Associate Design Director, Re-playable Game Modes

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Job Description:

At Blizzard, we craft genre-defining games and legendary worlds for all to share.  Through unparalleled creativity and storytelling, we create immersive universes and iconic characters that are beloved across platforms, borders, backgrounds, and generations - only made possible by building a work environment that nurtures the artistry of game development and unleashes the aspirations of our people. 

We are searching for a Design Director with a passion for RPG games that hold player interest for hundreds of hours through systemically generated content. You will be the vision holder and owner for highly re-playable modes for an open world shooter. Your technical aptitude and deep knowledge of game mechanics will allow you to direct the creation of compelling game modes at high fidelity. These game modes will efficiently use authoring tools and assets created for the campaign in a manner that engages players and keeps them coming back again and again. The game modes you create will provide endless opportunities for a player to experiment with different weapon and skill loadouts, socialize with friends, and pursue long-term progression goals in a variety of interesting settings with constantly evolving challenges.

This role is a hybrid work position, with some work on-site and some work-from-home. The home studio is Irvine, CA 

Responsibilities

Priorities can often change in a fast-paced environment like ours, so this role includes, but is not limited to, the following responsibilities:

• Define and set the strategic direction for re-playable game modes in collaboration with the leadership team across all disciplines.

• Apply your knowledge of industry trends to selectively target key areas of innovation that have shown potential but have not yet permeated the AAA space.

• Work with engineering, art, and audio to guide game modes from concepting to delivery.

• Stay current of player tastes and trends to balance novel approaches with proven techniques.

• Advocate for the player: ensuring that their time with the game is surprising, satisfying, and memorable.

Minimum Requirements

• 12+ years of experience in a design role; or equivalent in work/education experience with minimum 5 years experience leading and mentoring teams.

• Shipped 1+ AAA title in a leadership or director-level position.

• Experience leading cross-discipline teams in feature development.

• Experience with AAA game engines such as Unreal, Unity, CryEngine, or Source.

• Experience developing design concepts from conception to implementation in a clear, detailed manner.

• A deep understanding of how content should be authored to achieve this in a production efficient way.

Extra Points

• Multi-disciplinary. Though you understand design deeply, you also have a strong background in art, programming, or audio.

• A strong interest and practical working knowledge of how technology could be used to create new experiences for players.

• Strong documentation philosophies and strategies to evangelize your designs

• Playing a variety of video game genres and titles.

Your Platform

Best known for iconic video game universes including Warcraft®, Overwatch®, Diablo®, and StarCraft®, Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. (www.blizzard.com), a division of Activision Blizzard, which was acquired by Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT), is a premier developer and publisher of entertainment experiences. Blizzard Entertainment has created some of the industry’s most critically acclaimed and genre-defining games over the last 30 years, with a track record that includes multiple Game of the Year awards. Blizzard Entertainment engages tens of millions of players around the world with titles available on PC via Battle.net®, Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo Switch, iOS, and Android.

Our World

Activision Blizzard, Inc., is one of the world's largest and most successful interactive entertainment companies and is at the intersection of media, technology and entertainment. We are home to some of the most beloved entertainment franchises including Call of Duty®, World of Warcraft®, Overwatch®, Diablo®, Candy Crush™ and Bubble Witch™. Our combined entertainment network delights hundreds of millions of monthly active users in 196 countries, making us the largest gaming network on the planet!

Our ability to build immersive and innovative worlds is only enhanced by diverse teams working in an inclusive environment.  We aspire to have a culture where everyone can thrive in order to connect and engage the world through epic entertainment. We provide a suite of benefits that promote physical, emotional and financial well-being for ‘Every World’ - we’ve got our employees covered!

The videogame industry and therefore our business is fast-paced and will continue to evolve. As such, the duties and responsibilities of this role may be changed as directed by the Company at any time to promote and support our business and relationships with industry partners.

We love hearing from anyone who is enthusiastic about changing the games industry. Not sure you meet all qualifications? Let us decide! Research shows that women and members of other under-represented groups tend to not apply to jobs when they think they may not meet every qualification, when, in fact, they often do! We are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment and strongly encourage you to apply. 

We are committed to working with and providing reasonable assistance to individuals with physical and mental disabilities. If you are a disabled individual requiring an accommodation to apply for an open position, please email your request to accommodationrequests@activisionblizzard.com. General employment questions cannot be accepted or processed here. Thank you for your interest. 

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status, among other characteristics.

Rewards

We provide a suite of benefits that promote physical, emotional and financial well-being for ‘Every World’ - we’ve got our employees covered!  Subject to eligibility requirements, the Company offers comprehensive benefits including:

• Medical, dental, vision, health savings account or health reimbursement account, healthcare spending accounts, dependent care spending accounts, life and AD&D insurance, disability insurance;
• 401(k) with Company match, tuition reimbursement, charitable donation matching;
• Paid holidays and vacation, paid sick time, floating holidays, compassion and bereavement leaves, parental leave;
• Mental health & wellbeing programs, fitness programs, free and discounted games, and a variety of other voluntary benefit programs like supplemental life & disability, legal service, ID protection, rental insurance, and others;
• If the Company requires that you move geographic locations for the job, then you may also be eligible for relocation assistance.

Eligibility to participate in these benefits may vary for part time and temporary full-time employees and interns with the Company.  You can learn more by visiting https://www.benefitsforeveryworld.com/.