US and Canada games jobs : US art & design

Art & Design - USA & Canada

These games jobs were last updated on 17/04/08. This page is for games art and design jobs handled by our Chicago office which covers the whole of Canada and the States from the West coast and Bay area through the midwest, Chicago all the way to the East coast, New York and Boston. If you are interested in any of them please quote the ref no(s) and send your CV to Datascope USA.

This Bay area client has been bringing cutting edge gameplay and graphics to video gaming since 1992. With over 20 published titles they have proven excellence in the 3rd and 1st person action genre. They now utilize their internally developed, state of the art technology and tools to consistently create the best possible gameplay experiences.

Position Requirements:
*Must have a thorough understanding of general game production, and every aspect of the art, animation, and design creation process
*Design and creation of custom scripts and plug-ins to build art-centric toolsets focusing on increasing productivity, aiding workflow, and reducing human error
*Communicate and troubleshoot technical art issues with an emphasis on studio wide global solutions
*Assist in educating art staff from a technical, workflow, and efficiency standpoint
*Mentor and train other technical and production artists in studio
*Research and develop software that may assist in improving efficiency and raising the visual quality of the art department
*Build art for testing purposes and develop R&D demonstrations for other teams to use as learning tools
*Exceptional problem solving, analytical, organizational skills
*Able to self motivate, prioritize tasks, track and deliver technical solutions while managing multiple requests from different departments
*Strong understanding of MEL scripting and an expert level Maya user
*Thorough understanding of all standard art tools and plug-ins in that include Maya, Photoshop, 3DMax, and Perforce
*Must have a full understanding of all aspects of game art and animation production and have worked though at least one production cycle in an artistic capacity
*Must show a portfolio that demonstrate both artistic and technical knowledge
*Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to present ideas, concepts, and approaches, to both peers and studio management
*Service and client oriented, driven to improve the environment and process for art content creation for all artists within studio
*Next generation experience, and the capability to foresee future tools needs based on this knowledge

Position Preferences:
*5+ years in the game industry
*Arts related degree
*Prior leadership experience a plus.

Bay Area, CA $DOE

Contact: Yelena Ref: 26170

The ideal candidate will have experience creating game levels or missions that are fun, exciting and balanced. Experience working on next-generation projects in the video game industry is a major plus.

Responsibilities:
-Developing/maintaining content creation pipelines, tools and editors for Design Dept.
-Working very closely with Art & Engineering depts. in the development of tools & pipelines.

Qualifications:
-At least 2 years experience with level design, prefer at least 1 shipped title
-Experience with an array of design tools and ability to adapt quickly and learn new tools, UnrealEd or Doom3 Editor experience preferred
-Strong, demonstrable design/planning skills
-Technical background with experience in scripting and technical design implementations.

Wisconsin $DOE

Contact: Yelena Ref: 25949

The ideal candidate will have experience with character and creature animation, facial animation, skeletal construction, point weighting, motion capture and cloth simulation. Experience working on next-generation projects in the video game industry is a major plus.

Responsibilities:
-Create detailed skeletal rigs for AAA titles.
-Create fluid and aesthetically pleasing animations that exude character and personality.
-Create non-organic animations for robots, vehicles, guns and various other mechanical objects.
-Work with Level Designers, Character modelers and Programmers to insure smooth integration of game assets.
-Work as part of a team for the betterment of the project. This includes meeting deadlines, being proactive about problems and being self motivated.


Qualifications:
-3 years of professional experience or equivalent.
-Must be strong in the concepts of shape, form, structure, proportion and silhouette as it relates to animation and deformation.
-Experience with environmental and architectural animation.
-Experience in Maya or 3D Studio Max required, experience with Motion Builder is a plus
-An understanding of UV mapping and texturing is a plus as well as a professional understanding of Photoshop.

