Design

Overview

We are hiring an Associate Encounter Designer to build interactive combat experiences that engage solo and small groups of players within Elder Scrolls Online. Our ideal candidate is passionate about storytelling in a multiplayer environment and finding new ways to delight and terrify players of all skill levels.

Responsibilities

• Design and populate encounters in the Elder Scrolls Online ranging from solo quest encounters and delves to multiplayer group bosses
• Script AI combat behaviors and abilities in our proprietary toolset
• Stage monsters in new and interesting environments with an eye toward visual storytelling
• Communicate regularly with artists, writers, designers, and engineers

Qualifications

• Excellent storytelling and visual composition skills
• Experience playing massively multiplayer online games
• Effective written and verbal communication skills
• Familiarity with Microsoft Excel or other data management software
• Motivated and organized, with strong attention to detail

Preferred Skills

• 1+ years games industry experience
• Photoshop or other image editing software experience
• Programming or scripting experience
• Demonstrable mod experience
• Animation background
• Familiarity with ESO

Overview

ZeniMax Online Studios is hiring an Associate Systems Designer to work with the Systems Lead and the rest of the project team to support the creation and maintenance of core game mechanics and non-combat systems within Elder Scrolls Online.  They are responsible for player retention mechanisms and facilitating in-game social interactions, while adhering to team values and best practices.

Responsibilities

• Maintain numerous existing in-game systems as assigned (Examples: Achievements, Itemization, Crafting, Housing, Justice, etc)
• Develop expertise on all in-game systems behavior and interdependencies including proprietary toolsets
• Create and maintain documentation for new and existing systems
• Function effectively as a team member in collaborative, cross-disciplinary feature development teams
• Identify and develop opportunities for fair monetization and business practices
• Utilize business intelligence reporting to drive data informed decisions
• Provide, receive and integrate feedback on all aspects of game development
• Any other duties assigned by the Systems Lead, Lead Gameplay Designer and Creative Director

Qualifications

• 1+ years’ experience developing or maintaining systems in a shipped or live game
• Experience playing MMORPGs
• Proficient with Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Word or equivalent
• Technical writing familiarity with close attention to detail
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills

Preferred Skills

• Familiarity with Agile development methodology
• Viewable portfolio of previous work

Overview

ZeniMax Online Studios is seeking a Lead Gameplay Camera Designer to join our studio for the development of our next AAA game. This is a chance to join an experienced group of developers in pre-production for a new IP.

In this role, you will collaborate closely with the Lead Systems Designer and the Combat and Level Design teams to implement the unique camera vision of our game. The primary focus of the role will be the creation of in-game, player-controlled cameras and supporting tools and development pipelines. You will also push the boundaries of your craft by exploring the latest emerging trends in camera design and creating solutions for high-mobility gameplay.

Responsibilities

• Contribute in shaping the vision for gameplay cameras
• Design, set up and tune player-controlled gameplay cameras and camera systems
• Use script to set up camera behaviors. Layout and hook up camera action triggers in game
• Support player navigation, traversal, and combat gameplay with a keen eye for the combination of composition and usability
• Work closely with the combat and level design teams to help create a smooth and seamless player experience
• Mentor camera designers

Qualifications

• 2-5 years’ experience implementing in-game cameras
• Working knowledge of camera controls from various game engines, including some camera scripting experience
• Experience with 3D Studio Max (preferred) or similar 3D package
• Background or strong interest in cinematography or photography
• Competent animation and technical skill set
• The ideal candidate is a self-sufficient, technical problem solver
• Well-developed communication skills and strong work ethic

Preferred Skills

• 5+ years of industry experience, with at least one shipped AAA title
• Working experience as a camera designer in games, or comparable experience in film or television

Overview

Zenimax Online Studios is hiring a talented and experienced Lead Mobile Designer passionate about games and ZeniMax intellectual properties. If you’re a fan of The Elder Scrolls, or looking to work on an exciting new IP, this is the place for you!

