Senior Software Engineer, Gameplay Systems & Animation - Unpublished R&D Product

Riot engineers bring deep knowledge of specific technical areas but also value the opportunity to work in a variety of broader domains. As a Software Engineer, you’ll also dive into projects that focus on team cohesiveness and cross-team objectives. You’ll drive important features and provide other engineers with a clear illustration of extraordinary engineering.

As a Senior Software Engineer (Gameplay Systems & Animation ) on an unpublished R&D product, you will report to the Gameplay Engineering Lead, you’ll help bring our characters to life through responsive, expressive, and high-quality animation systems. You’ll work at the intersection of gameplay engineering and content creation — partnering closely with animators, designers, and technical artists to build scalable systems that power movement, locomotion, and moment-to-moment feel. This role collaborates with multiple groups within the gameplay team, contributing directly to the quality, polish, and performance of our core combat experience. The ideal candidate is passionate about player feel, thrives in cross-disciplinary collaboration, and takes pride in building robust systems that unlock content at scale.

Responsibilities:

• Design, prototype, and implement robust, scalable gameplay and animation systems, evolving underlying systems to improve reuse, polish, maintainability, and performance.
• Contribute to locomotion, movement feel, and animation-driven gameplay systems across multiple gameplay domains.
• Partner closely with animators and technical artists to improve workflows, clarify handoff points, and enable efficient content production.
• Identify technical risks in animation and gameplay systems and collaborate with technical leaders to implement sustainable architectural solutions.
• Contribute to adjacent gameplay domains such as combat systems, camera, VFX integration, or other core gameplay systems as needed.
• Mentor peers across disciplines by sharing insights on animation systems, gameplay feel, and technical problem-solving.

Required Qualifications:

• 5+ years of professional experience in game development.
• 3+ years of experience developing or supporting animation systems.
• Strong C++ programming skills and solid computer science fundamentals.
• Experience working with Unreal Engine, including its animation systems.
• Experience implementing gameplay systems closely tied to animation
• Strong debugging, optimization, and performance-tuning skills.
• Experience collaborating effectively in cross-disciplinary teams, with strong product sense and player empathy.

Desired Qualifications:

• Familiarity with Unreal Engine internals and extending or modifying engine animation systems.
• Experience improving content pipelines and animation workflows.
• Exposure to related domains such as gameplay VFX, camera systems, etc.
• Experience working on mid-sized engineering teams in a live or in-development game environment.

For this role, you'll find success through craft expertise and a collaborative spirit that prioritizes the delight of players. We will look at your past studies and experience, but for this role, we also look for dedicated people with a personal relationship with games. If you embody player empathy and care about players' experiences, this is the role for you!

Our Perks:

Riot focuses on work/life balance, shown by our open paid time off policy and other perks such as flexible work schedules. We offer medical, dental, and life insurance, parental leave for you, your spouse/domestic partner, and children, and a 401k with company match. Check out our benefits pages for more information.

At Riot Games, we put players first . That mission drives every decision in our quest to create games and experiences that make it better to be a player. Whether you’re working directly on a new player-facing experience or you’re supporting the company as a whole, everyone at Riot is part of our mission. And just like in our games, we’re better when we work together. Our goal is to create collaborative teams where you are empowered to bring your unique perspective everyday. If that sounds like the kind of place you want to work, we’re looking forward to your application.

It’s our policy to provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and members of Riot Games, Inc. Riot Games makes reasonable accommodations for handicapped and disabled Rioters and does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, handicap, veteran status, marital status, criminal history, or any other category protected by applicable federal and state law. We consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with applicable federal, state and local law, including the California Fair Chance Act, the City of Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance, the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers, the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, and the Washington Fair Chance Act.

Per the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance, the following core duties may create a basis for disqualifying candidates with relevant criminal histories:

• Safeguarding confidential and sensitive Company data
• Communication with others, including Rioters and third parties such as vendors, and/or players, including minors
• