Darren Hall

Founder. Operator. Gamer.

Founder & CEO, VS Online.
Building the Trust Score competitive gaming will run on.

WHO I AM

Twenty years as a competitive gamer. Twenty years building revenue teams at venture backed companies. The combination is not a coincidence. It is why VS Online exists.I was employee #14 at Avalara, which went on to an $8.4B exit, and employee #36 at Coupa, which went on to IPO. Since then I have led multiple $1M to $25M ARR runs. I know how to build from the early days.And for my entire life as a gamer, I have competed against strangers with no way to know who was real or who was cheating. VS Online makes trust visible.Servant leadership is not a philosophy I adopted. It is how I have always operated. The team comes first. The community comes first.

20 Years$8.4B2505000+
Competitive GamerExit at AvalaraPros CommittedWaitlist

GIVING BACK

I have a theory. Every one of us is one bad accident away from homelessness. In an instant, a support system disappears, income stops, and the floor falls out. It can happen to anyone. That belief has driven me to serve my entire adult life.It started at Boston University, volunteering at Pine Street Inn. Then St. Martin de Porres in Seattle. The work looked different each time, but I always ended up in the kitchen feeding people. That has never changed.Today I am involved with three organizations that matter deeply to me.CROP gives formerly incarcerated people full reentry support and 12 months of intensive career training. Helping people rebuild from zero.LoveNeverFails supports survivors of human trafficking. I help graduates prepare for job interviews, so they can walk into a room and own it.Strively mentors the next generation of professionals. I show up there the same way I do everywhere else.The common thread is simple. Everyone deserves a legitimate path forward. That belief is why I volunteer. It is also why I am building VS Online.

My Gaming Journey

The Beginning

Atari → Nintendo → Sega Genesis

Three platforms. One kid who was not going to stop.

Original PlayStation Era

PlayStation 1 — and every PlayStation since

Up late every night. Resident Evil on repeat. Never skipped a generation — PS1, PS2, PS3, PS4, PS5, PSVR2.

2001 — Game Tester

Original Xbox · Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee

Tested one of the Xbox's launch titles before most people knew the console existed.

Every Xbox

Xbox → Xbox 360 → Xbox One → Xbox Series X

Played both sides of the console war. Still does.

2008 — The Squad Forms

Same core crew. Still running it.

16+ years with the same group of competitive players. That kind of loyalty is rare.

Today — Current Loadout

Battlefield 6 · Forza Horizon 6 · Crimson Desert · PGA Tour 2K25

PS5 · PSVR2 · Xbox Series X · Steam Deck · Nintendo Switch. Platform agnostic. Still competing.

On Deck

GTA VI · State of Decay 3

The wait is part of the game.

BUILDING IN PUBLIC. GROWING IN REAL TIME - ONE PAGER

SEE TRUST IN ACTION