Environment Artist

Techtive Games is a Germany-based video game developer creating Ardem an open-world survival game. Built by former modding veterans the studio combines AA-level ambition with an independent mindset to push development practices forward and build immersive worlds built to be played modified and expanded.

In this role your focus is asset production with a strong emphasis on architecture and modularity. Our world artists build Ardems world > you create what they build it with: modular architecture kits bespoke landmark structures and the environmental assets that make the world feel believable and lived-in. You wont be doing level design yourself but you need the instincts of someone who could assets only work if theyre made with world-building in mind. At Techtive we believe in a creative workflow where everyone contributes to the final look and feel of the world. Its a team effort: youll work closely with World Art Tech Art and 3D Art using cutting-edge UE5 tech to push visuals to new heights.

One thing we care about a lot: were hiring from our community. We want people who actually play survival games not as market research but because its your genre. If you know from hundreds of hours in the genre why a base location feels right why a ruin tells a story or why clutter placement can make or break immersion you already understand half the job. Thats also why wed love it if you share your Steam profile with your application not as a gate were just genuinely curious where your gaming interests lie and how much they overlap with what were building.

We value creativity ownership and personal growth. Rather than working through rigid ticket pipelines our team members are encouraged to actively shape systems improve workflows and grow together not only on Ardem but on future projects as well.

If you love building worlds players want to get lost in and youve survived a few of them yourself wed love to hear from you.

On a day to day basis you will:

• Create high-poly and low-poly models for environmental objects with a clear focus on architecture: modular building kits structures and props

• Overhaul and optimize our existing asset kits: consolidate materials reduce poly counts and bring everything to a consistent performant standard

• Create assets for bespoke landmark locations the kind of places players remember

• Design with modularity and reusability in mind so our world artists can build more with less

• Rework existing vegetation and natural assets to a cleaner more maintainable standard where needed

• Work from photo reference and concept art to hit a believable grounded look

• Produce clean efficient UVs and game-ready assets that respect the technical limitations of a large open world

• Work closely with World Art Level Design and Tech Art to ensure requirements are met

• Help troubleshoot and fix problems as they arise from a visual technical and production perspective

• Previous experience on professional game projects

• A portfolio with clear examples of your own asset production not just set dressing or kit-bashed scenes. On team pieces tell us exactly which parts you made yourself; we do check.

• Solid experience building modular asset kits and a real understanding of how worlds are constructed from them

• Strong modeling skills and experience in a major 3D package (Blender Maya 3ds Max)

• Sculpting experience with software like ZBrush

• Good understanding of the PBR material pipeline

• Solid grasp of baking and texturing using the Substance Suite and Photoshop

• Basic knowledge of shader creation

• Ability to resolve issues from a visual technical and production perspective

• Strong communication skills you can articulate ideas and questions across departments and give and receive constructive feedback

• Wed appreciate a link to your Steam profile so we can get a feel for where your interests lie and where they overlap with ours

• Fluent spoken and written English

• Proficiency with Unreal Engine 5

• Knowledge of foliage creation

• Experience with procedural workflows (e.g. Houdini)

• Experience working on open world games

• Experience working in an indie or small team environment

• Fully remote

• Freelance with a full time option for candidates based in Germany

• Flexible working hours with a strong focus on ownership and trust

• Direct collaboration within a small focused team

• Work on Ardem a highly anticipated survival game and help set a new benchmark for the genre you love

• Small team with high impact results-driven mindset and fast decision-making

• High ownership and creative freedom shape the world dont just fill tickets

• Flexible working hours (results > green dots)

1. First interview We talk about Techtive Ardem and the role and get a high-level picture of your skills and how you work.

2. Art test If the first conversation goes well youll receive a small art test: a basic brief with a few guidelines and some inspirational screenshots from Ardem. Everything you build should work as part of a larger environment were not looking for isolated beauty shots that would fall apart in an actual game world. Theres no fixed deadline but well ask you to track roughly where your time went.

3. Second interview We go through your art test together: your decisions your process and where you spent your time.

4. Culture fit The final conversation is less about craft and more about people: how you like to work what you expect from a team and whether we actually fit each other. Were a small fully remote crew who you are matters as much as what you build. The practical side (contract conditions start date) gets sorted here too.

We know an art test is a real time investment and not everyone can afford that easily we dont take it for granted. Its the fairest way weve found to judge actual craft over a polished portfolio and its the basis for a much better conversation in round two.