Wisconsin $DOE

Contact: Yelena Ref: 25948

This Austin studio is part of a larger team of successful developers, with studios worldwide. Austin has it's share of advantages, it has been voted as 'Best Places for Business & Careeres', 'Live Music Capital of the World', 'Best City for Relocating Families' & 'Best Cities for Singles.' See what it might have in store for you!

Our client is seeking Environment Artists with meticulous modeling and texturing abilities to do level / environmental art. The successful candidate will:

-Show an understanding of color theory, and be able to create balanced & appealing color palettes;
-Understand the aesthetics of environment, function vs. form relationships, as well as what makes a game level fun and intriguing;
-Be a good communicator;
-Work well in a team spanning artists, programmers, and designers;
-Be able to teach and be taught.

Architectural and drafting experience are assets, as are previous game experience and level design.

Austin, Texas $DOE

Contact: Yelena Ref: 25899

Our client is a developer of high end games for PC and console. They offer great benefits, generous stock options, help with relocation and provide a great working environment. We are searching for AAA design talent for our client's unannounced next-generation console titles. We need outstanding senior game designers with passion, creativity, and expertise in one or more of the following areas:
-Level layout and construction
-Multiplayer design
-Mission scripting and implementation

Responsibilities
-Design, create, implement, and iterate fun and compelling gameplay.
-Create and maintain detailed, up-to-date specs, asset lists, and other design documents.
-Provide input on the game’s vision and help champion that vision to other team members.
-Keep leads and managers advised of progress on tasks, recommended improvements, and problems encountered.
-Keep up with competitive products and upcoming releases.
-May be tasked with other duties and responsibilities in support of the project design team.

Qualifications:
-At least 2 complete product cycles as a professional designer. Proven track record with AAA console products and/or or online development preferred.
-Positive, professional attitude. Disciplined and self-motivated with a strong work ethic.
-Ability to think creatively and analytically. An in-depth understanding of how gameplay works and how to create fun, meaningful experiences for the player.
-Excellent communication and organizational skills. Ability to multitask and be flexible about changing role requirements.
-Passion for games and ability to articulate that passion clearly and analytically. A broad knowledge base of console and PC games.
-College degree or equivalent.

Midwest, Illinois $70,000-$80,000

Contact: Yelena Ref: 25774

Our client is a developer of high end games for PC and console. They offer great benefits, generous stock options, help with relocation and provide a great working environment. The Senior Environmental Artist will work from concept art to model and texture visually striking, high-poly, ultra-realistic environments for an unannounced Xbox360/PS3 title.

Responsibilities

* Model and texture high-poly environments for a AAA console title
* Model and texture additional props for environments
* Mentor and inspire junior artists

Qualifications

* At least three years of applicable industry experience
* Fluent knowledge of at least one major 3D package
* Fluent knowledge of Photoshop or similar 2D program
* Graphic design/layout or industrial design skills a plus.
* Experience with realtime shaders a plus.
* Lighting skills a plus.

Illinois $DOE

Contact: Yelena Ref: 25773

Our client is an award winning, independent game studio located in San Francisco. Their first game developed for the X-box was a huge success, and they are currently working on a new, as yet unannounced next-gen project. They have established a highly creative, innovative, small, intimate development environment, and are looking forward to adding a few more talented individuals to their team.
The primary job responsibility is to create highly original game world art. The ideal candidate is able to establish good development practices and assist the lead in evolving our editing tools. The position requires the ability to apply materials, including texture and normal maps, to the models and integrate the models into the game using proprietary editing tools. The ideal candidate has at least 5 years experience creating environmental content such as architectural buildings, terrain, ecosystems and props in Maya with at least 2 years in a senior position on highly regarded, published console titles. The position requires experience and understanding of art pipelines on Xbox 360 and/or PS3, and an interest in finding ways to evolve and improve the environmental art creation pipeline. Since new intellectual property is involved, a clear long-term understanding of the game’s design vision is needed, and the ideal candidate will understand how to uphold it through the modeling of the game’s world space. The ideal candidate has a strong preference for working in a highly creative, innovative, small, intimate development environment.

