Co-founded Zar and launched the first desktop app that helps gamers get better as they play, automatically.

Work as CPO at

Co-founded Zar and launched the first desktop app that helps gamers get better as they play, automatically.

Work as CPO at

Co-founded Zar and launched the first desktop app that helps gamers get better as they play, automatically.

Work as CPO at

Summary

Summary

Role & Team

Product Design and Management

Tom

Raph

JB

Met with my awesome 2 cofounders, Tom (CEO) and Raph (CTO), after business school / university.

We spent 2 years creating bad products and learning a ton.

Then we launched an MVP, raised $1M+, and refined our product for 3 years with a small team.

Challenge

Disrupt the coaching market in esports

Existing esports coaching solutions were inefficient and unscalable. We developed an AI-powered app that provides real-time in-game coaching.

Results

250k+ users

74% monthly retention

4.9% paying users (freemium SaaS)

$50 Lifetime Customer Value

24,000,000+ matches played with the app

DISCOVERY

There's a massive player base willing to spend money to get better at their favorite games.

There's a massive player base willing to spend money to get better at their favorite games.

450M

Esport players worldwide by 2026 (1)

234M

52% purchase content to improve and play competitively

$85

Average annual spending per player in the US on downloadable content and microtransactions (2)

$20B

Total annual in-game spending of esports gamers worldwide in 2026

1. According to Newzoo

2. According to this study on competitive gamers: League of Legends, Dota 2, Counter-Strike and Overwatch

2. According to this study on competitive gamers: League of Legends, Dota 2, Counter-Strike and Overwatch

Leading esport games

But there’s a problem...

But there’s a problem...

Esports are highly competitive, with 64% of players striving to improve and climb the public rankings.

But how exactly can you get better at something that’s way more complex than chess ?

3 main solutions exist, each with its own issues:

1-on-1 coaching

Too costly

$30-100/hour, time-consuming, needs frequent sessions.

Text / video guides

Hard to remember and apply in-game

Tips are helpful but tough to remember and use in specific situations.

Analytics apps

Lack actionable insights

Tracking your performance is nice, but graphs and stats can't show context nor how to improve.

Talking to lots of users gave me a few key insights

Players want to improve, but without hours of study outside of the game. They want to play!

Coaching is way too expensive for many.

Using multiple apps is a hassle and their hardware can't handle it.

Learning instructional design made me realize coaching players as they play would work best

Problem-oriented learning: face real challenges during matches.

Learn by doing: players retain more by applying tips in real situations.

Deliberate practice: players face new scenarios / die a lot in-game, practice and learn quickly in short timed intervals.

VISION

What if players could get coached as they play, automatically

What if players could get coached as they play, automatically

...for free or at a fraction of the cost of 1-on-1 coaching?

...for free or at a fraction of the cost of 1-on-1 coaching?

Target

First game to cover : League of Legends

Different games need different features. With limited resources, we chose League of Legends, the top esport since 2014.

Product & tech

Real-time coaching tips during matches

Use the game API/reverse engineering to understand player context.

Provide tips through a UI overlay on top of the game screen.

Business model

Freemium

Popular in League of Legends and similar platforms.

Attract players with free features, test monetization strategies, and achieve higher Lifetime Customer Value than competitors who rely on ads.

HYPOTHESES TESTING

Tested our product vision with a few cheap experiments

Tested our product vision with a few cheap experiments

Voice vs Text

We considered using a synthetic voice for live guides but found it unsuitable because:

  • It sounded unatural and robotic.

  • One competitor had tried that, but our team and users we talked to felt that it disturbed a lot our game experience.

So we chose to test text tips first.

Ran a Wizard of Oz that validated 3 key hypotheses with 15 players

Players launched matches and followed coaching tips sent via Discord on a second screen.

We told them it was an automated bot, but it was actually Tom following their match and coaching them all along!

Players loved the experience and wanted more.

Then built a quick prototype

We created a simple desktop app connected to the game API, with a basic "Live Guide" giving tips based on in-game events/triggers.

Players used 2 screens: one for the game, one for the tips.

Players loved being coached by our Live Guide, but reading tips on a separate screen was cumbersome.

DESIGN & BUILD

Focused on core features to nail the in-game experience.

Focused on core features to nail the in-game experience.

Iterated in a few sprints with continuous discovery and testing with users before implementation, until we got it right.

1. Live guides

In-game UI overlay

Put on top

League of legends game window

Coaching tips

Goal

Provide actionable tips based on in-game events / context.

Choices

Limit to 1 tip per minute to avoid overwhelming the user.

