Level Designer

1 month ago

Santa Monica, California, United States PlayQ Full time

Our Mission:

To capture the hearts and minds of millions of players across the world by creating unforgettable games powered by the best technology.

About Us:

PlayQ is a rapidly growing global entertainment and technology company delivering high-quality mobile titles and innovative game development solutions to a worldwide audience. Our games have been downloaded more than 60 million times across the globe, with millions of users playing every day

Our dedicated teams, based in downtown Santa Monica, CA, work together to craft the clever, visually stunning, and unforgettable experiences that our players love. Our emphasis on individual leadership means each team member has the opportunity to make a big impact, while our commitment to creative freedom gives them the ability to create whatever they can imagine.

It's this mindset that has led us to develop our own IP, infuse games with rich storytelling, build our own development tools, and solve the deepest technical challenges - all in the name of disrupting the mobile gaming landscape.

Why you'll want to come to work:

PlayQ is seeking a highly motivated and creative Level Designer to play a pivotal role in crafting engaging swap match-3 puzzle content for our latest hit mobile game, Treasure Party. As an integral member of our remote team, you'll leverage our proprietary suite of tools to design, test, and refine game levels that captivate and challenge a diverse player base. This role offers the potential to influence beyond Treasure Party, offering a unique chance to contribute to the development of our upcoming titles.

The ideal candidate is not just a puzzle enthusiast but someone with a keen eye for detail, exceptional organizational skills, and a passion for pushing the boundaries of game mechanics. We're looking for an individual who thrives in a collaborative environment and is eager to establish themselves in the dynamic and competitive casual puzzle game industry.

Samples of designed levels in previously shipped games are requested.

This is an off-site, contract position with competitive hourly pay, based on experience. The position requires 40 hours per week, which includes drafting, editing, playtesting, and revising swap match-3 puzzle levels.

What you'll get to create:

  • Design & Implement Levels: Create, test, and tune swap match-3 puzzle levels that meet specified difficulty and feature requirements, delivering engaging and rewarding experiences that retain players, all while adhering to established deadlines.
  • Playtesting and Feedback: Conduct thorough playtests to evaluate levels, provide constructive feedback to peers, and analyze data to enhance the design quality of levels created by yourself and other team members.
  • Level Optimization: Implement user feedback and playtest results to iteratively refine and optimize puzzle levels, ensuring they align with companywide objectives and are organized according to defined difficulty curves.
  • Collaborative Innovation: Contribute creative insights and solutions in brainstorming sessions, leading to the development of new match-3 puzzle level features that enhance gameplay experience and drive player engagement.
  • UX and Device Compatibility: Ensure that level content is visually appealing and functions seamlessly on various mobile devices
  • Documentation: Contribute to the documentation of level design processes, guidelines, and best practices to maintain a standardized and efficient workflow
  • Bug Identification: Partner with the QA team to proactively identify and resolve bugs or issues with swap match-3 mechanics, ensuring a polished and bug-free gaming experience that meets high-quality standards.
  • Data-Informed Design: Analyze player metrics and analytics to make informed decisions on level design adjustments, optimizing for player retention and satisfaction.

What you'll bring to the team:

  • Portfolio: A portfolio showcasing high-quality level designs and playable game samples.
  • Professional Experience: At least 1 year of game design experience with a proven track record of creating impactful puzzle levels.
  • Educational Background: Bachelor's degree in a relevant field.
  • Gameplay Expertise: Strong understanding of core mechanics, game loops, and meta-game systems, supported by extensive personal experience with puzzle games.
  • Design and Balancing Skills: Demonstrated experience in game balancing and level tuning, with the ability to create engaging and well-balanced levels.
  • Analytical Skills: Ability to analyze player data and design elements to improve puzzle level quality and player satisfaction.
  • Feedback Integration: Openness to receiving and providing constructive criticism to enhance design quality.
  • Time Management: Excellent time management skills, capable of thriving in a remote and deadline-driven environment.
  • Collaboration Tools: Proficiency with Google Apps for Business (Mail, Docs, Sheets) and other collaborative tools (e.g., Slack, Dropbox, Trello).

Bonus Points:

  • Prior puzzle level design experience on at least one shipped title
  • Experience completing hundreds of mobile casual puzzle game levels (e.g., Match-3) across multiple top games
  • In-depth knowledge of emerging games and trends spanning mobile, PC, and console platforms

What we can offer you:

  • Remote Work Environment - This position offers the flexibility to work remotely and create your own schedule. You'll closely collaborate with our HQ team based in Santa Monica, CA and our global teammates across the world. Our flexible approach, internal comms, and tech stack promote collaboration, communication, and camaraderie
  • Design and create levels that will be played by millions of users
  • Collaborate with an exceptionally talented, knowledgeable, and supportive team
  • Help build and support awesome GAMES. For a living Who doesn't love games?

At PlayQ, we leverage competitive benchmarking data when setting each role's base pay range. Individual base salary will be determined based on job-related factors which may include knowledge, skills, experience, scope of role, business need and geographic location.

The estimated hourly pay range for this role is listed below.

$15-$18 per hour

Interested? Please get in touch

About Us:

PlayQ is a rapidly growing global entertainment and technology company delivering high-quality mobile titles and innovative game development solutions to a worldwide audience. Our games have been downloaded more than 60 million times across the globe, with millions of users playing every day

Our dedicated teams, based in Santa Monica, CA, work together to craft the clever, visually stunning, and unforgettable experiences that our players love. Our emphasis on individual leadership means each team member has the opportunity to make a big impact, while our commitment to creative freedom gives them the ability to create whatever they can imagine.

It's this mindset that has led us to develop our own IP, infuse games with rich storytelling, build our own development tools, and solve the deepest technical challenges - all in the name of disrupting the mobile gaming landscape.

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