Game Director

Permanent - Full-time

Your opportunity

With a profile that combines creativity and analytics, the Design Director is responsible for overseeing the design, implementation and ongoing refinement of the game systems that will keep our players engaged for years to come. Passionate about free-to-play mobile games, the candidate must have a strong ambition to create today the mobile games of tomorrow.

Design Direction

• Own the vision for Game Design, both on the core gameplay and the metagame sides;
• Starting from the current implementation of the game, solidify and evolve the Design vision and direction in order to reach our business and creative objectives;
• Transform Product Management high level objectives in concrete actionables in order to meet business objectives while providing an exciting experience for the player;
• In collaboration with the PM and the Production team, balance Production constraints and return on investment in order to decide the best course of action to reach our objectives (tweaking, improving or redesigning existing systems; or designing new systems altogether);
• Throughout iterations, clearly communicate the vision and direction to the design team;
• Thoroughly understand the target audience and player types as well as their motivations. Understand the emotional and psychologic impact of different systems and features. Ensure that the design Direction is in line with the target audience;
• Have an excellent understanding of the targeted market segment in the free-to-play mobile space; actively monitor direct and indirect competitors.

Design Execution

• Accountable for Product execution, including player experience, quality, fun, feature implementation & iterations, content and events creation, etc;
• Oversee and participate in the design or evolution of game systems that are innovative, and balance accessibility and depth to keep the player engaged over time;
• Oversee and participate in the writing of clear and concise design documents that explain the systems in detail (objectives, comparables, operation, specifications, etc.);
• Collaborate with the Art Director and the art team to ensure that the visual aspect of the game supports and enhances the design of the feature;
• Oversee the implementation of new systems or iteration on existing systems, and work with other teams to ensure excellent quality of execution;
• Oversee in-game economy and balance;
• Regularly review existing systems and their implementation to ensure quality and performance;
• Be accountable for the "fun" and an excellent player experience ("player journey");
• Oversee new Content creation (seasons, heroes, etc.) from a Design perspective;
• Ensure that existing and new systems allow the Live Ops team to bring life to the game, through events and activities.

Team Management

• Build and manage a team of designers;
• Strongly contribute to sourcing and hiring designers to build the design team;
• Define the appropriate design methodology for the project and communicate it clearly to the team;
• Implement design pipelines, ensure that they are respected and proactively improve them;
• With the production and management team, prioritize and plan design tasks, define and adjust the scope, and ensure on-time delivery of systems;
• Coach the design team members, provide feedback on their work and work with them to develop professionally;
• Responsible for helping the design team and processes grow with the rest of the project.

Experience & Requirements

• Degree in Game Design or related experience;
• A minimum of 6 years experience in the video game industry;
• Excellent understanding of free-to-play design, with several published mobile games;
• Experience on competitive mobile game a huge plus;
• Organized and structured;
• Ability to understand holistically all game systems;
• Attention to detail and quality;
• Experience in planning and managing a project;
• Working knowledge of Unity is a plus.

Interpersonal Skills

• Excellent ability to communicate a vision, to coach and mobilize a team;
• Excellent writing skills; ability to present ideas in a synthetic and structured manner;
• Able to maintain a high level of communication with other departments (technical, UX, artistic, etc.).

Motivation & Interests

• Passion and ambition for F2P mobile games are essential!