Expert Technical Designer

Who We Are

Founded in 2023 Small Axe Studios is 2Ks newest stand-alone studio built to push the boundaries of game development and bring 2Ks next groundbreaking sports franchise to life. Headquartered in Burnaby we are assembling a world-class team of visionaries builders and passionate gamers who thrive on creative collaboration technical excellence and bold ideas. At Small Axe Studios we believe big things start with sharp focusand were crafting an exceptional player-first experience from the ground up. If youre ready to tackle unique challenges leave your mark on a brand-new IP and help shape the future of interactive sports entertainment we want you on our team!

What We Need

Were looking for an experienced and versatile Expert Technical Designer to help drive the implementation and iteration of our gameplay systems and features. You will play a key role in bridging the gap between design and engineeringprototyping features building robust content workflows and ensuring technical feasibility for our sports-focused core fantasy experience.

As an Expert Technical Designer youll work across disciplines to bring features to lifefrom paper design to implementationand guide the team in crafting flexible scalable systems. Youll be instrumental in building our toolsets scripting gameplay behaviors and helping define the future of how we build and iterate on gameplay content.

This role reports to the Design Director (Core Fantasy) and collaborates with engineering design and production leadership to deliver compelling player-driven experiences.

What Youll Do

Prototype and Implement Gameplay Systems

• Design and build functional prototypes in collaboration with engineers and gameplay designers
• Implement and iterate on gameplay mechanics core loops and systemic features using visual scripting or other proprietary tools
• Ensure technical feasibility of design solutions while maintaining creative goals

Own Technical Implementation of Features

• Collaborate with designers to translate high-level concepts into robust in-game behaviors and systems
• Script game logic define system flows and integrate features into live builds
• Act as a technical point-of-contact for feature teams identifying dependencies and integration risks early

Optimize Workflows and Tool Usage

• Partner with tools engineers to improve designer workflows and content pipelines
• Develop best practices and reusable templates for design teams to improve iteration speed and reduce bugs
• Identify inefficiencies in data structures or tool usage and recommend improvements

Mentor and Support Other Designers

• Provide technical guidance to other designers and help raise the teams scripting and tool proficiency
• Review and troubleshoot design implementations and help resolve blockers across features
• Champion technical documentation and help maintain a healthy tech design culture

Lead a Team of Technical Designers

• Be a Craft Lead for fellow Technical Designers and lead the hands-on technical approach of implementation
• Take on people management duties for other Technical Designers

Collaborate Across Disciplines

• Work hand-in-hand with engineering to ensure designs are performant scalable and shippable
• Partner with animators audio and UI/UX teams to deliver features with high-quality execution
• Contribute to design planning backlog grooming and prioritization of technical work

Champion the Core Fantasy Vision

• Ensure technical design solutions reinforce the overall player experience goals
• Help prototype and validate systemic interactions that create emergent or player-driven outcomes
• Contribute to creative problem-solving that enables new gameplay opportunities

What Will Make You A Great Fit

• 7 years experience in technical design or related gameplay implementation roles
• Deep expertise with scripting systems (e.g. Unreal Blueprint)
• Proven ability to implement complex gameplay systems from prototype through ship
• Strong understanding of game systems mechanics and their interactions
• Experience working in collaboration with engineers especially on feature integrations
• Excellent problem-solving debugging and optimization skills
• Strong documentation habits and ability to explain technical solutions to non-technical teammates
• A proactive collaborative attitude and a passion for empowering creative teams

Beneficial Qualifications

• Experience working on sports games or other systemic titles
• Familiarity with content pipelines modular design approaches or data-driven systems
• Experience with tool development or technical design documentation
• Experience in performance profiling and optimization on console/PC
• Background in programming or computer science is a plus

The pay range for this position in British Columbia at the start of employment is expected to be between CAD $118300 and CAD $175060 per Year. However base pay offered is based on market location and may vary further depending on individualized factors for job candidates such as job-related knowledge skills experience and other objective business considerations. Subject to those same considerations the total compensation package for employees in regular roles may also include other elements including a bonus and/or equity awards in addition to a full range of medical financial and/or other benefits provided that temporary or intern roles will not be eligible for many of these payments or benefits. Details of participation in compensation and benefit plans (if applicable) will be provided if an employee receives an offer of employment.

As an equal opportunity employer we are committed to ensuring that qualified individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process to perform their essential job functions and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us if you need reasonable accommodation.

Please note that 2K Games and its studios never uses instant messaging apps or personal email accounts to contact prospective employees or conduct interviews and when emailing we only use accounts.

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