First-time UX that helps users get to the fun, faster
Samsung Gaming Hub:
First Time Use Onboarding
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Transforming first-time UX to align with evolving business strategy and user segments.
Project Overview
Samsung Gaming Hub is a cloud gaming platform built into Samsung Smart TVs—giving users instant access to games without a console.
At launch, the platform included a basic tutorial on the landing page—but it was presented as a passive video and slideshow that users had to opt into and complete on their own. The tutorial was not interactive, required users to remember multiple steps after watching, and failed to guide them seamlessly into controller pairing or gameplay.
As a result, many first-time users were dropping off before ever starting to play. Controller connection—a required step for most games—became a critical blocker. It was clear the experience needed a more guided, system-integrated onboarding flow.
My Role
As the Lead Product Designer for First-Time UX (FTU), I drove the strategy, design, and evolution of this onboarding system over three years (2022–2025)—partnering closely with PM, research, engineering, and business stakeholders, while leading a team of visual and interaction designers through multiple exploration, design execution, and refinement.
“This feels too complex. I don’t even know where to start.”
→ 77% of All-around enthusiasts cited controller pairing as the biggest blocker
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The Challenge: The Gap in Expectation vs Reality
Players expected to jump straight into the fun. Instead, they faced a maze of steps—hidden requirements, account sign-ups, and controller pairing—before they could even start playing.
Who we were designing for:
All-Around Enthusiasts
Our main target at launch was console gamers—what we called “all-around enthusiasts.”
They play almost daily, know Xbox titles well, and expect a frictionless setup: turn on the console, pick a game, play.
So if even they were dropping off, we knew we had a real problem.
Design Goals: Removing friction, increasing fun
After identifying the gap between expectation and reality, we set out three main design goals:
1.
Build confidence in a new category (cloud gaming)
Establish a clear mental model for new users unfamiliar with the concept
2.
Guide users through controller pairing
Provide contextual, step-by-step guidance that users can act on immediately
3.
Minimize barriers to drive higher first-session engagement
Ensure users can pick a game and play right after FTU
The FTU journey involved many touchpoints, but the biggest source of friction came from controller pairing. In the next section, I’ll walk through our design explorations for Controller Connect.
Controller Connect: Iterative Journey
This was our starting point for controller pairing — a passive, non-interactive tutorial made of long videos and static slides.
Instructions were generic, not brand-specific, and pairing didn’t happen in sync with the tutorial. Many users didn’t realize they needed the TV remote to finish setup, leading to confusion, drop-offs, and a poor first-time experience.
We learned that a “watch-only” tutorial created a big gap between learning and doing. To improve, we needed a more immediate, hands-on way for users to follow along as they paired their controllers.
v0: Passive tutorial (video/slideshow). Click to see the prototype.
Our first iteration moved the tutorial to mobile via QR code, with brand-specific instructions so users could follow along in real time.
This change directly reduced the gap between learning and doing — instead of watching a generic tutorial first and then attempting pairing, users could act step-by-step with guidance tailored to their controller model. This improved clarity and boosted success rates in early testing.
However, user testing also revealed unexpected friction: people now had to juggle their phone, the TV, the remote, and the controller simultaneously. While the new flow solved accuracy issues, it introduced a new layer of complexity that we would need to address in the next iteration.
For the final version, we reintegrated everything on the TV, fully incorporating it into the FTU flow. Users saw brand-specific instructions and a “Connect Controller” button on the same screen, which instantly triggered the pairing process.
No device-juggling, no guesswork—just a precise, in-context flow that felt intuitive and seamless.
v2: TV embedded tutorial (During FTU). Click to see the prototype.
v1: Mobile companion guide. Click to see the mobile prototype.
This redesign drove measurable impact:
FTU users showed 2x higher click-to-play than 2023 average user
Player conversion were 3x higher among users who completed FTU
Controller attach rate jumped 1.8x
Confidentiality note:
Certain details of this project have been intentionally omitted for confidentiality reasons.
If you’d like to dive deeper into the UX strategy and results, feel free to reach out to thisisheej@gmail.com —I’d love to chat.