San Francisco $HIGH

Contact: Yelena Ref: 25667

Our client is an award winning, independent game studio located in San Francisco. Their first game developed for the X-box was a huge success, and they are currently working on a new, as yet unannounced next-gen project. They have established a highly creative, innovative, small, intimate development environment, and are looking forward to adding a few more talented individuals to their team.
The primary job responsibilities include the creation of in-game character models, rigs, animations and cutscenes that convey charm and personality. The ideal candidate has at least 5 years experience in Maya with at least 2 years in a senior position on highly regarded, published console titles. Knowledge of the essential facets of both 2D and 3D animation is critical, as is the ability to accept critiques and work well with a team of animators. Since new intellectual property is involved, a clear, long-term understanding of the game’s design vision is needed, and the ideal candidate will understand how to uphold it through the modeling and animation of the game’s characters. The candidate has a strong preference for working in a highly creative, innovative, small development environment.

San Francisco $HIGH

Contact: Yelena Ref: 25666

Our client is an award winning, independent game studio located in San Francisco. Their first game developed for the X-box was a huge success, and they are currently working on a new, as yet unannounced next-gen project. They have established a highly creative, innovative, small, intimate development environment, and are looking forward to adding a few more talented individuals to their team.
They are looking for a highly experienced, professional Senior Technical Artist. The primary job responsibility is to bridge communications between the art and technology teams to generate tools and workflow enhancements to benefit artists in technical specifications for the programmers creating those tools and pipelines. It is the function of the Senior Technical Artist to ensure the cutting edge of graphical tools and technologies is made accessible to the team’s content creators.


The ideal candidate has a minimum of 4 years experience in technical art production, with at least 2 published console titles. Published or current games should reflect direct experience defining art pipelines on Xenon, PS2, Xbox and/or Gamecube development. The role demands extensive knowledge of scripting languages, error reduction tools, and character and world modeling/animation technical direction. The position requires an extensive knowledge of 3D art packages and scripting languages, and an avid interest in staying and pushing the bleeding edge of game art development. The ideal candidate has a strong preference for working in a highly creative, innovative, small, intimate development environment.

San Francisco $Great Package$

Contact: Yelena Ref: 25665

This successful studio first opened its doors in Canada, and has since expanded to a second studio in the US, as well as creating lasting partnerships with other international publishers and developers. They are famous for creating innovative, highly successful RPG’s, and are now using their tools and technologies to develop other exciting projects in the MMORPG genre. By offering great benefits and a fantastic work environment, the company has consistently been recognized as one of Canada’s top 100 employ.

The candidate must have at least 5 years experience in animation for games, excellent communication skills, and a strong understanding of the fundamentals of traditional animation principles. The candidate must also have experience with prototyping animation systems, building technical pipelines for animation implementation, directing both hand animation and mo-cap actors, and organizing and tracking animation assets throughout the span of a project.

Education and Experience:
* Post secondary program in 2D/3D animation is preferred.
* 5+ years of game development experience.
* Demonstrated animation excellence in a production environment.
* In-depth technical knowledge of 3D Studio Max would be an asset.
* Experience with mo-cap would be an asset.

Skills / Abilities / Knowledge / Personal Suitability:
* Ability to bring visual excellence to a game engine.
* Plan the production schedule for a team to complete a large body of work.
* Ability to manage and direct others to achieve visual excellence, on time and on budget.
* Knowledge of directing both hand animation and Motion Capture an asset.
* Must be able to lead in a team environment, demonstrate excellent communication skills, and be able to give progress updates.
* Insight into animation pipeline and game engine implementation.
* Passion for animation and gaming is required.

Alberta, Canada $DOE

Contact: Yelena Ref: 13518

This successful studio first opened its doors in Canada, and has since expanded to a second studio in the US, as well as creating lasting partnerships with other international publishers and developers. They are famous for creating innovative, highly successful RPG’s, and are now using their tools and technologies to develop other exciting projects in the MMORPG genre. By offering great benefits and a fantastic work environment, the company has consistently been recognized as one of Canada’s top 100 employers.

