Senior Game Engine Developer

About Pocket Worlds:

Welcome to Pocket Worlds! Our mission is to connect the world through shared experiences, and our work shapes the future of social virtual worlds.

Here’s why we’re one of the most exciting places to continue your career:

• Featured as one of the most innovative companies in the world by Fast Company.

• Silicon Valley startup culture, with serial startup founders out of Y Combinator.

• An elite team of seasoned veterans from some of the best companies in the world.

• Tackling a mission at a world-changing scale—solving big problems, not local wins.

• Profitable business with strong foundations and a dedicated, established user base.

About the Role:

We are seeking a Senior Game Engine Programmer to help shape the future of Highrise by building and optimizing our custom game engine systems in Unity. You'll work closely with artists, designers, and other engineers to extend and refine the core engine that powers our virtual world—enhancing avatar systems, improving rendering performance, and supporting scalable features that serve millions of users.

This role is ideal for someone who thrives in a fast-moving, high-ownership environment and is passionate about building high-performance systems that bring immersive, social experiences to life.

The success of this role will be measured by the performance, flexibility, and innovation you bring to Highrise's game engine and overall platform experience.

What You’ll Do:

• Own key systems within our Unity-based engine, with a focus on rendering, avatars, animation, and performance optimization.

• Collaborate cross-functionally with our content, design, and backend teams to deliver engine improvements that directly impact user experience.

• Improve engine scalability and efficiency to support our growing global player base.

• Dive deep into Unity’s render pipelines (URP/HDRP/custom) to extend and adapt them to our needs.

• Build systems that enable richer avatar customization, visuals, and performance across devices.

• Champion technical excellence through code quality, performance, and architectural decisions.

• Work autonomously and take full ownership of features—from design and prototyping to implementation and maintenance.
  

Our Current Tech Stack:

• Unity (URP), C#

• Custom in-house tooling and content pipelines

• Backend in Python and Go, hosted on AWS

• Event-driven architecture, Microservices

• MongoDB, Redis, Kubernetes (kOps), Terraform

• WebSocket Secure (WSS), REST, FlatBuffers
  

Requirements:

• 8+ years of experience in game development, with at least 4 years focused on game engine programming.

• Deep experience building and optimizing systems in Unity, including extensive use of C#.

• Strong understanding of render pipelines (URP, HDRP, or custom solutions).

• Experience working on or building avatar systems (rigging, animation, customization).

• Proven track record of technical leadership, ownership, and delivering scalable engine features.

• Passion for virtual worlds, UGC, and empowering creative communities.

• Comfortable working in a high-velocity, startup environment.

• You have a shipped at least one successful game on mobile, desktop, or console.
  

Bonus Points:

• Experience developing or modifying Unity's SRP (Scriptable Render Pipeline).

• Experience with shader programming (HLSL/Shader Graph).

• Experience working on MMO or social games at scale.

• Familiarity with ECS (Entity Component System) architecture.

• Contributions to open-source tools or personal engine/game projects.

• Experience with tools development or asset pipelines in Unity.

• Exposure to backend game server architecture or multiplayer systems.

Why work with us:

• Impact from Day One – You’ll have real responsibility and ownership.

• Join a Small, Elite Team – Work closely with top talent in a high-impact environment.

• Fast-Paced & Fun – We’re building something exciting, and every day is different.

• Great People – Work with ambitious, talented individuals who move fast and innovate.
  

Benefits (Full-Time Employees):

• Competitive Compensation

• Meaningful equity - we’re here to do amazing work, and we share in our wins together.

• Equipment allowance - choose what you need to work at your best.

• Healthcare, 401k (US only)

• Unlimited PTO.

• Education/Training stipend - we've set aside a budget for every employee to continue to learn and grow their skills.

Any communications from Pocket Worlds will only come from an @pocketworlds.com or @everskies.com domain. If you receive any communications, offers, etc. from any other domain, it is likely a scam.

Compensation Range: $120K - $160K