Lead Game Designer

Deck Nine Games is currently hiring a second full-time, remote Lead Game Designer for our next unannounced narrative adventure game.

Could this be you? Well, do you love single player games?  Do you enjoy crafting narrow but deep experiences?  Can you love a game equally for its gameplay and its characters, its themes and its story arcs?  Do you hunger to stand in front of a team, inspire them and lead them in creating a deeply personal game that fans talk about for years? If so, then you may be the right person for the job.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with the game director to develop a shared vision that merges gameplay and story
• Mentor a team of gameplay and level designers to create innovative game experiences
• Understand the needs of our players and ensure the gameplay developed by the team contributes to an engaging and memorable player experience
• Work with the story team to break the story with an eye toward gameplay
• Get your hands dirty in the prototypes, game levels, and game systems
• Work together with the art team to craft visually impressive visual experiences that furthers gameplay
• Work closely with everyone to create clear creative strategies and solve creative problems
• Listen to all the ideas, coherently answer questions, and protect the core vision
• Review, troubleshoot, and provide feedback
• Be a passionate leader every day

• 7+ years of experience in game design, preferably with 3+ years as a Lead Designer or Design Director
• Significant involvement in 2 published games, with at least 1 project at senior level
• Significant experience developing games for console or PC platforms
• Excellent communication, interpersonal and organizational skills
• Exceptional creativity and design skills
• Strong knowledge of player mentality and motivations
• Strong technical ability to prototype game mechanics
• High-level expertise in design documentation
• Passionate about narrative adventure games and the desire to grow their gameplay
• Knowledge of both contemporary gameplay and narrative design
• Strong understanding of current and past game trends

Pluses

• Good knowledge of at least 1 industry-standard engine, ideally Unreal 4
• Familiarity with a variety of editors and scripting languages
• Understanding the specific needs of narrative adventure games
• Shipped at least 1 narrative adventure game
• An excellent understanding of non-linear narrative systems and structures
• Puzzle design experience, especially in the context of narrative adventures

Benefits

• Competitive salary depending on experience
• Generous vacation time and paid parental leave
• Health insurance for you and your family at a low cost to you
• Dental and Vision insurance for you and your family at NO cost to you
• Life and Disability benefits at NO cost to you
• Optional Flexible Spending Account (including Healthcare and Limited Purpose), Dependent Care Account, and Health Savings Account available
• Optional Supplemental Health and Life Insurance
• 401(k) Plan with an Employer Match
• Growth opportunities for your career

Salary Range: DOE

If you are a talented and passionate game developer and you are looking to challenge yourself creatively, please apply today! Position is full-time and remote, and we cannot sponsor visas.

About Deck Nine

Here at Deck Nine Games our passion is storytelling games. We are an independent game developer dedicated to crafting AAA interactive story games that inspire, transform, and entertain players. In 2021 we released Life is Strange True Colors, which went on to win multiple awards for storytelling and visuals, including best storytelling for 2021 and a VGA for Games for Impact. Recently we announced that we are developing a game for the hit sci-fi Amazon series, The Expanse. Our prior titles have won multiple awards, including Game of the Year and nominations for VGA and BAFTA awards. The studio is 100+ amazing people both located in our headquarters in sunny Westminster, Colorado and spread throughout the world permanently remote.

As the crafters of stories that encompass the full breadth of life’s experiences, Deck Nine is committed to building a diverse, inclusive, and multicultural team in which people from all walks of life feel inspired to do their best work. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer and believe deeply in the creativity and strength built from diversity of race, religion, disability, gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, nationality, and the many other qualities that make us different.

If this sounds appealing to you, please apply now!