We Need You The minions of Hell are growing stronger...

We're working on Diablo IV. Are you a motivated and skilled Outsourcing VFX Artist? Come work with us, and together we will build something extraordinary.

Our team of talented developers is growing. Our backgrounds are diverse, but we share a real passion for what we do. We believe that if you’re looking for a tight-knit crew that celebrates self-expression and embraces collaboration, we will be a phenomenal fit for you.

Stuff We Will Trust You With

Do you geek out on pipelines, a wide range of real time VFX, communication, process, feedback, and all other things connected to successful outsourcing of VFX art assets? We're looking for an extraordinarily talented VFX Outsourcing Supervisor to come spend some quality time in Sanctuary and delve into the deep dark dungeons of Diablo with us! Your experience will help make our entire VFX outsourcing department better at producing gorgeous content.

Your responsibilities will range from crafting briefs and coaching our outsourcing partners to tweaking incoming assets for the Diablo world to make them look as amazing as possible. You will also provide regular, timely and detailed feedback to our external partners to make sure their work is consistently on target

You will need a working knowledge of 3D packages and in-game FX systems to create a wide range of PBR VFX (fire, smoke, magic, electricity, explosions, etc.), as well as a general understanding of good game play communication. A solid grasp of the principles of motion, anticipation, dynamics, follow-through, lighting, and other facets of animation is essential for the position. The VFX Artist must have skill in creating textures and geometry needed for stylized VFX.

You love being in a dynamic environment where every voice matter, and you passionately believe that being proven wrong is just another opportunity to grow and learn. You will work with your team, other disciplines, and our external partners to ensure all assets are consistently meeting the high-quality bar Blizzard is known for.

Would you thrive in an environment of peers who are enthusiastic about working on the dark gothic world of Diablo, and would you love making phenomenal games, killing millions of monsters and getting loot? Silly question—we already know you would.

Stuff You Can Rightfully Brag About

What will it take to be successful in this role? Well, we’re always looking for people who are game developers first and who can help us become even better than we are today, so these are probably some of your achievements and skills:

Creation of hand-crafted visual effects to be used in real-time game assets
Technical setup, integration, and troubleshooting of VFX in a real-time game engine
Maintained best practices, and owned quality control, cohesive visual style, and schedule of all incoming outsourced VFX art
Generated detailed documentation, visual references, examples, procedures, and engine requirements to support external VFX artists
Ability to mentor external VFX artists and manage communication of internal art team's feedback to external VFX artists and maintained a strong creative relationship between external and internal art teams
Worked with internal VFX team to ensure timely completion of VFX assets at the desired quality bar
Served as an active participant in team art discussions, critiques, and reviews
A minimum of 3 years’ creating real-time special FX for video games
Ability to paint special FX textures from scratch and match an established style
Proficiency with 3D graphics, particle systems, physics, ribbons, shaders, etc…
Working knowledge of rendering engines and experience designing VFX shaders
Solid game design awareness and an exceptional game design-oriented collaborator
Self-driven, excellent communicator
Solicits feedback and critique frequently; uses feedback to improve content

How You Will Stand Out

Most importantly, we want to get to know your authentic self, because life’s too short to pretend to be something you’re not (unless we’re talking cosplay of course). That said, we hope you have:

Experience authoring custom materials and graphics shaders
A strong passion and commitment for developing and playing games
Excellent organizational skills
Excitement about how to leverage outsourcing to build efficient production pipelines that are continuously improved upon over time
Previously shipped AAA PC or console titles as a VFX artist
The ability to sculpt high poly models and bake them onto a game ready mesh
Understanding of the rigging, animation, and physics workflow
Scripting experience in LUA, Python, etc.
Skill in one or more related disciplines – illustration, modeling, animation, or technical art
Understanding of the visual style of Blizzard games and a passion to push it to the next level

And yeah, you will need these things to apply

Portfolio demonstrating relevant skills. Only online work submissions, please. (e.g. website, blog or online album)
Willingness to complete a test if requested to do so

COVID-19 Hiring Update: We’ve transitioned to a work-from-home model and we’re continuing to interview and hire during this time. This role is expected to begin as a remote position. We understand each person’s circumstances may be unique and will work with you to explore possible interim options.

Blizzard Entertainment is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, protected veteran status, or any other basis protected by applicable law, and will not be discriminated against on the basis of disability.

Accommodation Request: We are committed to working with and providing reasonable assistance to individuals with physical and mental disabilities. If you are a disabled individual requiring an accommodation to apply for an open position, please email your request to us.