From critically acclaimed The Longest Journey to the very first sci-fi MMO Anarchy Online, to the brutal trials of Conan Exiles, our 28-year history has set our players uniquely up for a journey to the harsh world of Dune, where the continual battle for survival and spice will bring a challenge that is Legendary.

The Funcom team consists of over 250 people located in 5 studios - Norway, the US, Portugal, Sweden, a newly opened Romania studio - plus an additional UI/UX hub in the UK. As part of Funcom’s ongoing growth, and completing a successful turnaround, Funcom is now backed by Tencent, the largest online gaming company in the world!

Now, our creative team needs a World Director to define and oversee world foundations in our new open-world multiplayer survival game using the Dune IP from Legendary Entertainment!

Your Mission in Funcom

As a World Director, you will be responsible for the appeal, richness, coherence, and consistency of the world as defined with the core directorship.

You will actively define and oversee its foundations (world-building), maintenance (world bible) and system interactions (world logic) to create the best experience for our players.

How you can have an impact in your position:

In Collaboration with the Creative director, define the world (time and place, degree of fantasy versus realism, location, high level biome requirement, symbols, sounds…)
In Collaboration with the Game and Creative directors, Establish the rules that govern the world and its systems (political, social, economics, geography, etc.…)
Coordinate the design of the world closely with the Creative Director, Game Director and the rest of the core team to ensure that it meets the defined creative vision
Create a coherent World Vision and ensure it is followed throughout the production cycle
Coordinate with the Art Director to ensure the vision of World is cohesive across all disciplines.
Lead, formalize and share documentation/research of all relevant information that feed the world
Challenge and feed the content team with these inputs to ensure the global coherence of the world, in alignment with the overall creative vision
Adapt the world’s guidelines in an iterative way when required
Lead the implementation of prototypes to ensure a living world that is rich, interesting, credible and conforms to the initial vision
Understand and analyze players’ needs and ensure that the created world is immersive and appealing on a long-term basis
Determine the production priorities and possible scope adjustments with the Producer(s) and/or Creative Director
Create the level design vision based on the creative direction and external sources (reference films, competitor games, design documents) by organizing mission briefings and paying special attention to the quality of the data integration into the engine.
Validate the work carried out by the team to ensure that quality objectives are met and that the elements that are produced are in line with the level design vision for the game, especially through iterative reviews to test the player experience
Ensure that level design guidelines are followed by working in close collaboration with the project leads, directors and technical directors and the level design team
Assess game changes based on playtest or marketing feedback by suggesting solutions that are in line with the level design vision;
Contribute to work planning as a content expert in collaboration with planning directors in an effort to find the balance between the quality that is expected and the ability to deliver the game (in terms of time, costs, resources, etc.)
Communicate level design expectations to the team in terms of quality and content through documents that describe the gameplay experience and ensure that these expectations are properly understood

We are looking for someone that has:

10+ years of game development experience, at least minimum 5 of which as an LD/World Builder
Experience as a Team or Project leader is essential, preferred Directorship experience
Strong leadership skills, ability to build buy in in a group of stakeholders, as well as mentor and develop experienced engineers
Excellent initiative, self-motivation, organizational and problem-solving skills
Proficiency with project management tools such as JIRA
Experience working on open-world titles
Experience working on multiplatform/console titles
Experience working with Unreal Engine

We evaluate candidates on an ongoing basis and recommend candidates to apply as soon as possible!

Please apply in English.

Why Funcom?

We are a Scandinavian company and follow Scandinavian work values. For you, that means a flat structure in which you can thrive, be yourself, and leave a mark in the studio and become an ambassador for our company values. We focus on Agile/Scrum methodology, and heavily value the importance of work-life balance in employee culture. Funcom values close-knit, collaborative individuals who crave creative ownership, a drive for constructive input, and a never-ending pursuit of evolution and quality.

Working at Funcom offers a flexible working schedule, relocation assistance, pension plan, healthcare package, social Fridays, and a long list of other benefits. Even more: working at Funcom means being part of a family of kind, skilled and professional colleagues that share a passion for games!

We have a diverse, dynamic, inclusive, challenging and engaging culture, with a basis of continued training and career development opportunities, and we encourage candidates from all walks of life to apply. Come join us in a friendly environment of enthusiastic professionals willing to go the extra mile to deliver world-class games.