We are seeking for immediate hire Technical Design candidates to help development a new ground-breaking roleplaying games.

* Primary Task: Scripting dialogue, cut-scenes and in-game events. Setting up and populating game levels.
* Secondary Tasks: Updating documentation that details the level design in the game. Data entry for creatures, items, etc.

Education:
Minimum education (preferred but not mandatory): Two to four year programming degree or diploma, or equivalent experience.

Preferred: Experience with database design and implementation.

Skill Set:
* Familiarity with the fantasy genre and role-playing games is a must.
* Must have practical programming experience.
* Must have completed programming projects on their own time.
* Familiarity with C++
* Must have some experience with the NWN editor.

Alberta, Canada $HIGH

Contact: Yelena Ref: 13517

This successful studio first opened its doors in Canada, and has since expanded to a second studio in Texas, as well as creating lasting partnerships with other international publishers and developers. They are famous for creating innovative, highly successful RPG’s, and are now using their tools and technologies to develop other exciting projects in the MMORPG genre. By offering great benefits and a fantastic work environment, the company has consistently been recognized as one of Canada’s top 100 employers.
We are seeking for immediate hire Combat Design candidates to help development on new ground-breaking roleplaying games.

Duties:
-Work in a multi-disciplinary team to choreograph character combat, create combat moves and abilities, implement them and make them fun.
-Tuning and refinement of AI routines, enemy behaviors, placeables and game levels. Designing equipment, skills and weapon systems. Documentation and team-wide communication.

Experience
-Two or more years of professional game development experience with at least one highly-rated shipped title as a designer.

Skill Set
-Familiarity with the fantasy genre, role-playing games and action game mechanics -Strong 3rd and/or 1st person combat or exploration game development experience.
-Must know how to work with programmers, artists, animators and other designers.
-Proficiency with multiple game development tool sets.
-Able to write clear and concise documentation.
Good team worker.
Knowledge of C++ programming and/or exceptional scripting skills are a benefit.
Experience in the motion picture industry, stunt work or martial arts is helpful, but not necessary.

Canada $HIGH

Contact: Yelena Ref: 13514

Our client is a well known international developer with a reputation for releasing some of the highest quality entertainment and cutting edge original content in the industry. Over the last 9 years they have grown to over 300 developers working at two modern studios, making them one of the largest and most successful independent developers in the world.
Primary Responsibilities:
-Creating character animation for next-generation assets and/or in-game cinematics.
-Works closely with the Lead Animator and Art Director to establish a cohesive and consistent animation style.

Required:
-Minimum of 4 yrs video games animation experience.
-Undergraduate degree; or college coursework in relevant fields; or proven portfolio of equivalent industry experience
-3+ years experience in 3D key-frame animation
-Knowledge of character set up.
-Knowledge of character rigging and weighting
-Creative approach to animating
-Understanding of traditional animation theory.
-Team player.

Los Angeles, CA $HIGH

Contact: Yelena Ref: 13513

This Dallas based independent development studio has made a name for itself creating award winning, blockbuster interactive entertainment for all major platforms. By employing the industry's most talented people and using proven production methods they consistently create games that are technologically advanced, creative, and above all, fun to play. They offer excellent benefits, generous profit sharing, and the opportunity to settle in a fun, affordable city. We are on the lookout for an industry leading Art Director to work on a top
secret AAA mega-project. We can’t say the title of the game here, but trust
us, it’s huge. If you have aspirations to blow the doors off the industry
and want to grow and lead a team of talented artists to work on a megaton
project then this is the role for you!

Details:
-Enjoy mentoring artists to create world class art content.
-Motivate and lead a team of artists through all the stages of development.
-Have 5+ years game industry experience with shipped games, leadership
experience and tangible proof of your tremendous capabilities.
-Be comfortable collaborating with a team of leads in all aspects of the
creative process.
-Come equipped with an understanding of bleeding edge art techniques.