We are looking for a Designer to design gameplay systems and help us lead a small team. The team is focused on prototyping to create fantastic games, explore new technology, and develop ideas to make our existing products even better! You’ll work closely with directors and other stakeholders, artists, engineers, and the rest of the ZeniMax team to create innovative cross-platform Unity-based projects. These projects will focus on quality gameplay with fantastic player-driven experiences that provide strong connections back to our studio titles.  We need a deeply passionate and collaborative all-round designer eager to pioneer new ideas, innovate on existing play patterns, create and implement design specs, and learn and grow with the team while delivering engaging game experiences across a broad array of content and systems. You should have a passion for mobile gaming, proven experience in game design, a strong aptitude for critical thinking and analysis, outstanding people skills, and boundless creativity. Bonus points for a focus on systems design that intersects with player choices and how those impacts are felt in the future.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with leadership to create gameplay with interconnected systems from a macro to micro level. All elements intertwined in support of the IP and fun, memorable experiences.
• Pitch creative ideas for new concepts and gameplay mechanics for current and future projects.
• Effectively communicate your designs, requirements, and deliverables to the team and other stakeholders. Help guide the team in translating the overall game vision into implemented functionality.
• Strong ability to deconstruct high-level gameplay systems into specific technical details, features and tasks.
• Create and maintain clear and effective game documentation from early game pitches to living GDDs, including ancillary documentation necessary to support the game’s development.
• Drive the creation, testing, and iteration of prototypes to prove out new gameplay ideas.
• Ensure that the overall gameplay experience is carried through from conceptualization to completion in the highest possible quality.
• Gather, analyze, and evaluate feedback, incorporating or providing alternate solutions to address the needed areas with sound reasoning and data.
• Champion design solutions based on feedback and work with the team to modify game concepts and mechanics accordingly.
• Have a holistic grasp on the design with the ability to communicate potential consequences of a proposed change.
• Create a work environment that is motivating for team members, and which fosters development and creation.
• Stay current with industry trends and learn from the success and failure of other games in the mobile space.

Qualifications

• Candidate must have 5+ years as a designer in the games industry, taking games from conception to post-launch support.
• Experience in user research and testing, with a data-informed approach to design.
• Strong documentation skills and experience writing product specs, creating wireframes, game flows, and feature documentation.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, collaborative problem-solving, and critical thinking.
• Proficiency with Jira and Confluence.
• Able to both receive and deliver constructive criticism and work well with a team.
• Must be creative and flexible when faced with constraints.
• Preferred location Hunt Valley, will consider remote

Overview

The Senior Combat designer works with the Combat Lead and the rest of the development team in the creation and maintenance of core combat mechanics, character abilities, and combat itemization. They are responsible for maintaining and improving the health of the combat experience including balance, bug fixing, system improvements, and development of new features.

Responsibilities

• Assist the Lead Combat Designer in developing and executing plans to improve and expand the combat experience
• Adhere to guidelines and restrictions for combat gameplay as defined by the Lead Combat Designer and Creative Director
• Take ownership of the development of specific combat features and improvement efforts, from ideation through delivery to players
• Maintain clear and concise documentation for all mechanics, balance, and systems they are responsible for
• Maintain up-to-date knowledge of the state of combat on the live servers and incorporate that knowledge into development effort
• Mentor other designers on the Combat team to improve their design, technical, and communication skills
• Actively seek internal and external feedback regarding the Combat product, and work with leadership to identify response actions
• Specific areas of responsibility include:                    ​
  • Maintenance and iteration of combat-centric systems such as character stats, progression, itemization rules, and player onboarding
  • Creation and maintenance of character mechanics, abilities, and items with an eye toward game balance
  • Proposing and shepherding the development of new gameplay systems

Qualifications

• Minimum 3+ years combat design experience on a shipped or live online multiplayer game
• Deep expertise in action and RPG combat systems, and what makes them satisfying
• Experience designing for both a casual and competitive audience
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to thrive within a collaborative environment, and both give and receive constructive feedback
• Ability to think logically and break down complex problems, with a strong focus on attention to detail
• Confidence working in an environment where specific processes are in place to maintain live game integrity
• Experience with scripting tools or languages
• Proficiency with Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Word

Overview

Zenimax Online Studios is hiring a talented and experienced Senior Mobile Designer who is passionate about games. If you are a fan of The Elder Scrolls or looking to work on exciting new ZeniMax intellectual properties, this is the place for you!

