Challenge
Many players downloaded Rune, but the experience wasn’t sticky enough to bring them back.
Finding new games was difficult, and because everything depended on synchronous play, it lost value when friends weren’t online. Onboarding and login didn’t highlight Rune’s social side, and the gem system lacked purpose. We needed to make the app feel more connected and give players reasons to keep coming back.
Approach
I created personas and journey maps to move the team beyond a vague sense of “the user.” Research showed that teens loved in-app voice chat and Find a Teammate, but solo play and avatars alone weren’t enough. Retention improved most when users had friends already in the app, which reframed Rune’s value as social connection, not just gaming.
I also studied network effects and async play patterns. I found that when players saw friends’ activity, like recent high scores, they felt motivated to come back and respond. This insight shaped how I approached communication features and the gem economy.
Making Rune More Social
I expanded communication with async play to keep Rune engaging even when friends weren’t online. I also introduced realms, which could be private for friends or public for anyone to join, helping communities grow. In realms, activity like high scores and invites appeared in chat, encouraging others to jump in and compete. These designs were still in progress when I left, but they showed a clear path to making Rune more social and community-driven.
Gem Economy
I created a gem economy with clear ways to earn and spend. To bring it to life, I illustrated assets, built animation prototypes, and added sound effects that made gem collection feel rewarding. I also designed a gem center where players could track their balance, rewards, and quests.
Onboarding and Login
I redesigned login and onboarding to feel more fun and social. Players earned gems as they completed each step, ending the flow with a sense of progress and rewards that encouraged them to keep going.
Game Discovery
I redesigned the homepage into curated rows and featured sections, inspired by streaming platforms, so players could quickly scan and explore new games. To increase engagement, I added social proof signals like Trending Now, which surfaced popular titles and encouraged players to try them.
Outcomes
Viral growth
Viral installs increased 159% in three months, with a 45% lift in the first week after launching the gem economy.
Higher retention
Week-one return rates rose and overall retention improved 1.5x after introducing daily rewards, quests, and stronger communication features.
Stronger engagement
The discovery redesign and async chat loops increased time spent in the app by making it easier to find new games and stay connected with friends.
Clearer strategy
Personas and journey maps gave the team a shared view of users, which helped guide product direction and align priorities with leadership.
