Senior Manager, Game Design

Riot Games was established in 2006 by entrepreneurial gamers who believe that player-focused game development can result in great games. In 2009, Riot released its debut title League of Legends to critical and player acclaim. As the most played video game in the world, over 100 million play every month. Players form the foundation of our community and it’s for them that we continue to evolve and improve the League of Legends experience.

We’re looking for humble but ambitious, razor-sharp professionals who can teach us a thing or two. We promise to return the favor. Like us, you take play seriously; you’re passionate about games. We embrace those who see things differently, aren’t afraid to experiment, and who have a healthy disregard for constraints.

That's where you come in.

As a Sr. Manager, Game Design at Riot China Studio, you’ll steer the product and creative direction for an exciting, fast-paced new title. Leading a lean, highly focused team of designers and creatives, you will collaborate closely with premier external development partners to ensure the game delivers a uniquely Riot experience to our audience.  

You’ll help concept, oversee, and innovate the game at every stage of its accelerated development cycle. You are required to make thoughtful and agile decisions about product direction, IP authenticity, and core game design as it relates to player needs. You’re obsessed with understanding how the needs of the audience, the direction of the partnership, and the health of the collaborative team are translated into action.

A Sr. Manager, Game Design within Riot China Studio must have a deep understanding and passion for making games, the ability to assess and take risks in a fast-paced environment, and the skills to drive cross-organizational alignment. You are directly accountable for the holistic product strategy, creative vision, and ensuring the final product resonates with our players.

Responsibilities

Product Vision and Strategy

• Define and uphold the holistic product strategy, creative vision, and IP tone of the game from ideation to launch.
• Deeply understand the game’s target audience and ensure the core game design matches their needs.
• Review and guide key game features, ensuring all product choices align with Riot's quality bar and strategic vision.
• Monitor product outcomes and drive agile pivots to the product roadmap in service of delivering on rapid development commitments.
• Effectively prioritize product decisions and orchestrate strategic pivots based on analysis of data, player feedback, and new information.

Partner Alignment and Execution

• Lead a lean internal creative/design team while working seamlessly with external development partners to execute the strategic vision.
• Act as the primary bridge for product and creative direction, ensuring the external partner clearly understands and executes on Riot's design and IP standards.
• Manage the collaborative execution strategy, identifying critical path issues, removing roadblocks, and driving efficiency in a fast-paced development cycle.
• Foster a positive, highly collaborative cross-organization culture that motivates developers across both internal and external teams to bring their best effort.
• Encourage a learning environment in which constructive feedback is given across organizational lines to develop a deep understanding and empathy for our players.

Required Qualifications

• 8-12 years+ of experience in product management, game production, or game design leadership, with 2 years+ management experience.
• Proven track record of managing or working closely with external development partners, publishers, or co-development teams.
• Experience leading or heavily collaborating on mobile titles or fast-paced game development cycles.
• Strong ability to hold the line on creative direction, IP tone, and core game design without necessarily managing the entire production pipeline.
• Experience functioning effectively in ambiguous, highly collaborative environments with cross-organizational stakeholders at various levels.
• Strong empathy for China / Chinese players, and deep understanding of Chinese mobile development trends and market dynamics.
• Fluent in Chinese

Desired Qualifications

• Experience shipping successful mobile or cross-platform titles in a leadership role.
• Experience working intimately with established IPs and translating them into compelling gameplay experiences.
• Fluent English (Written and Verbal).