Senior Game Designer

Unknown Worlds is looking for an experienced Senior Designer to help us incubate and develop new game ideas from conception to release. The ideal candidate is a consummate communicator and collaborator. They are a student of game design, with the toolset to understand and explain design theory and pitfalls. They coach and encourage their team, are self-directed and highly motivated, and enjoy working with multidisciplinary collaborative teams.

This is a remote position on a fully distributed team. We are looking for a candidate with the flexibility to collaborate with a team located primarily in the East and West Coast USA.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with a multidisciplinary team of developers to pitch and refine multiple game ideas and systems.
• Help teams navigate the early prototyping phase by assisting with hands-on development and iteration.
• Identify game design needs; drive conception and implementation of key features.
• Create and shepherd designs from paper to shipping.
• Advocate for the player’s perspective by assisting with the facilitation of playtests, addressing concerns and driving solutions on design challenges.
• Coordinate with team leaders to identify, address and adhere to constraints.
• Establish and maintain design documentation for systems across the project.
• Work across teams to ensure best design practices are followed.

Qualifications

• Experience leading or product-owning multi-disciplinary strike teams.
• Extensive experience with game design principles, game balance, pacing and player motivations.
• Deep knowledge and experience in a design discipline: systems, gameplay, 3Cs, level design, or other.
• Experience shipping at least 2 game titles in a design-focused role.
• Hands-on experience supporting the implementation of features and ideas in-engine.
• Experience transitioning game concepts from prototyping through pre-production and production phases.
• Excellent situational awareness and judgment, with the ability to demonstrate both qualities in high-pressure situations.
• Excellent written and verbal communication.
• Experience with project management software such as JIRA, Favro, Notion and/or equivalents.
• Deep understanding of the foundational elements and player expectations of multiple genres.

Preferences

• Experience creating and refining game pitches.
• Experience working directly in Unity and/or Unreal 5.
• Experience working on a game in all phases of development, from pre-production to shipping.
• Experience with open development or Early Access models engaging with large and active communities.
• Scripting experience (via code, proprietary tools, and/or visual scripting languages).
• Experience working in an environment that stretches the designer outside their bounds, including experience with level, gameplay, and/or UX/UI design.