We are looking for an enthusiastic, player-experience-focused software engineer to join our team to work on moment-to-moment gameplay systems such as the experience and feel of our third-person camera, vehicle systems, and other new and exciting additions to the State of Decay franchise. As an individual contributor on our software engineering team, you will work in close collaboration with designers and other colleagues to understand gameplay goals and create suitable engineering solutions within the Unreal Engine.
This is a role where you can expect to leverage your software development, debugging, creative problem solving and collaborative game design skills. You can look forward to not just creating compelling moment-to-moment experiences, but doing so in a way that takes everything about the player experience from the appeal of the controls to their accessibility into consideration.
At Undead Labs, we work in highly collaborative, cross-discipline teams because we understand that the best ideas are ones we generate together. We are creators of the hit survival-fantasy franchise State of Decay, played by millions, and we operate independently as part of a network of first-party Microsoft studios. We have a rich history of entrepreneurship and empowerment that will carry us forward as we reach new levels of quality, ambition, and polish.
Core Responsibilities and Objectives
- Write and maintain production-quality C++ code focused on delivering high-quality moment-to-moment gameplay.
- Design and architect gameplay systems that are extensible and performant
- Collaborate directly with the design team on the definition of game features.
- Work collaboratively with your colleagues to prototype, iterate on, and deliver engaging gameplay experiences.
- Apply your knowledge, critical thinking skills, unique perspective and ideas to the production of our games.
- Make pragmatic and player-experienced-focused decisions about your work through prototyping, analysis of player feedback and telemetry, and design consultation.
Core Traits and Experience
- Proficient with C++ and familiar with software development methodologies.
- Experience with 3rd person moment-to-moment gameplay systems, such as controls, character animation and dynamic cameras.
- An understanding of vehicle locomotion and control problem sets and potential solutions.
- Familiarity with third-person camera movement systems and techniques related to accessibility problems (such as mitigating motion sickness).
- A self-starter that works proactively across disciplines to drive alignment, clarify decisions and reduce ambiguity where possible to increase velocity of their work.
- An ability to communicate effectively across disciplines.
- Ideally brings 5 to 10 years of experience in a software engineering role.
Bonus Traits and Experience
- Experience with Unreal Engine 4.
- Experience with console game development.
- Experience working with animators to support and ensure high-quality character animation in all aspects of moment-to-moment gameplay.
Physical Requirements
- Close vision to monitors and screens, consistently working on computer equipment such as keyboards and monitors, long periods of sitting.
- Noise levels are low to moderate in the work environment.
Reasonable accommodations can be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
This position reports to the Engineering Manager.
Undead Labs is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable laws, regulations, and ordinances.
We look forward to hearing from you!