Combat Designer

 

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Additionally, we are not working with any external recruiters or agencies at this time. Our website has an up to date roster of all current employees. If anyone reaches out to you and they are not listed on our website, they are not part of our team.

 

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We are looking for a creative and capable combat encounter designer (Senior to Principal) to join us here at Gravity Well!

Do you like games with tactile and exciting combat systems? Do you like planning and strategizing encounters? Do you enjoy experimenting with pacing and enemy ecology? Do you revel over the opportunity to give players a fun and challenging minute to minute combat experience? We are looking for talented combat encounter designers that will craft combat focused gameplay that is exciting and challenging to play again and again.

At Gravity Well, you will be empowered to make the game better regardless of specialization. We believe in hiring great people and giving them the freedom and trust to build amazing things that they are passionate about -- we are not hiring people to fill pre-determined workloads. Combat designers with broader interests are encouraged to apply!

What You'll Do:

• Use existing enemy characters, locations, and other gameplay elements to create new scenarios of various intensities and challenge for players to engage with in a dynamic action sandbox.
• Work with other designers and developers to build new gameplay elements and expand the combat experience.
• Work with level designers to concept and develop new combat environments.
• Help to iterate and solidify the rhythms and pacing of the player combat experience in a brand new action game.
• Develop workflows and write specifications for any tools that enable and streamline your creative process.
• Understand and account for the spectrum of play styles and skill levels that different audiences will bring.
• Incorporate feedback from playtests and peers.

Ideally You'll Have:

• 3+ years of professional experience, with an emphasis on encounter design.
• Shipping at least 2 titles.
• Familiarity with the Unreal 4/5 editor and toolset in a production environment.
• Comfortable with 3D layout tools.
• Experience with a text-based or visual scripting language.
• The ability to read code and script (C++, C#/Lua) is a big plus.
• The ability to research and describe requirements for new features and tools.
• Knowledge of gameplay systems in a wide variety of game genres, and a habitual curiosity to stay current.
• A desire to communicate effectively and professionally with fellow developers across all disciplines.

What You’ll Get:

The base pay for this role is:

• Combat Designer: $100,000 to $125,000 USD per year;
• Senior Combat Designer: $125,000 to $175,000 USD per year;
• Principal Combat Designer: $175,000 to $200,000 USD per year;

(or equivalent in your local currency). We pay fairly across our global team regardless of your location but it will differ based on factors such as experience, qualifications etc.

In addition to the base pay, we also offer the following:

• Profit sharing and company equity to all employees, regardless of location
• Industry leading medical, dental, and vision plans
• Employer sponsored basic life insurance & AD&D
• 401k retirement program
• Flexible work hours
• Flexible PTO and sick time
• Paid parental leave

Some benefits listed, such as the 401k plan for employees in the United States, may vary depending on your employee status and location.

Where You'll Work:

This position is for US and Canadian residents. We have an office in California if you like to come to an office, but most employees work from home across different US time zones and that's totally fine. 

Misc:

• As part of the interview process, we may ask you to take a paid test.