We are looking for a Designer to create compelling gameplay systems and provide a thoughtful presence in a small team. Our team is heavily focused on prototyping to create fantastic games, try out new tech, and pitch new ideas to make our existing products even better! You’ll work closely with directors and other stakeholders, artists, engineers, and the rest of the ZeniMax team to create innovative cross-platform Unity-based projects. These projects will focus on quality gameplay, with fantastic player-driven experiences that provide strong connections back to our studio titles.  We need a deeply passionate and collaborative all-round designer who is eager to pioneer new ideas, innovate on existing play patterns, create and implement design specs, and learn and grow with the team while delivering engaging game experiences across a broad array of content and systems. You should have a passion for mobile gaming, proven experience in game design, a strong aptitude for critical thinking and analysis, outstanding people skills, and boundless creativity. Bonus points for a focus on systems design that intersects with player choices and how those impacts are felt across future sessions.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with leadership to create gameplay with interconnected systems from a macro to micro level. All elements beautifully intertwined in support of the IP and super fun, memorable experiences
• Pitch creative ideas for new concepts and gameplay mechanics for current and future projects
• Effectively communicate your designs, requirements, and deliverables to the team and other stakeholders via both effective game documentation and in-person sessions.
• Drive the creation, testing, and iteration of both digital and paper prototypes to prove out new gameplay ideas.
• Gather, analyze, and evaluate all feedback, incorporating or providing alternate solutions to address the needed areas with sound reasoning and data
• Champion design solutions based on feedback and work with the team to modify game concepts and mechanics accordingly
• Be willing to learn and foster a work environment that supports and engages others.
• Stay current with industry trends and learn from the successes and failures of other games in the mobile space

Qualifications

• Candidate must have 3+ years as a designer in the games industry, taking games from conception to post-launch support
• Experience in user research and testing, with a data-informed approach to design
• Strong documentation skills and experience writing product specs, creating wireframes, game flows, and feature documentation
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, collaborative problem-solving, and critical thinking
• Fluency in Jira and Confluence.
• Able to both receive and deliver constructive criticism and work well with a team
• Must be creative and flexible when faced with constraints
• Hunt Valley, MD location preferred, will consider remote

Overview

ZeniMax Online Studios is seeking a Senior Monetization Designer to join our studio for the development of our next AAA game. This is a chance to join an experience group of developers in pre-production for a new IP.

This role will serve under the Lead Monetization Designer to design and build business strategic systems and mechanics, and hone them to industry-leading quality. A developer in this role will serve as a project specialist in one or more areas of monetization design and will collaborate with leads across all development disciplines in creating business strategic systems within their specialty. Post launch, this role will be working hand in hand with our Product Management group and the Lead Monetization Designer to maintain and improve the effectiveness of existing monetization systems and product lines. Additionally, this role will work to identify and build new monetization systems and products in a live service environment with a player first mindset that result in positive KPI growth.

Responsibilities

• Work with product management and a variety of design disciplines to create fun and engaging game systems that provide business value 
• Collaborate with all development disciplines to bring monetization systems from early vision to industry-shaping final implementation
• Collaborate with our UX team to design accessible, informative, and fun shopping experiences and purchase flows
• Effectively communicate to other team members and project leadership the reasoning and "why" behind design decisions
• Construct and maintain documentation detailing the structure, important mechanics, and key details within these systems 
• Help script and implement these designs with a cross disciplined team   
• Work with and advise feature teams on monetization and business goal best practices while maintaining empathy for the player 

Qualifications

• 5+ years related or game systems design experience, open to monetization design experience with mobile titles
• Deeply creative with a great sense of what makes for fun and engaging experiences 
• Excellent understanding of mobile and AAA MTX strategies 
• Excellent understanding of game economies, game progression design, reward pacing, and live service games
• Plays AAA and/or mobile live service games 
• Proven ability to employ data driven decision making while maintaining player empathy
• Good grasp of scripting or coding 
• Ability to work collaboratively in a cross-discipline development environment 
• Comfortable with a development schedule that is playtest-driven and focused on iteration and polish 
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills 
• Proficient in the Adobe Creative Suite of products 
• Proficient in Microsoft Excel 

Preferred Skills

• Strong understanding of game economy design for live service games 
• Strong understanding of progression design for live service games 

Overview

ZeniMax Online Studios is seeking a Senior Product Manager to help drive the development of our next AAA PC/Console project. This is a chance to join an experienced team of veteran developers in pre-production as we create an ambitious new IP.

As a Senior Product Manager, you will be the product specialist across multiple feature teams, where you will partner with Design and UX to define and steer systems, economies, and rewards that compose the game’s monetization and retention loops. You will be expected to engender trust & ownership across the project, for which you will foster a data-informed culture by leading efforts from development through to LiveOps that raise player lifetime value.

This position reports to the Product Management Lead for the new IP.

The preferred location for this role is Hunt Valley, MD, Austin, TX, Madison, WI, San Diego, CA, or Seattle, WA. Will consider remote. Please apply for more information.

