposite of the suggestion above, create the ability to “prefer” or rank riders. Lets say I had an awesome ride with someone and they were smooth, consistent, waited on descents, whatever. Give me the option to “rank” that rider on a number of criteria. And create “beacons” to let me know when a preferred rider hops on to ride and wants company.
Create more in-session jerseys. Have a most aggressive rider for number of passes in a session. A “smooth operator” jersey for someone who holds a power number within a narrow band. A “helping hand” jersey for someone who gets drafted off the most. Give slower riders incentive to distinguish themselves!
Customization. The more customization the better! I need black socks that sit a little higher!
Mass start events corresponding to real world ones. With spring/summer creeping up, it would be fantastic to have an event (assuming courses could be built up) that mimics certain real world events. Imagine being able to pre-ride (or even ride along!) a summit finish of a Giro or Tour stage. Or a one day classic. And this would be the ultimate in geeking out - deliver telemetry data from an actual race into a Zwift. Have pro riders represented as AI, so we can get shot out the back of the pack :).
User developed customization. The Xbox racing game “Forza” did this very, very well. They supplied an in-game editor to create various liveries for cars, and then you could sell those in the “auction house”. Users earned currency by racing (this was before they hurt the in game economy by allowing users to purchase currency), and could use that currency to bid on items. Licensing could be an issue with real world teams/sponsors, but I can only imagine some of the amazing jersey and bike designs that users would create.
Server rental and customization. Depending on the install base when the client is released, I’d like to see either server rentals, or the ability to host public/private sessions. A rented server could be customized: different KOM/Sprint points, disable power ups or drafting, different courses, time of day, weather, gender (?), skill level, etc. I’d love to have a “Hell of the North” server… customized nonstop crappy weather, no power ups, etc. If the install base doesn’t justify server rentals (might fragment the user base too much), then develop “official” servers to differentiate somewhat in terms of goals, ability, etc. Have a “ladies night” server, or a “just cruising” server.