Senior Game Designer (Combat)

2 Months ago • 5 Years + • Combat Design • $145,100 PA - $181,400 PA

Job Summary

Job Description

Naughty Dog seeks a Senior Game Designer (Combat) to pitch, design, implement, and own enemy NPC archetypes. Responsibilities include collaborating with programmers on AI, animators on enemy movement and abilities, and the design team on gameplay mechanics. The role requires strong coding skills (C#, Lua, Visual Scripting), experience with behavior trees, proficiency in game engines (Unreal Engine, Unity), and excellent communication skills. The successful candidate will mentor junior designers and contribute to the overall growth of the design team, iterating on combat systems based on playtesting feedback. This is a hybrid role based in Santa Monica, CA.
Must have:
  • 5+ years combat design experience
  • Shipped title as combat designer
  • Experience with behavior trees
  • Strong coding ability (C#, Lua)
  • Proficient in game engines (Unreal, Unity)
  • Excellent communication skills
Good to have:
  • Computer Science degree
  • Knowledge of narrative structure
Perks:
  • Top-tier benefits package
  • Medical, dental, vision
  • Matching 401(k)
  • Paid time off
  • Wellness program
  • Sony product discounts
  • Bonus package (potential)

Job Details

Ability to work hybrid from our Santa Monica, CA based studio is required.

For nearly 40 years, Naughty Dog has been crafting best-selling, critically acclaimed games that constantly push the boundaries of narrative, gameplay, and technology. Naughty Dog recently released The Last of Us Part II Remastered as well as a current generation remake of The Last of Us Part I for the PS5. We're also proud to say that The Last of Us Part I is now available for the first time on PC. Currently, we’re busy at the kennel working on Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet and The Last of Us Part II Remastered for PC, and we'd love to find talented individuals to join us.

Naughty Dog games have long been lauded for their evocative, character-driven stories and attention to detail. We are committed to innovation within our games and as such have curated some of the top creative and technically innovative minds in the industry. We welcome diverse candidates and believe that a broad range of cultural and life experiences contribute to the overall well-being and success of the studio and the titles we craft together.


In service of these goals, Naughty Dog is growing our design team!

What you will do

  • Pitch, design, implement, and own enemy NPC archetypes.
  • Work with AI programmers to develop foundational NPC technology and implementing and tuning enemy AI behaviors.
  • Work with animators to develop enemy locomotion and traversal, melee moves, ambient behaviors, and other custom abilities. Make every enemy archetype feel unique and memorable.
  • Collaborate with the Design team to conceptualize, prototype, implement, tune, and balance gameplay mechanics and systems
  • Communicate with animation, programming, and art departments to effectively produce the assets and code support required for the enemies you’re owning
  • Write and maintain documentation that establishes the core vision of the enemy archetypes
  • Drive communication and collaboration for enemies you design and the levels they are in, ensuring communication across disciplines and meeting deadlines
  • Effective and respectful communicator and collaborator, both with other designers and members of other departments
  • Facilitate playtesting and feedback sessions to iterate on combat systems and fine-tune them based on player experiences.
  • Mentor junior designers and contribute to the overall growth of the design team.

 

What skills you will use:

  • 5+ years of industry experience in combat design and/or technical design for games, specifically focused on developing action-adventure or shooter games.
  • At least one shipped title as a combat designer or similar role.
  • Experience with behavior trees or similar NPC AI concepts preferred.
  • Strong coding ability: Computer Science degree preferred though not required
  • Proficient in using game engines and tools (e.g., Unreal Engine, Unity) for combat implementation and design scripting (C#, Lua, Visual Scripting)
  • Welcomes feedback on their work and embraces the “let’s try it” mentality.
  • Proficient and effective communication skills, including diagramming and sketching. 
  • Fluent in modern character action-adventure and shooter combat games. Maintains knowledge of the broader gaming landscape trends
  • Knowledge of narrative structure and how it intersects with gameplay and combat.
  • A keen eye for detail in character action games, able to tune gameplay systems to make them feel smooth and impactful
  • Strong leadership and mentoring skills.

 

 

 Please refer to our  for more information about how we process your personal information, and your data protection rights.

 

At SIE, we consider several factors when setting each role’s base pay range, including the competitive benchmarking data for the market and geographic location.

Please note that the base pay range may vary in line with our hybrid working policy and individual base pay will be determined based on job-related factors which may include knowledge, skills, experience, and location. 

In addition, this role
is eligible for SIE’s top-tier benefits package that includes medical, dental, vision, matching 401(k), paid time off, wellness program and coveted employee discounts for Sony products. This role also may be eligible for a bonus package. Click  to learn more.

 

The estimated base pay range for this role is listed below.
$145,100$181,400 USD

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About The Company

Santa Monica, California, United States (On-Site)

Santa Monica, California, United States (On-Site)

Santa Monica, California, United States (On-Site)

Santa Monica, California, United States (On-Site)

Santa Monica, California, United States (On-Site)

Santa Monica, California, United States (On-Site)

Santa Monica, California, United States (On-Site)

Santa Monica, California, United States (On-Site)

Santa Monica, California, United States (On-Site)

Santa Monica, California, United States (On-Site)

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