Recurring free item
Go to the store
Receive the item
Come back for the next one
Return home
Lead UXD2C commercePractical ownership
I turned one web store into a reusable system
WB Games hired me for my ability to straddle UX and product work. I started by supporting Player Network, which expanded into practical ownership of the D2C web store program.
At a glance
I was hired for UX. I ended up owning much more of the product and delivery work.
I was introduced to the web store's D2C program because of the survey results for our first web store. The results showed the Game of Thrones: Conquest web store had a trust problem. Players said it did not look or feel like the game, so they were unsure it was safe to use. Fixing that led to something more than reskinning a single page. I connected the research, reusable UX, title-specific design, partner constraints, approvals, QA, and launch planning into one working system.
I ownedThe reusable store UX, most title treatments, competitive research, design handoff, QA, localization coordination, and the process documents that kept the work moving.
I worked withProduct, engineering, title studios, Xsolla, analytics, economy design, LiveOps, Legal, localization, and Creative Services.
The boundaryI became the practical owner and subject-matter expert for much of the work. I did not replace the formal owners, and many teams contributed to what shipped.
15% → 40%+GoTC direct-channel share
While I worked on the D2C program, the channel grew by at least 25 percentage points. Design, currency bonuses, the game's success, and the wider team all contributed.
$100M+Cross-store channel scale
Conservative estimate of the revenue that flowed through the platform during my tenure. This was not revenue I created alone.
1 systemOne store became a reusable foundation
I made the UX structure reusable so different games could reskin it without rebuilding the purchase experience each time.
01
Discover
I started with a player trust problem and followed it into a broader investigation.
The first iteration of the Game of Thrones: Conquest store was already live when I joined. A player survey showed that it did not look or feel like the game, so players were not sure it was safe to use. I then reviewed more than 25 storefronts to understand how other teams handled access, bonuses, offers, rewards, identity, and payments.
Started with direct player feedbackBuilt the competitive research we were missingTurned recurring questions into a reusable workbook
Competitive audit · question to decision
Competitive web-store auditSanitized structural view
25+storefronts reviewed
60decision fields tracked
Access
store gatesign-indevice checks
Merchandising
SKU breadthfeatured offersbundles
Value
price rangebonusesfree claims
Checkout
cartpayment coverageprovider
Competitor identities, URLs, exact prices, revenue data, and internal links are intentionally omitted.
1
CaptureRecord the storefront, access model, offers, rewards, and payment approach.
2
ComparePut recurring questions into a structure the team could search and reuse.
3
DecideUse the patterns to support a store, platform, or experiment recommendation.
4
Keep learningAdd new answers as the program and market changed.
02
Define
I defined what should stay consistent and what each game needed to own.
The purchase experience, responsive behavior, and implementation rules needed a common foundation. The brand, economy, offers, and reward language needed to remain specific to each game.
Separated shared mechanics from game identityDefined the features the template needed to supportMatched the model to Xsolla's implementation constraints
One system · distinct games
Game identityBrand, economy, content, promotions, rewards, and the treatment that makes the store feel native to the title.
Commerce UXOffers, cart, checkout, a growing feature list, responsive behavior, and the wireframes shared across stores.
Delivery foundationPlayer identity, payments, localization, currencies, legal review, analytics, QA, and the work needed to launch.
Purchase path · states and branches
03
Design
I turned the model into a Figma-based system that could be reskinned.
I designed the common Figma templates, then rebuilt the presentation around each game's visual language. The structure stayed consistent, but Game of Thrones and Mortal Kombat did not have to look like the same product.
Built reusable responsive wireframesDesigned the title treatments for multiple gamesKept the interaction patterns consistent across stores
Design response · drag to compare
Initial
Redesign
Responsive templates · themed stores
04
Develop
I turned the research into a free-item experiment that gave players a reason to return.
My research led me to make the case for offering a free item. Once approved, I designed how the claim worked in the storefront and guided the implementation through several revisions. The title team handled the game-side configuration and provided the item art.
Created a simple claim-and-return loopMatched the new experience to the redesigned storeThe team kept it and later added a second free reward
Experiment evidence
Successful experiment
The free claim item experiment matched the hypothesis. Giving players a free item enticed them to try the web store and let them build trust without spending money. Each time they returned to claim the item, they also saw every offer, including offers only available on the web store.
05
Deploy
I turned a difficult launch into a reusable delivery path.
Harry Potter: Magic Awakened had an arduous launch process. Development was finished, but approvals and launch work continued for roughly another month or two. I coordinated with every team and turned their requirements into a detailed path that all subsequent stores could follow.
Mapped the work from business case to final approvalCoordinated requirements with every participating teamGave every team clarity on every step involved in the process
Delivery · roadmap and sign-offs
I coordinated product, UX, studio, partner engineering, content, analytics, and launch work as one connected plan.
Development could finish before privacy, legal, localization, economy, and final launch sign-offs were complete.
I turned the full path from business case to launch into an approximately 200-point checklist for later stores.
What this work shows
I became the point person and subject-matter expert, not just the designer.
Our product manager retained formal ownership and was a great partner when I needed help. Because they were spread thin, I ran many of the meetings and captured a lot of the working knowledge. That made me the person teams relied on for research, design, partner constraints, QA, and the path to launch.
The reusable UX and operating system
Competitive research, shared wireframes, most title treatments, handoff, QA, localization coordination, experiment contributions, and process documentation.
A cross-title web store program
WB product teams, title studios, Xsolla, creative services, analytics, economy design, LiveOps, legal, and localization all made the program possible.
Trust, reuse, and channel scale
GoT:C direct-channel share moved from approximately 15% to more than 40%, while the Xsolla-hosted stores generated more than $100M.
Mario's thoughtful approach and willingness to engage across teams supported the Webstore's progress from concept to launch and helped establish a solid design foundation for future iterations.
Cedric VerstraeteDirector of Product Management · Warner Bros. Games