Dallas, Texas $HIGH+Excellent Benefits

Contact: Yelena Ref: 13503

Our client is a developer of high end games for PC and console. Over the last 10 years they have grown to over 200 employees, and continue to expand. Located in the heart of the Mid-West, they offer great benefits, generous stock options, help with relocation and provide a great working environment.
Responsibilities:
* Create, edit, and mix original audio content in accordance with the project’s design goals, style, and vision.
* Complete project requirements at a high level of quality and productivity.
* Keep track of asset lists and external contract work relevant to assigned tasks.
* Keep leads and managers advised of progress on scheduled tasks, potential improvements to pipelines, and problems or inefficiencies encountered.

Qualifications:
* High level of proficiency with professional audio software and hardware. Ability to quickly learn and adapt to proprietary editors and project pipelines.
* Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, both written and verbal.
* Ability and willingness to accept and follow direction, collaborate productively with others, and work hard to meet deadlines as necessary.
* Positive attitude. Disciplined and self-motivated with a strong work ethic. Proactive, team-focused, deadline-driven, and detail-oriented.
* Excellent organizational skills. Ability to multitask effectively, prioritize competing demands, and follow through on details. Must be flexible enough to deal with changing role requirements.
* Passion for games and ability to articulate that passion clearly and analytically from an audio perspective. A broad knowledge base of console or PC games.
* College degree or equivalent experience.

Illinois $DOE

Contact: Yelena Ref: 13437

Our client is a developer of high end games for PC and console. Over the last 10 years they have grown to over 200 employees, and continue to expand. Located in the heart of the Mid-West, they offer great benefits, generous stock options, help with relocation and provide a great working environment.
The Senior Animator will create ultra-realistic animations for an unannounced AAA Xbox360/PS3 title.

Responsibilities:
-Animate a wide variety of high-poly characters and vehicles for a AAA console title
-Create compelling animation for in-game motions and real-time cinematic scenes, including facial and lip-sync
-Character setup for real-time, motion-blending game engine
-Mentor and inspire junior animators

Qualifications:
-Thorough understanding of realistic motion
-At least two years of game industry experience, with shipped titles
-Fluent knowledge of at least one major 3D package (3DS MAX and Biped preferred)
-Experience working with mocap data
-Technical experience with advanced rigging and/or scripting a plus.

Illinois $HIGH

Contact: Yelena Ref: 13435

Headquartered in Southern California, our client employs more than 100 developers and is currently working on original properties for next-gen consoles. They are a dynamic company with state-of-the-art facilities and an excellent work environment. If you want to be happily employed, working on next gen titles this is the place for you.
Our client is looking for a highly skilled and professional FX Artist to create stunning special effects in real-time and develop advance material and particle shaders for exciting high-profile next-generation games.

Responsibilities:
-Utilize sprite-based particle systems to create wide variety of real-time special effects
-Develop advanced material and particle shaders within the Unreal Engine 3
-Create necessary textures for particle and material effects
-Communicate and work effectively with game designers, environment artists, concept artists and programmers in a quality-driven, team oriented, agile environment

Requirements:
-Minimum 2 years of game industry experience
-One or more game titles shipped
-Production experience with current-generation effects systems utilizing particle systems, particularly sprites, and other forms of dynamic simulations
-Comfortable within a Maya or Max work environment
-Highly proficient with Photoshop
-Traditional art foundation focusing on color theory, lighting and form
-Self-driven, problem-solver, strong communicator and a great team player
-Strong passion for video games.

San Diego, CA $HIGH

Contact: simon Ref: 13361

This Dallas based independent development studio has made a name for itself creating award winning, blockbuster interactive entertainment for all major platforms. By employing the industry's most talented people and using proven production methods they consistently create games that are technologically advanced, creative, and above all, fun to play. They offer excellent benefits, generous profit sharing, and the opportunity to settle in a fun, affordable city.
Our client is looking for a technical artist to work on an upcoming 3D sci-fi action title.

