This job listing expired on Dec 2, 2020
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Working independently, the Creative Director is responsible for the creative vision of new game initiatives for our Idle Games Studio. You will work with the Vice President of the studio and executive team to translate strategic priorities in developing homegrown and licensed IP titles.

You will also work closely with the Product team to ensure the games are set up for successful live operations. Your role will be to identify new game concepts, themes & features, manage the design process, and own the overall visual and user experience.

You will be working with a fully distributed team that leverages both internal teams, contractors, and work-for-hire studios across locations and time-zones. Through this process, you will manage the appropriate resources to achieve high quality production value for games deployed on web and mobile devices.

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES

  • Develop world-class visual and user experience designs for new games
  • Manage, inspire, and grow teams across all design, art, narrative, user interface and audio initiatives
  • Create, evolve and guide to execute on an artistic vision.
  • Guide and support game design teams in creating the overall product vision, including core loops, meta games, character development, world environments, and player progression
  • Follow through and ensure that project vision is reflected in all stages of design, prototype, and production.
  • Own the creative design and review process, providing detailed direction and feedback as appropriate, including visual style guides, mood boards, redlined markups, etc.
  • Collaborate with Product Managers, Producer and Leads to define product vision and scope
  • Work closely with Product Management to oversee all economy and tuning of the games for maximum player engagement and ROI
  • Coordinate with senior technical leads to ensure game designs are properly architected, allow for maximum flexibility and scalability, and support the desired user experience
  • Drive best practices across all aspects of creative design
  • Work with licensed IPs, ensuring games adhere to brand and quality objectives
  • Oversee marketing materials, including product pitches, platform featuring decks, and store assets
  • Create innovative enhancements that improve the value and competitive differentiation of related product features
  • Lean into a data-first mentality to drive decision making, using analytics, market research, community feedback, focus groups, behavioral studies, and a variety of competitive analyses.

RELATED COMPETENCIES

  • Creative Orientation — Leveraging an ability to transcend traditional ideas, rules, patterns, and relationships to create meaningful new ideas, processes, products, and general solutions to relevant business opportunities
  • Managing Complexity — Understanding and managing the complexity associated with delivering a high-quality and scalable user experience on web and mobile platforms
  • Innovation and Problem Solving — Generating innovative solutions in work situations; trying different and novel ways to deal with work problems and opportunities
  • Planning and Organizing – Establishing courses of action for self and others to ensure that work is completed efficiently
  • Technical/Professional Knowledge and Skills – Having achieved a satisfactory level of technical and professional skill or knowledge in position-related areas; keeps up with current developments and trends in areas of expertise

BASIC AND PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS (EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE)

  • Seven to ten years of relevant experience as Creative Director, Art Director, or Game Director in a free-to-play environment
  • Experience in managing internal and external creative teams
  • At least five years of Agile product development experience
  • Developed multiple games with licensed IP
  • Experience in a fast-paced, consumer-oriented environment preferred
  • Proven track record of successful releases on mobile devices
  • In-depth knowledge of latest mobile games industry trends, free to play mechanics and UI/UX
  • Proficiency in all aspects of mobile game design, including gameplay, level design, game structure, balancing, & reward systems.
  • Expert communication and presentation skills
  • Expert organizational and analytical skills
  • Working ability to navigate complex environments and work with interdisciplinary teams and effectively communicate priorities, delivery expectations, risks and concerns to management
  • Ability to translate desired project outcomes into action plans and tangible deliverables
  • Strong relationship building skills, including the capacity to predict and manage behavior, build and leverage cross-functional partnerships within and outside of the organization, and leverage influential leadership

COVID Note

Due to the on-going pandemic, Kongregate is operating as a fully remote company until further notice. All interviews will be conducted via phone and video calls.

This position is for our San Francisco office (currently remote); with possibility of full-time remote post-pandemic.

Kongregate is an equal opportunity employer and we value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.