Senior VFX Artist - Unpublished R&D Product

As part of the Real-Time VFX team, you’ll design and help implement the sleek, dynamic and dramatic special effects that add atmosphere and depth to gameplay. With your experience, you’ll create aesthetically astounding visual effects that communicate essential game information. You’ll use your artistic and technical skills to breathe life into undead spells, channel primal emotions and capture the essence of hundreds of champions.

As a Senior VFX Artist on the Riot Discovery Studio (RDS) team, you will report to the Sr. VFX Manager and play a key role on a small VFX team delivering high-spectacle gameplay experiences. Under the direction of the VFX Lead, you will use your creative and technical expertise to design, execute, and implement a wide range of gameplay and environmental visual effects. You’ll partner closely with VFX, Design, and other disciplines to establish best practices, champion visual quality and gameplay clarity, and translate your expertise into scalable solutions as the team transitions into production. Beyond asset creation, you will help strengthen the VFX discipline by sharing craft expertise, leading discipline initiatives, and serving as a bridge between VFX and cross-functional partners. You will also support team leadership with operational and discipline-development efforts that help the team work effectively and sustainably. RDS operates in a highly iterative environment, so you’ll need to navigate ambiguity and respond thoughtfully to frequent shifts in content, creative direction, and priorities. As the team continues to define its VFX direction and production practices, your work and expertise will directly influence the quality bar and help establish what great VFX looks like for the product.

Responsibilities:

• Design and deliver polished, dynamic visual effects that enhance atmosphere, depth, and gameplay while aligning with the project’s creative and stylistic goals.
• Balance visual impact with gameplay clarity, ensuring effects accurately communicate actions, states, and player-facing information.
• Autonomously create high-quality VFX by applying a broad range of craft skills, including painting, drawing, animation, and modeling as needed.
• Establish and apply VFX best practices and scalable solutions, such as VFX theme kits, that support a broad range of production and product goals.
• Represent the VFX discipline across cross-functional teams, providing subject matter expertise and advocating for the needs, capabilities, and opportunities of visual effects to have maximum player impact.
• Uphold VFX craft quality standards through mentorship, constructive feedback, documentation, and accountability within the discipline.
• Collaborate closely and proactively with VFX teammates, balancing complementary expertise and contributing to the ongoing development of the team and discipline.
• When possible, contribute to the broader Riot VFX community by shaping initiatives, sharing expertise, and advancing discipline-wide goals.
• Support healthy and effective team operations by participating in team rituals, meeting commitments and deadlines, identifying opportunities for improvement, and assisting product leadership with operational needs when necessary.
• Take ownership of professional growth by maintaining and regularly engaging with a development plan in partnership with your manager.

Required Skills:

• BA in Game Art Development (or equivalent experience)
• 5+ years of games industry experience as a real-time VFX Artist
• 5+ years of professional experience and use of Unreal, Unity, or any relevant game engine
• Proficiency with relevant DCC tools such as Maya, Photoshop, or Substance Designer, and implementation of this work into a game engine. 
• Professional experience working on immersive, fast-paced, VFX that informs visual choices while maintaining clean, crisp gameplay readability
• Experience mentoring and supporting other artists, providing thoughtful feedback and guidance, and collaborating effectively across disciplines. 

Desired Skills:

• Developing VFX for various platforms (i.e. PC, console, etc.) 
• Proficiency using Adobe Animate, AfterEffects, Houdini, FumeFX, Embergen, and Substance Painter

As a part of the application process, candidates will be expected to provide a portfolio or demo reel of their work and may be asked to complete an art test.

For this role, you'll find success through craft expertise and a collaborative spirit that prioritizes the delight of players. We will look at your past studies and experience, but for this role, we also look for dedicated people with a personal relationship with games. If you embody player empathy and care about players' experiences, this is the role for you!

Our Perks:

Riot focuses on work/life balance, shown by our open paid time off policy and other perks such as flexible work schedules. We offer medical, dental, and life insurance, parental leave for you, your spouse/domestic partner, and children, and a 401k with company match. Check out our benefits pages for more information.

At Riot Games, we  put players first . That mission drives every decision in our quest to create games and experiences that make it better to be a player. Whether you’re working directly on a new player-facing experience or you’re supporting the company as a whole, everyone at Riot is part of our mission. And just like in our games, we’re better when we work together. Our goal is to create collaborative teams where you are empowered to bring your unique perspective everyday. If that sounds like the kind of place you want to work, we’re looking forward to your application.

It’s our policy to provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and members of Riot Games, Inc. Riot Games makes reasonable accommodations for handicapped and disabled Rioters and does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, handicap, veteran status, marital status, criminal history, or any other category protected by applicable federal and state law. We consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with applicable federal, state and local law, including the California Fair Chance Act, the City of Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance, the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers, the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, and the Washington Fair Chance Act.

Per the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance, the following core duties may create a basis for disqualifying candidates with relevant criminal histories:

• Safeguarding confidential and sensitive Company data
• Communication with others, including Rioters and third parties such as vendors, and/or players, including minors
• Accessing Company assets, secure digital systems, and networks
• Ensuring a safe interactive environment for players and other Rioters

These duties are directly related to essential operations, safety, trust, and compliance obligations within our organization. Please note that job duties may evolve based on business needs and additional responsibilities may be assigned as necessary to maintain operational efficiency and security. 

• (Los Angeles Only) Base salary range between $150,000.00 - $209,600.00 USD + incentive compensation + equity + 401K with company match + medical, dental, vision, and life insurance + short and long-term disability + open PTO.
• (Mercer Island only) Base salary range between $150,000.00 - $209,600.00 USD + incentive compensation + equity + 401K with company match + medical, dental, vision, and life insurance + short and long-term disability + open PTO.