Required Skills:
* Have a strong art background
* Be very proficient in Adobe Photoshop & 3D Studios Max
* Be proficient with animated texture manipulation
* Be able to interface with both art and programming teams
* Be able to follow directions and work well with a development team
* Be passionate about games

Desired Skills:
* Experience creating shaders and effects
* In-depth knowledge of Unreal 3 post-processing, material editor, and cascade
* Understanding of HLSL code a plus.

Dallas, Texas $HIGH

Contact: Yelena Ref: 13359

Founded in 2001 and located in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, this company is a potent mix of industry vets and fresh talent, offering full game development, ports, and consulting for all current and next-generation consoles. They have been extremely successful working with licensed properties from companies such as Disney, Warner Brothers, Nike, NASCAR, and the NFL. They are currently looking for great talent to help them embark on several new and exciting projects.

They are seeking a Senior Environment Artist with a passion for quality and an eagerness to work in a world-class game development studio.

Responsibilities:
- Creation of game environments, including modeling, materials, and lighting
- Collaborating with the Art and Design teams to create high standard models and textures


- Contributing innovative and original ideas towards new processes and tools

Requirements:
- Minimum 5 years experience in the gaming industry, with a primary focus on in-engine asset creation.
- Solid knowledge of Max or Maya
- Must have a basic understanding of game creation limits and dependencies
- Willing to accept and provide direction, work well under pressure, and handle multiple tasks
- Excellent communication, interpersonal and organizational skills.

Pacific Northwest $DOE

Contact: Yelena Ref: 13325

Founded in 2001 and located in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, this company is a potent mix of industry vets and fresh talent, offering full game development, ports, and consulting for all current and next-generation consoles. They have been extremely successful working with licensed properties from companies such as Disney, Warner Brothers, Nike, NASCAR, and the NFL. They are currently looking for great talent to help them embark on several new and exciting projects.
They are looking for a Senior Level Designer with the proven ability to do the following:

Responsibilities

-- Craft gameplay levels and objects in Maya, 3DMax, and proprietary level editing software
-- Script gameplay events with text-based scripting system
-- Demonstrate familiarity with a variety of implementation tools, level editors and scripting languages and learn new tools quickly
-- Analyze game design and implementation issues and solve problems with logic and creativity
-- Collaborate on or individually author design documentation including: game design documents, feature and level specs, ramping documentation, and gameplay evaluations
-- Design, implement, evaluate and tune gameplay systems and mechanics
-- Communicate effectively and clearly with design, engineering and art staff
-- Meet Deadlines and manage tasks efficiently

Requirements

-- At least 4 years industry experience as a game designer
-- Contributed as a designer to a shipped titles.

Pacific Northwest $DOE

Contact: Yelena Ref: 13324

Founded in 2001 and located in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, this company is a potent mix of industry vets and fresh talent, offering full game development, ports, and consulting for all current and next-generation consoles. They have been extremely successful working with licensed properties from companies such as Disney, Warner Brothers, Nike, NASCAR, and the NFL. They are currently looking for great talent to help them embark on several new and exciting projects.

They are looking for a Level Designer with the proven ability to do the following:

Responsibilities

-- Craft gameplay levels and objects in Maya, 3DMax, and proprietary level editing software
-- Script gameplay events with text-based scripting system
-- Demonstrate familiarity with a variety of implementation tools, level editors and scripting languages and learn new tools quickly
-- Analyze game design and implementation issues and solve problems with logic and creativity
-- Design, implement, evaluate and tune gameplay systems and mechanics
-- Communicate effectively and clearly with design, engineering and art staff
-- Meet Deadlines and manage tasks efficiently

Requirements

-- At least 2 years industry experience as a game designer.

