How do you sequence growth vs brand partnerships for a B2C game pre-PMF? 4K users in but stuck on a chicken-and-egg
Building a real-time multiplayer browser game with my cofounders right now (2 from Columbia, 1 from Rutgers, 1 from NYU). We’ve grown to around 4K users across 80+ countries completely organically and just shipped friend-room multiplayer where you send someone a code, they join, and you rally live in the browser.
Right now I feel stuck between two directions. One is focusing fully on growth and solving the multiplayer density problem first since users are spread out across too many countries for instant matchmaking to work consistently yet. The other is leaning into the business side earlier because the bigger vision is interactive sports product try-ons inside the game — racquets, apparel, shoes, etc. since buying sports gear online without trying it first feels broken.
Curious how other founders think about this kind of sequencing. Do you focus completely on growth first and ignore monetization until later, or try building both at the same time? And for anyone who’s built multiplayer/social products before, what actually helped solve the early density problem?