Job description
PeopleFun is an award-winning creator of mobile games for players across the globe. We are part of AppLovin, a publicly traded company, with world-class projects, resources, and infrastructure. PeopleFun is a Dallas-based game studio founded and led by game industry veterans, where game developers thrive on collaboration, creativity, teamwork, and fun. Our games are played by over 25 million players each month, and we have a number of exciting mobile games in development to fuel the future growth of PeopleFun.
We believe in bringing People together through Fun by creating the best in class social features and communities in our games that enables our players to engage deeply with other players. Secondly we endeavor to bring our studio teammates together by creating the very best game teams that foster healthy collaboration, incredible productivity, and life-long professional relationships.
Candidates who reside or will reside in the following locations are eligible for this role: California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Texas, and Washington State.
Job Summary
PeopleFun is seeking an experienced and versatile Senior Art Engineer to join our growing Wordscapes Solitaire game team. In this role, you will closely collaborate with our Art Director and product stakeholders to define, iterate, implement UI, animations and VFX within the Unity Engine. The ideal candidate combines artistic skill with strong technical know how, helping to bridge the gap between artistic vision and technical execution.
Responsibilities
- Collaborate with artists, engineers, and game designers to develop and implement art pipelines, shaders, tools, and workflows that support the creative vision of the game.
- Optimize art assets to ensure performance and memory efficiency across a variety of mobile devices.
- Create and implement shaders, particle effects, and lighting that enhance the visual quality of the game.
- Work closely with the art team to ensure that assets adhere to technical specifications and project constraints.
- Develop tools and scripts to improve the efficiency of the art and animation pipeline.
- Debug and troubleshoot visual issues in the game, finding creative solutions to technical limitations
- Work closely with Art Director and game artists to bridge the gap between art and engineering
- Conduct technical checks and troubleshoot animation and art integration issues with engineers.
- Research and oversee the implementation of rendering techniques such as particle systems, shaders, custom plugins, and scripts within Unity.
- Maintain and create documentation for technical, animation and VFX processes and standards.
- Stay updated with the latest tools, technologies, and techniques.
- Balance quality with efficiency under tight deadlines.
Requirements
- 7+ years of professional experience as a Technical Artist, Animator or VFX artist in mobile gaming or related fields.
- 2+ years Unity scripting and tools experience
- Solid experience with what it takes to deliver high-quality visuals while following memory and performance targets.
- Proficient in artistic fundamentals, including composition, color theory, and lighting, specifically for mobile platforms
- High proficiency with the Unity editor and common asset features.
- Expert knowledge in setting up UI in Unity, particularly how the Canvas system works.
- Proficiency in real-time particle effects, code-based animation, and integration of UI assets and prefabs.
- Strong decision-making skills to balance artistic vision and technical execution, producing high-quality results efficiently.
- Experience across all production stages, from concept development to final implementation.
- Proficiency in Photoshop and familiarity with modern design tools like Figma and UI other standard layout tools.
- Solid understanding of art content creation, asset pipelines, and optimization for Unity mobile
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills
- Strong proficiency in shader development, visual effects, lighting, and rendering techniques.
- Possesses a deep understanding of optimizing art assets for mobile platforms, including memory management and performance profiling.
Preferred Qualifications
- Prior professional experience within casual mobile gaming, including a deep understanding of the visual style and player expectations.
- Familiarity with mobile graphics limitations and strategies for maximizing visual impact within those constraints.
- Applied knowledge of animation systems, procedural asset generation, and VFX pipelines.
- Familiarity with Spine
PeopleFun provides a competitive total compensation package with a pay for performance rewards approach. The expected base pay range for this [CA based or North America based] position is $110,000-$150,000. Base compensation at PeopleFun is based on a number of factors including market location and may vary depending on job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. Depending on the position offered, equity, sign-on payments, and other forms of compensation may be provided as part of a total compensation package, in addition to a full range of medical and other benefits.
Benefits
Medical/Dental/Vision Insurance
Performance Bonuses
401K Match Policy
Flexible PTO Policy
Wellness Stipend
Free Lunch each Friday
Generous Parental Leave & Family-Friendly Culture
Annual Credits for Professional Development & In-App Purchases
PeopleFun is proud to be an equal opportunity employer that is committed to inclusion and diversity. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status, or other legally protected characteristics. Learn more about EEO rights as an applicant here.
