Evil Empire, the new team working on Motion Twin’s smash hit Dead Cells among other ambitious projects, is looking for a Senior Artist with experience as team lead to develop and take point in the art department.

As our independent studio grows and new projects kick off, we’ll need key people to help take our games to the next level and navigate the complexity of managing multiple projects and larger groups of exceptionally creative people.

Of course, you’ll still have plenty of time for rolling up your sleeves, contributing to and defining the art in-game on Dead Cells and especially our new projects. What we’re really looking for is someone who takes pleasure in teaching, knows how to plan NOT to crunch and who wants to work in smaller teams where you get to do a lot of different things.

It should go without saying that you’ve got to be completely bonkers for video games.

Your responsibilities would include:

Understanding and formalizing the existing art Direction on Dead Cells, so that it can be efficiently implemented in-game by new team members.
Developing and implementing new ideas within the framework of Dead Cells; creating new levels, bosses, characters and items.
Developing and driving the art direction on new projects, in conjunction with the Creative Directors.
Ensuring that all assets created by your team and any outsourcing studios correspond with the guidelines you have put in place.
Organizing and participating in meetings with the wider team to ensure that we’re on track and that everyone is happy with what they’re doing.
Coaching and leading a team of junior and confirmed artists with the intention of bringing everyone up with you.
Interfacing with the production management and marketing teams to make sure we hit deadlines on time without unnecessary stress.
Producing marketing assets or ensuring that your team has the bandwidth to produce them in collaboration with the marketing bastards.
Engaging in the hiring process, helping us choose the right fits for the studio and new projects.

Your profile:

We’re looking for someone with at least 5+ years of experience as a professional artist (freelance work included).
Several games shipped, with preferably at least one as team lead or artistic director.
Ideally you’ll have managed a team for a period of 2-3 years.
Experience creating and optimizing internal and external production pipelines.
Broad artistic experience in terms of styles and mediums that you’ve worked on. We’re looking for a swiss army knife, if you’ve done everything from pixel art to 3D animation then that will really really help.
Proficient with current industry standard tools, but willing to improve, learn and move on to new things as they come up.
Have a strong understanding of the constraints linked to working with consoles, both technical and from a UI/X perspective.
Strong analytical, communication, interpersonal, planning and organisational skills. Basically you need to know how to identify a problem, explain it clearly, persuade people to help you fix it then plan and implement the solution.

Bonus points:

English (at least B2).
Previous work experience in both indie and AAA studios.
You know how to make trailers (professionally or just for fun) and you’re good at it.
Your jokes are less funny than those of the CEO.

Contract:

40 - 60k per year, depending on experience and profile.
Full time (CDI) at 35 hours per week.
Based in our office in Bordeaux, though work from home and necessary precautions are in place during the COVID19 crisis.
Financial and logistical help with relocation (basically we take care of it all).
Fringe benefits include; restaurant cheques, as much junk food fruit and good stuff as you can eat, flexible working hours, access to any books and professional development resources as you want and more.

About us:

Evil Empire is a new studio formed by a few ex-Motion Twin people with the intention of creating more Dead Cells and using this as a stepping stone towards making our own games. We work in the same open space as Motion Twin and regularly beat them in Nerf wars and Smash.

The name of our studio is a dig at some of the shadier aspects of the game industry and, if you have a sense of humour, a signal that we’re all about being the exact opposite (and, unfortunately, people didn’t like my “Cat Nap studio” name suggestion - which really says something about their poor taste).

If you’re working at Evil Empire you will NEVER crunch (it’s nuts that this has to be said), you will have excellent health cover, five weeks paid leave, subsidized meals, flexibility with work time, free fruits and other noms and of course as much coffee as you can drink.

We also do regular trips to some of the most legendary gaming events in the world, including excursions to National Parks and other such shenanigans (team building right?), so there's plenty of opportunities for motivated people to get out and see the world. Well, at least, we were doing this before Covid happened, and plan to do it again if events are ever a thing in the future...

Bordeaux is an awesome city as it’s big enough to have plenty to do, but small enough that you can walk across it in half an hour. Beautiful 19th century architecture and more restaurants than you can poke a stick are a big plus. You’re also 45 minutes drive from the beach and 3 hours from the ski slopes. Access to a very well connected airport and a 2 hour train ride to Paris mean you’re never far away from anything.