Level Designer

 

Note: We have been made aware that there are individuals reaching out to artists claiming to be from Gravity Well. If you receive any information about a job listing that is not from a gravitywell.games domain, it did not come from Gravity Well. Please be wary of contact coming from anything other than a gravitywell.games domain.

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 Level Designer (Senior to Principal) to join us here at Gravity Well!

Are you passionate about building engaging and memorable spaces that provide flow, variety, and fun? Do you love tweaking and tuning combat encounters until they are just right? We are looking for creative level designers to help create innovative gameplay spaces and finely crafted combat encounters that will bring joy to players every time they play!

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. Level designers with broader interests are encouraged to apply!

What You'll Do:

• Oversee all aspects of how your level comes together. Guiding and informing downstream departments and stakeholders with respect to your vision.
• Interpret the game’s vision and direction effectively, communicating that vision to everyone involved.
• Establish strong player experience goals that drive and guide the work for yourself and all contributors.
• Guide and mentor other designers.
• Create a wide variety of gameplay spaces and encounters in a brand new IP. You’ll own the creation of engaging spaces and memorable levels from gray-box/blockout to shipping. You will have major influence over gameplay, pacing, storytelling, and moments.
• Use your creative skills to explore and design a breadth of levels and encounters alongside an evolving combat loop.
• Give meaningful feedback on all aspects of the game by being an advocate for players at every possible opportunity.
• Emphasize playable prototypes and iteration on playable experiences over extensive design documentation and theorycrafting.
• React to feedback from regular internal playtests and external focus tests as you see fit in order to make a game that players love.

Ideally You'll Have:

• 3+ years of professional experience, with an emphasis on level and encounter design.
• Proficiency in Unreal Engine.
• Shipped at least 2 titles.
• Strong design sensibilities with the ability to independently identify ways to improve the player experience.
• Ability to Identify clear player experience goals and identify the important questions that need answering at each stage of iteration.
• A strong grasp on the interplay between combat design and level design. You understand how players move and interact with geometry and enemy compositions.
• Strong self-motivation and self-sufficiency. You know how to independently create playable prototypes and find the resources you need to make your vision clear to the team.
• Good communication skills, being able to speak deeply with designers on design issues as well as presenting ideas in appropriate depth to non-designers.
• The skills to polish your work to a high quality bar. Ideally you have experience going from a blank slate to a shipped game, understanding the shifts in development between prototyping, polishing, and shipping.

What You’ll Get:

The base pay for this role is:

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