Pacific Northwest $DOE

Contact: Yelena Ref: 13323

Founded in 2001 and located in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, this company is a potent mix of industry vets and fresh talent, offering full game development, ports, and consulting for all current and next-generation consoles. They have been extremely successful working with licensed properties from companies such as Disney, Warner Brothers, Nike, NASCAR, and the NFL. They are currently looking for great talent to help them embark on several new and exciting projects.
Our client is looking for an experienced User Interface Artist with a passion for quality and an eagerness to work in a world-class game development studio. The ideal User Interface Artist has strong 2D concept creation and painting skills, a keen sense of design and aesthetics with regard to game or web user interfaces.

Responsibilities:

-Design, prototype and develop user interface elements.
-Collaborate with the Art Director and design team to ensure that the user interface meets functionality and visual requirements.
-Meet given deadlines.

Qualifications:

-Prior experience and passion for designing user interfaces
-Familiarity with game development and the capacity to create a user interface which is both functional and visually appealing.
-Ability to adhere to the project art direction.
-A background and understanding of art design and principles, including but not limited to; color theory and composition.
-Experience with Photoshop, Illustrator, After Effects and Flash
-Solid visual design sense with ability to draw and communicate visually.
-Ability to prototype and iterate rapidly.
-Self-motivated, with a strong work ethic.
-A broad range of styles.

Pacific Northwest $DOE+Benefits

Contact: Yelena Ref: 13322

Our client is a rapidly growing, award winning developer. Their games have pectacular graphics and gameplay, and utilize cutting-edge technology. They are currently working on their next series of projects that will launch the company into next-generation gaming. The Lead Designer is responsible for the creation and maintenance of a game design and managing the production tasks of a design team. The Lead Designer will create and update a design database for a project, including documents, game data, and other reference materials. The Lead Designer is responsible for insuring the quality and timely production of all design content on a project, including levels, scripts, game data, and any other type of design content / assets.
Responsibilities:
* Designing game mechanics, documentation, story, and levels in the first-person-shooter genre.
* Creation and oversight of a design team’s schedule.
* Creation, delegation, and management of all tasks for a project’s design team.
* Reviewing all types of design content / assets and insuring high standards of quality are maintained.
* Providing status reports to and working closely with the producers and other team leads.
Qualifications:
* Must have at least 4+ years of total design experience and at least 1+ year of senior or lead level experience.
* Must have practical experience with at least 2+ different game engines / editors.
* Must have design experience with first-person engines and related technology.
* Must be capable of assisting and managing other designers.
* Must be an avid gamer with the desire to create top-notch games.
Education and/or Experience:
Bachelor’s degree, or equivalent from two-year College or technical school; or a minimum of three years related experience and/or training. Post-graduate work a plus.

Houston, Texas $High

Contact: Yelena Ref: 13321

Our client is a rapidly growing, award winning developer. Their games have spectacular graphics and gameplay, and utilize cutting-edge technology. They are currently working on their next series of projects that will launch the company into next-generation gaming.

The Senior Level Designer is primarily responsible for creating and fleshing out levels under the direction of the Lead Designer.

Responsibilities

- Designing and producing entertaining gaming environments in the first-person-shooter genre.
- Assisting junior Level Designers in their daily duties.
- Reviewing game levels and insuring high standards of quality are maintained.
- Testing game levels through all phases of the production cycle.
- Contributing sections to the design documentation and story documentation.

Qualifications

- Must have at least 3+ years of level design experience on first-person-shooter games.
- Must have practical experience with at least 2+ different first-person-shooter editors.
-Must be capable of assisting and managing junior Level Designers.
- Must be comfortable with common bug/defect tracking tools (Bugzilla, Test Track, etc.).
- Must be capable of providing examples of specific level design work upon request.

Houston, TX $DOE

Contact: Yelena Ref: 13276

Our client is a rapidly growing, award winning developer. Their games have spectacular graphics and gameplay, and utilize cutting-edge technology. They are currently working on their next series of projects that will launch the company into next-generation gaming.

