Deadlock In-Game Assistant
a contextual interface overlay that turns overwhelming match data into clear, immediate tactical actions.
project type
Case Study
year
2026
my role
UX Researcher/UI Designer
client
UC San Diego
project overview
every competitive gamer knows the frustration of hitting a skill plateau. you finish a high-stakes match, want to figure out why you lost, and find yourself staring at an uncurated wall of numbers. in valve's deadlock, a complex, fast-paced hybrid moba/third-person shooter, this problem is magnified. the game tracks an immense amount of match data, but players routinely ignore almost all of it because the information isn’t organized around their immediate learning needs. our design team set out to solve this end-to-end software feature design challenge. we designed a native, context-aware interface layer that hooks directly into a player's safe downtime windows (such as death countdowns and post-match reflection), translating messy statistics into instant tactical adjustments.
The problem
competitive players need a clear way to interpret their match performance to fix critical strategic mistakes, but overwhelming walls of uncurated statistics cause frustration and stall their skill progression.
why it matters
Deadlock is in its early, experimental closed beta phase, meaning player habits and interface systems are not yet set in stone. Competitive games survive long-term based on player retention and mechanical mastery loops. Platforms like Mobalytics (10 million users) and Overwolf (113 million active users) prove there is massive market demand for performance tools. Building a native, clear solution inside the game directly boosts player engagement and long-term product value.
user reseach & constraints
we looked at how real, highly experienced players actually handle data under high-stress match conditions by conducting semi-structured interviews and naturalistic stream observations over discord and twitch. through these observations, our team discovered a severe data utilization gap: kenny, a top 10% player with 300+ hours confirmed that during live combat, stats are useless unless they can be read in under a second to inform a quick counterplay choice (e.g., checking incoming damage type to purchase a counter-item like metal skin). post-game, out of 13 separate data tabs provided by the native ui, he only ever looked at two: lane stats and damage dealt by type. the other 11 screens were discarded as uncompelling. jeremey, a top 30% player with 250+ hours constantly felt the urge to "move on" and queue for the next match rather than navigate a dense grid of numbers. he regularly looked at only 4 of the 13 graphs and explicitly requested cleaner, actionable variables like teamfight participation rates and resource denial tracking.
PRODUCTION-READY USER FLOWS
we mapped out two explicit screen-level software flows to address the distinct cognitive states of the player. flow a: post-game reflective learning loop triggers automatically upon match completion. rather than forcing a user to dig through 13 separate tabs, the system automatically runs an analysis layer over the match telemetry, outputting prioritized, plain-language performance cards linked directly to custom interactive training drills. flow b: live post-death tactical response targets the 20-to-60 second downtime window directly following a player's death. the interface calculates the exact damage breakdown responsible for the death and lets the player instantly queue suggested defensive items into their active shop buffer with a single click, completely removing the need for mid-match menu-combing.