Responsibilities

• Equipped with a deep bench of data-informed best practices, contribute goals and acceptance criteria on feature teams to align game design with product KPIs
• Ensure features are developed for LiveOps by working across Design, Engineering, and Business Intelligence to define data-driven flexibility, instrumentation, and telemetry
• Lead the definition of initial strategies, tactics, and tuning that will set features up for success at launch
• Define and execute performance measurement plans for beta and for launch
• Lead feature teams in LiveOps, which includes driving analytics & reporting to understand performance, testing hypotheses for improvement, building A/B experiments where appropriate, and aligning stakeholders to prioritize, develop, and launch the next iteration
• Ideate, define, propose, and drive new initiatives to improve product KPIs across (re)acquisition, retention, and monetization
• As a product performance expert, play a key role in revenue forecasting initiatives

Qualifications

• 4+ years of experience as a game product manager with a track record of improving player lifetime value in fast-paced LiveOps environments
• A keen student of live games with a seasoned palette for data-informed best practices across different audiences, genres, and platforms
• Strong business/quantitative acumen with a natural analytical mindset; able to break down complex questions, identify & clarify key details, and methodically problem solve towards a desired goal
• Adept at creating teardowns of game loops & economies to convey how and why they affect product KPIs
• Experience modeling game economies that underpin strong player retention
• Experience with hypothesis testing, including defining & interpreting A/B tests
• Self-starter who has a strong bias for action and for iterating beyond 0 to 1; excels with increasing ownership, accountability, and autonomy
• A team player with the communication and interpersonal skills to engender trust and influence across creative, technical, and business stakeholders
• Strong player empathy, which always guides your judgement
• Passion for high quality PC/Console games and for the craft of making them

Preferred Skills

• Experience with launching games and building LiveOps environments defined by rapid iteration
• Experience with live games across both mobile & PC/Console
• Working knowledge of SQL with experience getting hands-on with analytics
• MBA or a bachelor’s degree in a quantitative discipline, such as Economics, Mathematics, Computer Science, or similar

Overview

ZeniMax Online Studios is seeking a Senior Systems Designer to join our studio for the development of our next AAA game. This is a chance to join an experienced group of developers in pre-production for a new IP.

This role will serve under the Lead Systems Designer to build gameplay systems and mechanics, and hone them to industry-leading quality. A developer in this role will serve as a project specialist focusing on progression systems as well as one or more other areas of systems design. They will collaborate with leads across all development disciplines in creating gameplay systems within their specialties.

Responsibilities

• Work with the Lead Systems Designer to develop holistic gameplay and progression systems with compelling hooks and captivating long-term engagement
• Design, create, and maintain documentation for gameplay and progression systems and mechanics
• Focus and grow into a project specialist in one or more areas of game-wide systems design
• Collaborate with all development disciplines to bring gameplay and progression systems from early vision to industry-shaping final implementation
• Mentor systems designers and help them grow in their careers

Qualifications

• 5+ years of related experience
• Deeply creative with a great sense of what makes gameplay fun
• Experience designing progression or “leveling” systems
• Ability to work collaboratively in a cross-discipline development environment
• Expert proficiency integrating imagery and text to deliver thorough, easy to understand design documents
• Comfortable with a development schedule that is playtest-driven and focused on iteration and polish
• Strong understanding of the discrete elements game systems are built from, and the ability to problem solve both holistically and on a per-component basis
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Working knowledge of scripting or programming
• An online portfolio which clearly demonstrates relevant work experience

Preferred Skills

• Experience developing 3^rd person games
• Experience in industrial or product design
• Strong public speaking skills

Overview

The Senior Systems Designer works with the Systems Lead and the rest of the project team to support the creation and maintenance of core game mechanics and non-combat systems.  They are responsible for mechanisms which retain players’ short term and long term interest in the product and in facilitating social interactions between players, while adhering to team values and best practices.

Responsibilities

• Maintain numerous existing in-game systems as assigned (Examples: Achievements, Itemization, Crafting, Housing, Justice, Itemization, etc)
• Develop expertise on all in-game systems behavior and interdependencies including proprietary toolsets
• Create and maintain documentation for new and existing systems
• Coordinate work initiatives and priorities across multiple feature teams
• Function effectively as a leader and/or team member in collaborative, cross-disciplinary feature development teams
• Identify and develop opportunities for fair monetization and business practices
• Utilize business intelligence reporting to drive data informed decisions
• Provide, receive and integrate feedback on all aspects of game development
• Any other duties assigned by the Systems Lead, Lead Gameplay Designer and Creative Director

Qualifications

• 5+ years experience developing or maintaining systems in a shipped or live game
• Experience developing and playing MMORPGs
• Proficient with Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Word or equivalent
• Technical writing familiarity with close attention to detail
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills

Preferred Skills

• Familiarity with Agile development methodology and experience with Product Ownership
• Viewable portfolio of previous work