Encourage users to think through different options.

User feedback

“Sometimes I miss a tip. I wish I could see somewhere a log of my past tips.”

Designing the tips

Each tip highlights the main information at the top and uses clear icons for faster reading.

Tips are displayed in the screen corner with smooth animations and reduced opacity.

Slides up and right when the tip is displayed

Minimizes after 1 min, maximizes when hovered

2. In-game dashboard

In-game UI overlay when pressing tab

1:10

32

1:27

1:57

2:43

2:43

27

22

/ lvl

Put on top

LoL when pressing tab

Goal

Provide actionable insights when players check current scores

Choices

"tips log" displaying the last 3 tips, so users can check missed tips and plan their next move.

Seamlessly integrate customizable widgets on top of the game

Drag & drop

Resize

Opacity

Enable/disable

User feedback

Added machine learning based recommendations and key metrics as we iterated

MONETIZATION

Developed a guide Editor and Marketplace to offer more live guides and monetize users.

Developed a guide Editor and Marketplace to offer more live guides and monetize users.

The first live guides we created were great for general strategy tips, but our team couldn't cover everything about such a complex game. But the community can, and coaches were looking for ways to scale revenue beyond YouTube ads and 1-on-1 sessions.

3. Live guide Editor & Marketplace

Editor

Marketplace

Goal

Enable creators to make and offer comprehensive Live Guides, either for sale or for free.

Choices

Started with a few premium guides sold through one-time payments.

Detailed onboarding and knowledge base for creating various tips (easy & advanced).

User feedback

This Editor allowed creators produce very powerful and comprehensive live guides.

It’s quite easy to create tips, but creating many tips requires lots of clicks and is time-consuming.

ITERATIONS

Developed supporting features to become the best all-in-one companion app on the market.

Developed supporting features to become the best all-in-one companion app on the market.

As we grew and monetized our user base, users loved the in-game coaching but needed other features from competitors. Switching between apps was annoying, and their computers struggled with it. So, we built features to assist players at every step and showcase premium guides.

4. Profile (in-app)

Track performance in previous matches and official rankings.

5. Pre-match overlay 1

Panel that attaches on the left side of the game window before a match. Download relevant Live Guides, get key stats, and AI-powered tips.

6. Pre-match overlay 2

Display key metrics about allies and enemies when the game is loading. Helps users understand who they're playing with and against.

7. Post-game review (in-app)

Show key performance metrics and suggest relevant Live Guides after the match.

Our vision of coaching players automatically was finally there, and we saw great engagement from users.

Our vision of coaching players automatically was finally there, and we saw great engagement from users.

86% weekly retention, 74% monthly.

2.3 hours average user session time

Principles that made it work

This is how lean we were.

3 guiding principles helped us iterate super fast and deliver great solutions that are laser-focused on user needs:

  • "Think big, start small, ship to learn". Interact daily with users and watch them use the product.

  • Seamless integration: Zar must feel like a natural part of the game experience.

  • Context-awareness was paramount in delivering a smooth experience with great value.

⚠️ Buuuuut...

Freemium model challenges: 2% paid users and $13 LCV so far

Freemium model challenges: 2% paid users and $13 LCV so far

It was a decent start, but we needed more revenue growth.

As we talked to users about monetization and added more premium guides, we realized the one-time payment system was too limiting.

MONETIZATION 2

So we created Zar Prime, a new monthly subscription that x2 our % of paid users and x4 our LCV

So we created Zar Prime, a new monthly subscription that x2 our % of paid users and x4 our LCV

4.9% paying users, $50 Lifetime Customer Value.

But we struggled on user acquisition.

But we struggled on user acquisition.

We tried leveraging free channels but only invested $50k in marketing, which wasn't nearly enough to compete with companies that raised 10x more. So we couldn’t grow beyond 250k users.

We tried raising more funds but the timing was poor (start of the Ukraine war). Despite great engagement, conversion metrics, and a decent user base, our revenue growth wasn't enough.

That’s why Zar is in the process of getting acquired by one of our historic competitors.

Lessons learned

1. It’s essential to create a product that highly delights, converts and retains users. But marketing and growth are equally important, and we lacked those skills within our team.

2. It's hard to know if it would have made a difference, but we should have prioritized monetization and growth earlier in the roadmap.

Wow 😮... Did you really read eeeeeverythiiiiing?

Thanks! Reach out if you want to chat 💬

Wow 😮... Did you really read eeeeeverythiiiiing?
Thanks! Reach out if you want to chat 💬

jbreyt@gmail.com

jbreyt@gmail.com