Description

They are looking for a Technical Artist to act as a liaison between artists and programmers. He/She must understand the relationship between art creation and the technical code. He/She must be able to demonstrate the most effective techniques for creating art that pushes the boundaries of existing and future hardware. The Technical Artist must also be able to generate art that demonstrates advanced capabilities of the engine and help to drive development of the engine to support more advanced art features.

Qualifications

- 2+ years of experience in computer generated art.
- 3DSMax experience.
- Ability to create art assets to demonstrate advanced techniques.
- Ability to communicate effectively with both artists and programmers.
- Ability to solve technology issues as they relate to art production.
- HLSL, CG, or GLSL shader programming.
- Scripting language programming experience (MaxScript, MEL, etc.).
- Game development experience.

Houston, TX $DOE

Contact: Yelena Ref: 13275

Our client is a rapidly growing, award winning developer. Their games have spectacular graphics and gameplay, and utilize cutting-edge technology. They are currently working on their next series of projects that will launch the company into next-generation gaming.

They are hiring for an environment artist to work with the Lead Artist and Level Design team to maintain a coherent vision of the game's look and feel and ensure that the game has beautiful next-gen environments.

Qualifications

- Must have a minimum of 2 years experience creating 3D game environments.
- Must have a high proficiency with 3DS Max and Photoshop.
- Must have ability to quickly learn and adapt to well-established art and production pipelines.
- Must be credited on at least one commercially released game as Environment Artist.

Houston, TX $DOE

Contact: Yelena Ref: 13274

Our client is a rapidly growing, award winning developer. Their games have spectacular graphics and gameplay, and utilize cutting-edge technology. They are currently working on their next series of projects that will launch the company into next-generation gaming. As the Lead Artist, you will be responsible for managing a team of artists in the design and production of game art for a PC/Xbox 360/PS3 FPS project. You need to be extremely creative and proficient, have a solid understanding of 2D and 3D graphics, and be familiar with all aspects of the art production pipeline ranging from modeling to motion capture to particle systems. You will collaborate closely with other department Leads and Producers to ensure stunning, next-generation visuals and stellar artistic design!
Responsibilities:
* Supervise a team of artists while managing the project schedule and resources.
* Establish and maintain visual direction, consistency and production standards throughout the project.
* Provide status reports and work closely with producers and other department leads.
Qualifications:
* Must have a positive mentality and be a team motivator.
* Must have 6+ years of total experience in computer generated art for games.
* Must have credit on 3+ commercially shipped titles.
* Strong understanding of art pipelines and how to efficiently manage them.
* Highly proficient in 3ds Max and Photoshop.
* Experience with all game art proficiencies, including FX creation, particle systems, sprites, shaders, etc.
* Ability to create art assets which demonstrate advanced techniques.
* Ability to communicate effectively with all team members and departments (Design, Programming, Art, Production).

Houston, Texas $DOE

Contact: Yelena Ref: 13273

This Texas client is a rapidly growing, award winning developer whose games have spectacular graphics and gameplay, and utilize cutting-edge technology. They have already released 5 successful titles in the last 6 years, and with three new AAA projects in development, they are quickly solidifying their place among the industry's leading multiplatform developers.
The Character Artist is expected to be competent in multiple disciplines such as modeling, texturing, and/or conceptuals. The Character Artist will work closely with the Lead Artist to make sure the game has top-notch next-gen visuals and to keep pushing the boundary on high-end game graphics.

Qualifications
* 3-5 years of experience in computer generated art.
* Heavy 3DSMax/Photoshop experience. 2+ years of character art experience.
* Z-Brush and/or Mudbox expertise is required.
* Knowledge with art development on next-gen consoles.
* Solid understanding of art pipelines and how to get the most out of them.
* Motivated and driven to face challenges.
* Ability to create art assets which demonstrate advanced techniques.
* Ability to communicate effectively with member of all teams (design, programming, art) and must be able to solve problems creatively.
* Must have credit on at least one (1) commericially shipped titles.

Houston, Texas $High

Contact: Yelena Ref: 13272