Zwift rolls out ‘world choice’ to let riders pick their map

Online training platform Zwift has unveiled a new feature that is bound to be popular with users.

The ‘world choice’ addition means rider can now decide between two maps when they log on, with a rotating guest map that changes each day.

Zwift has introduced the update after popular demand by riders, following a blog post by creator Jon Mayfield explaining why it hadn’t been brought in before.

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In the post from November, Mayfield said: “From the very start we chose to focus our efforts on a connected experience where you are part of a world populated by others, rather than the typical solution of the day (and now) of having countless courses to choose from, each being solo or sparsely populated experience.

“We ultimately knew we first wanted bigger maps and decided that to divide up our user base into multiple, large, barely populated worlds would possibly kill Zwift before it even got going.”

Mayfield added that Zwift and indoor riding is a hugely seasonal activity, and that in the summer months the number of users drop off.

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When the warmer days return, the drop-off of users could mean some maps could be mostly empty for months at a time.

As of Monday (January 28), all users will see a choice of two worlds when they log in.

Watopia will always be one of the options, while the guest map will rotate each day.

The calendar of upcoming guest maps will let users know in advance which option will be available.

Mayfield said that the feature has been added because there are some times of the day that feel crowded.

Before this update the world was dictated by a Zwift Course Calendar, with all riders being added to the same map.

To also help reduce the feeling of congestion, races and events can be held on other maps other than the map of the day.