2k Games

Senior Combat Designer (AI archetype)

2k Games$90K — $120K *
Consumer Technology
5 - 7 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 5+ years professional experience in video game design.
  • Experience shipping at least one AAA title as an AI combat designer.
  • Deep understanding of game mechanics, combat systems, and AI NPC design.
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
  • Proficient with various game development tools and workflows.
  • Strong presentation abilities and communication of complex ideas.
  • Current knowledge of trends and technologies within the gaming industry.

Responsibilities

  • Collaborate with design leads to develop and pitch interactive AI characters.
  • Own the implementation of AI and combat across cross-disciplinary teams.
  • Create and fine-tune prototypes for AI and combat scenarios.
  • Maintain and adjust combat AI behavior throughout the project.
  • Document design processes in a clear and accessible manner.
  • Engage in brainstorming and iterative design sessions to enhance creative output.
  • Work closely with teams from multiple locations to ensure cohesive design execution.

Benefits

  • Collaborative work culture embracing innovation and change.
  • Opportunities for mentorship and professional development.
  • Access to advanced game development technology and tools.
  • Supportive environment fostering cross-disciplinary integration.
Full Job Description
As a Senior Combat Designer at Cloud Chamber, you will collaborate with an innovative team of designers, artists, and engineers to create industry-leading AI characters and combat gameplay. You will be responsible for expanding and building on the ideas of player expression and emergent design experiences. Utilizing your deep knowledge of Unreal Engine, you will develop interactive AI characters to support the overall creative vision for our project, ensuring that our ambitious design goals are achieved and ultimately bring the richly imagined world of BioShock to life.

What You'll Do:
  • Work with the Leads, Design Director, and the design team to pitch and develop interactive AI characters and execute the vision for the game.
  • Act as the primary owner of AI and combat implementation in cross-disciplinary pods.
  • Develop working prototypes of AI and combat scenarios.
  • Communicate progress, workflows, and availability of AI and combat standards to content developers.
  • Maintain and tune assigned combat AI behavior and parameters through to project completion.
  • Create detailed and easy-to-follow design documentation.
  • Collaborate across development sites in Novato and Montreal on a day-to-day basis.
  • Expand and build on the ideas of player expression and emergent design experiences.
  • Use your creativity to execute on design goals and solve design challenges that push our games forward.
  • Participate in brainstorm sessions, refine, and execute on ideas within a schedule.
  • Collaborate with cross-disciplinary teams to execute on design implementation and problem solving.

What We'll Do Together:

At Cloud Chamber, we are champions of high standards, pushing for progress and embracing change. We will work closely and constructively across design, art, engineering, animation, and audio teams to realize our creative ambitions. Together, we will stay current on technological advancements and identify solutions to overcome developmental obstacles.

In this combat design capacity, you will support the Creative Director's vision, ensuring creative intent is translated into a performant reality while taking ownership of complex design challenges.

Skills & Experiences:
  • Shipped at least one AAA title as a designer responsible for AI combatants.
  • 5+ years professional experience in video game design.
  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
  • Experience working with a variety of established game toolsets.
  • Proven ability to collaborate effectively within cross-disciplinary groups and across multi-site team settings.
  • Deep understanding of game mechanics, combat systems, and AI NPC design.
  • Fluent with game development tools, and experience with pipelines, standards and workflows.
  • Strong presentation skills.
  • Current knowledge of gaming industry development landscape, technology and tools.
  • Understanding of how AI, tactical space, and player verbs combine to create magic in both scripted and unscripted settings.
  • In-depth knowledge of industry standard AI, progression systems, and player mechanics features.

Who You Are:
  • A strong empathetic team member, able to take ownership over your tasks and mentor more junior designers.
  • A reliable, positive force multiplier, actively seeking opportunities to integrate work across disciplines and contribute to a healthy, supportive team environment.
  • A solid communicator with excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to articulate complex ideas clearly, package information for diverse audiences, and deliver difficult feedback with empathy and professionalism.
  • A persistent and self-motivated person with a proactive mindset.
  • Able to maintain effectiveness and quality under pressure, ambiguity, and fast-changing priorities.
  • An active listener able to build and maintain trust-based relationships across all levels of the organization, understand differing perspectives, and navigate organizational complexity with tact and emotional intelligence.
  • Highly open to feedback and direction, possessing a desire to learn new skills, and capable of producing quick, quality revisions based on new insights or constraints.
  • A strong owner of your tasks, who strives to drive their work forward autonomously while maintaining a critical eye for detail and organization, ensuring high standards of quality.
  • Dedicated to upholding Cloud Chamber's core values, contributing to a positive and respectful company culture while striving for excellence in all endeavors.

For candidates located in Quebec:
  • Proficiency in French is required.
  • Proficiency in English is required to effectively collaborate with teams based in the United States.

About 2k Games

2K Games is an American video game publisher based in Novato, California. The company was founded in January 2005 by Take-Two Interactive, and is best known for publishing the NBA 2K series of basketball games. Other popular franchises published by 2K Games include the Borderlands series, the BioShock series, and the Mafia series. The company has also published several licensed games based on popular movies and TV shows, such as The Walking Dead and WWE.
Learn more about 2k Games
Size
500 employees
Industry

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