chess engine

Hello

Salve, you're not alone in wanting this, and it does exist, just not as a single "style slider" app. Lucas Chess is the one of the closest matches to what you described, and it's free. SCID vs PC is primarily a database GUI, but you can absolutely play games against engines with a lot of control. Arena is a classic chess GUI where you attach multiple UCI engines and set their options (skill level, contempt, etc.). If you're okay with proprietary software, Chessbase and Fritz family has taken "personality" seriously in recent versions. If "control" means "I want to practice this repertoire", almost every serious GUI + engine combo supports that. Lichess bots and Maia's own site (maiachess dotcom) are not so flexible, but they're decent if you want a ready-made "human-like opponent at rating x". Chessmaster is absolutely worth using, I recommend it as a great "direct the engine" experience. Essentially, there is a lot of software that lets you control/direct engines, but most of them approach it via "adjustable strenght" or "human-like training nets" and so on, rather than one unified "style IDE". Fully generic style control is rare because "style" is subjective and hard to define mathematically. And that's why solutions like yours are interesting: you can wrap any UCI engine and enforce whatever policies you like. Ciao

Specifically, what did you have in mind for your own solution ?

Ok, this is the standard UCI protocol defined by Kahlen in 2000 (for Shredder), which is used by almost every modern chess engine (Stockfish, Komodo Dragon, Leela, Houdini, etc.):

https://www.wbec-ridderkerk.nl/html/UCIProtocol.html?spm=a2ty_o01.29997173.0.0.3fd95171vwVTG0

Stockfish simply adds its own specific list of options (Skill level, Contempt, MultiPV, etc.) on top of that standard. The specifications are not hard to understand at all, they are simple, text-based, and human-readable. The hard part is to decide which combination of parameters creates the specific behavior you want. That requires experimentation, not complex coding. Ciao

Yes, Rodent IV is perfect for your use case, it's specifically designed for extensive parameter customization and besides, it supports the UCI protocol, making it ideal for programmatic control. Rodent IV developers and reviewers specifically recommend "Banksia GUI":

https://banksiagui.com/download/

You'll have complete graphical control over Rodent 100+ parameters within 5 minutes of installation ! Arena Chess GUI and Lucas Chess are also great for Rodent (on Android, you can try Bik's Chess for Android), with these GUIs you have full access to basic settings (MultiPV, Contempt, etc.), personality system and evaluation weights. You can save engine configurations as "profiles" as well. Ciao

It's a very interesting project, if well implemented, with a clear use case. It's challenging, but it would address a real gap: a reproducible bot generator that treats engine behavior as data rather than a "black box" is exactly what researchers, coaches, and advanced players lack. You can attract a highly engaged user base, but it's important you don't lose focus on the "core" value. If you get a chance, let me know how the project comes along. Ciao