Senior Game Designer (Combat)
$145,100–$181,400 year
Hybrid · Santa Monica, California, United States
Job Summary
Senior Game Designer (Combat) responsible for designing and owning enemy NPC archetypes, collaborating with AI programmers to develop core NPC tech and tune enemy AI behaviors, and working with animators to craft enemy locomotion, melee moves, and ambient behaviors. You’ll balance gameplay mechanics across systems, maintain core vision documents, mentor junior designers, and lead playtesting. Requires 5+ years in combat or technical design for action-adventure/shooter games, at least one shipped title, proficiency with Unreal Engine or Unity and scripting in C#, Lua, or Visual Scripting, strong communication, and a keen eye for detail.
Required Qualifications
- 5+ years of industry experience in combat design and/or technical design for games, specifically focused on action-adventure or shooter games
- At least one shipped title as a combat designer or similar role
- Strong coding ability; Computer Science degree preferred though not required
- Proficient in game engines and tools (e.g., Unreal Engine, Unity) for combat implementation and design scripting (C#, Lua, Visual Scripting)
- Welcomes feedback on their work and embraces the “let’s try it” mentality
- Proficient and effective communication skills, including diagramming and sketching
- Fluent in modern character action-adventure and shooter combat games
- Knowledge of narrative structure and how it intersects with gameplay and combat
- A keen eye for detail in character action games, able to tune gameplay systems to make them feel smooth and impactful
- Strong leadership and mentoring skills
- 5+ years of industry experience in combat design and/or technical design for games, specifically focused on developing action-adventure or shooter games
- At least one shipped title as a combat designer or similar role
- Strong coding ability: Computer Science degree preferred though not required
- Proficient in using game engines and tools (e.g., Unreal Engine, Unity) for combat implementation and design scripting (C#, Lua, Visual Scripting)
- Welcomes feedback on their work and embraces the “let’s try it” mentality
- Proficient and effective communication skills, including diagramming and sketching
- Fluent in modern character action-adventure and shooter combat games
- Knowledge of narrative structure and how it intersects with gameplay and combat
- A keen eye for detail in character action games, able to tune gameplay systems to make them feel smooth and impactful
- Strong leadership and mentoring skills
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