Restoration and Evolution of Sports Networking Mobile App

About Our Client

The Client is a US-based software product company. One of its key offerings is a sports networking mobile app. The app enables sports enthusiasts to find workout partners, chat, schedule group activities, and join sports events.

Need to Regain Control Over the App and Update It

The Client faced a critical roadblock when its previous development subcontractor withheld access to the old code repository of the sports networking app, making back-end updates impossible. With user expectations evolving and competition growing, inaction was not an option. The Client needed to quickly regain control over the project, migrate to a new repository, and update the app to maintain and grow user engagement. Seeking a reliable technology partner to save the app, the company turned to ScienceSoft for expertise in product development and reverse engineering.

Migration, Reverse Engineering, and Evolution of Sports Networking App

ScienceSoft quickly assembled a dedicated team — a front-end and a Node.js developer —to tackle the challenge. The Client provided access to its new repository, which contained an unknown version of the code that differed from the version running on their servers. ScienceSoft’s team had to analyze the repository, work through the code, and set up a new development environment. Additionally, we had to regain access to the database and reconfigure the Client’s servers, as they were still set to work with the old repository, which was no longer accessible.

Once we established control, we moved to the next phase: enhancing the app’s functionality. ScienceSoft’s team started with understanding what had already been implemented in the application. Without access to version history, ScienceSoft’s developers had to reverse-engineer parts of the app to clearly understand its architecture and development history for safe and reliable updates.

While the Client already had an understanding of the application’s core functionality, some features required additional testing and documentation to fully explain their operation. To ensure a smooth and efficient development process, ScienceSoft’s team implemented a biweekly release cycle, with each sprint culminating in:

• Releasing test builds in TestFlight for the Client’s review.
• Addressing the Client’s feedback and implementing bug fixes.
• Preparing final production builds for both iOS and Android.
• Submitting production builds to the App Store and Google Play according to the Client’s schedule.

Feature enhancements and new functionalities

ScienceSoft’s team improved the application's functionality by implementing:

• Advanced сhat features (powered by SendBird integration)
• Extended customization of chat appearance and behavior, such as adjusting message display formats, notification preferences, and chat visibility.
• Added roles to group chats (admin, host, and member), ensuring structured communication by enabling administrative privileges and moderation.
• Enabled users to schedule events within group chats, integrating with the app’s event management system.
• Enabled message reactions (emojis) and @mentions in group chats.
• Provided a way to pin important chats at the top of the chat list.
• Gave users the ability to mute specific chats to reduce distractions.
• Enabled users to share images and videos within chats.

• Gamification & dashboard enhancements
• Improved the reward calculation logic to enable fair and accurate point accumulation.
• Optimized dashboards to provide a more intuitive UI for users to track their progress, achievements, and engagement levels.
• Web admin panel development

To improve the UX for application admins, ScienceSoft developed a dedicated web-based admin panel with essential management tools that allowed the Client to:

• Monitor event information, including participants and schedules.
• Access comprehensive reports on user engagement and feature usage.
• Enable instant user access control and account recovery.
• Review and address reported issues in chats, ensuring a safe and well-moderated experience for the app’s community.

UI redesign for a better user experience

Another critical aspect of the app evolution was the UI redesign. ScienceSoft used UI mockups provided by the Client to code and implement a new interface for the app. This redesign improved the app’s usability, making it more intuitive and visually engaging.

Collaboration and agile changes

The Client’s priorities evolved throughout the project, sometimes requiring urgent releases on short notice. To manage these changes without introducing scope creep, delays, or budget overruns, ScienceSoft applied mature collaboration and change management practices. This allowed us to quickly assess, prioritize, and integrate new requests while keeping development on track.

Additionally, rather than simply executing predefined tasks, ScienceSoft took a consultative approach, offering the Client different ways to implement new features. Our engineers outlined various development strategies, provided estimated timelines, and highlighted the potential business benefits of each approach. For example, rather than developing a complex admin interface, our team suggested a streamlined solution with only the essential features. This allowed the Client to reduce development time and costs while still achieving the desired functionality and administrative efficiency.

Knowledge transfer and long-term sustainability

To ensure smooth app evolution in the future, we documented the functionality at a developer level and provided a detailed knowledge transfer to the Client’s growing internal team. Towards the project’s conclusion, additional developers joined the Client’s side, and we facilitated a seamless handover, answering questions and ensuring they had all the resources needed to continue enhancing the app independently.

Powerful and Competitive Sports Networking App With Restored Back End

In 2 months, the Client successfully regained full control of its sports networking app’s back end, thanks to rapid migration, reverse engineering, and reconfiguration by ScienceSoft. In the following 14 months, ScienceSoft’s developers implemented a new UI design, introduced a range of quality-of-life improvements, and added new capabilities, including advanced chat features and a web admin panel.

Technologies and Tools

React Native, Nest.js, Amazon EC2, Amazon S3, Amazon SES, Sendbird, Twilio, MySQL, Docker, Swagger, TestFlight