Combat Designer (Gameplay)

As a Combat Designer at Cloud Chamber, you will join our talented development team to help shape the combat gameplay and immersive sandbox world of BioShock. In this role, you’ll collaborate with a passionate group of game developers to craft experimental gameplay experiences that support player expression and ingenuity—bringing the richly imagined world of BioShock to life.

What You’ll Do:

• Partner with and support a team of designers to implement combat gameplay content in an immersive sandbox world. 
• Maintain best practices and support the workflows conducive to consistency and deliverability of game content within the team. 
• Participate in the cross-pollination of ideas and sharing of knowledge amongst content creators. 
• Help build and refine the combat systems development and the gameplay framework for encounters. 
• Collaborate with other developers to help build an FPS combat paradigm that is accessible, satisfying, and allows for a high degree of player expression and experimentation within a highly reactive world. 
• Be curious and get creative: look beyond direct conflict, accommodate various playstyles and design encounters that can be resolved through player ingenuity.

What We’ll Do Together:

At Cloud Chamber, we are champions of high standards, pushing for progress and embracing change. We will work closely and constructively across design, art, engineering, animation, and audio teams to realize our creative ambitions. Together, we will stay current on technological advancements and identify solutions to overcome developmental obstacles. We strive to make BioShock games that move people: evocative, immersive, and meaningful experiences that stay with you long after the credits roll.

Skills & Experiences:

• Knowledge of current game trends in technology.
• Experience working with a variety of established game toolsets.
• Understanding of game mechanics, combat systems, and AI NPC design.
• Familiarity with game development tools, and experience with pipelines, standards, and
• workflows.
• Experience working in a collaborative environment with cross-disciplinary groups.
• Solid presentation skills.
• Current knowledge of gaming industry development landscape, technology and tools.
• Understanding of how AI, tactical space, and player verbs combine to create magic in both scripted and unscripted settings.
• Knowledge of behavior trees in Unreal Engine 5.
• Knowledge of industry standard AI, progression systems, and player mechanics features.

Who You Are:

• A reliable, positive force multiplier, actively seeking opportunities to integrate work across disciplines and contribute to a healthy, supportive team environment.
• A solid communicator with excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to articulate complex ideas clearly, package information for diverse audiences, and deliver difficult feedback with empathy and professionalism.
• A persistent and self-motivated person with a proactive mindset.
• Able to maintain effectiveness and quality under pressure, ambiguity, and fast-changing priorities.
• An active listener able to build and maintain trust-based relationships across all levels of the organization, understand differing perspectives, and navigate organizational complexity with tact and emotional intelligence.
• Highly open to feedback and direction, possessing a desire to learn new skills, and capable of producing quick, quality revisions based on new insights or constraints.
• A strong owner of your tasks, who strives to drive their work forward autonomously while maintaining a critical eye for detail and organization, ensuring high standards of quality.
• Dedicated to upholding Cloud Chamber’s core values, contributing to a positive and respectful company culture while striving for excellence in all endeavors.

Who We Are:

At Cloud Chamber we strive to make BioShock games that move people: evocative, immersive, and meaningful experiences that stay with you long after you’ve rolled credits. Great games are born from great collaborations, supported by a culture that brings out the best in our teams. We work openly, learn through play, take ownership, push ourselves to be better, and deliver for our players.

The pay range for this position in California at the start of employment is expected to be between $78,900 - $116,760 USD 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 this position may also include other elements, including a bonus and/or equity awards and eligibility to participate in our 401(K) plan and Employee Stock Purchase Program. Regular, full-time employees are also eligible for a range of benefits at the Company, including: medical, dental, vision, and basic life insurance coverage; 14 paid holidays per calendar year; paid vacation time per calendar year (ranging from 15 to 25 days) or eligibility to participate in the Company's discretionary time off program; up to 10 paid sick days per calendar year; paid parental and compassionate leave; wellbeing programs for mental health and other wellness support; family planning support through Maven; commuter benefits; and reimbursements for fitness-related expenses.

For candidates located in Quebec:

• Proficiency in French is required.
• Proficiency in English is required to effectively collaborate with teams based in the United States.

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, perform their essential job functions, and receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us if you need reasonable accommodation.

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