Principal Technical Level Designer
- Full-time
- Project: Gears of War
- Department: Level Design
- Location: PL, Warsaw (Remote/Hybrid)
Company Description
*The role is open to candidates only from the game industry who are based in Europe.
People Can Fly is one of the leading independent AAA game development studios. Our international team consists of hundreds of talented individuals working from offices in Poland, the UK, Ireland, the US, and Canada, as well as remotely across the globe.
Founded in 2002, we made our mark on the shooter genre with titles such as Painkiller, Bulletstorm, Gears of War: Judgment, and Outriders. As one of the most experienced Unreal Engine studios in the industry, we continue to expand on our expertise and push the boundaries of what’s possible in game development.
Our creative teams are currently working on several exciting titles: Gears of War: E-Day developed in collaboration with Microsoft; Project Echo for KRAFTON; and Lost Rift, an original IP we are developing in-house under our self-publishing model. We are also exploring new platforms and experiences with VR and other unannounced projects.
With over 20 years of experience, PCF continues to explore new horizons. We aim to combine our expertise with the creativity of the best and most forward-thinking talent in the industry, building the next generation of action games for players worldwide.
If you join us on this journey, you’ll have the chance to perfect your craft, expand your knowledge, and work alongside industry leaders to create unique, unforgettable experiences for gamers everywhere.
Job Description
- Implementing gameplay scenarios using the existing toolset to forge gameplay elements such as checkpoints, objectives, enemy spawns, and special events into compelling gaming experiences.
- Maintaining the big picture of all connected features used by the department, identifying weak spots and missing links, proposing and driving improvements to the toolset, workflows, and pipelines.
- Proactively tackle the most complex technical issues
- Working directly with programmers, game designers, artists, and animators to create essential tools and solutions, handle dependencies between features, facilitate teams cooperation and contribute to the vision of the game.
- Assessment of designs, game features, and pipelines, identifying potential risks, looking for systemic improvement.
- Assisting with prototyping and production of the technical elements for game features.
- Testing new features and tools before they are deployed to the rest of the team to ensure they meet the department’s requirements.
- Ensuring Level Designers comply with the official metrics and technical standards.
- Reviewing blueprints done by team members, analyzing them to identify any additional efforts required for optimization or reducing the risk of bugs.
- Implementing prefabs that are easy to use, configure or adjust by team members.
- Making sure the Level Design team can efficiently maintain a balance between the creative vision for the project and the technical budget restraints provided by the Technical Director by acting as a technical reference for the team in relation to level design.
- Assisting the rest of the department with debugging and bug fixing, collaborating with other teams on interdisciplinary investigations when needed and act as ambassador within the project and studio wide.
- Maintaining owned project documentation.
- Stay informed of best practices and technical solutions used in the industry.
- Contributing to the company’s knowledge base and cooperating with other teams to keep it up-to-standards.
- Manage or supervise work of established Strike Teams.
- Occasionally support Lead in recruitment projects with HR collaboration.
- Occasionally can onboard new hires.
Qualifications
- 7+ years of professional experience or at least one shipped PC or console title, including 5+ years of experience in a technical designer position.
- Technical background - experience with scripting languages, understanding of programming paradigms and concepts.
- Strong Unreal Engine 4 or 5 knowledge.
- Experience in the development of multiplayer / co-op title, understanding replication and network communication.
- Experience with performance profiling and optimization.
- Debugging experience, high problem-solving skills, and strong internal drive to understand how things work.
- Ability to focus and work without micro-management while adhering to schedules.
- Self-motivation.
- Excellent communication skills.
- Strong mentoring skills.
- Strong verbal and written communication skills in English.
Nice to have
- Experience with multiple different 3D engines
- Experience in the design of tools and workflows
- Interdisciplinary experience, generalist approach
- Knowledge of Maya, 3DS Max, or similar 3D package
Additional Information
- Private medical healthcare including dental treatment for PCF members and their families (Signal Iduna).
- MultiSport card for you and your family members or friends.
- Free library with a wide range of games and books you have unlimited access to.
- In-company Polish and English language classes.
- Fresh fruit, snacks, and beverages for everyone in the office.
- Flexible working hours.
- Free virtual health and mental wellbeing sessions are included in the plan for members and their dependents.
- Personal development opportunities and ability to work in a global environment.
- Work in a creative team with people full of passion for what they do.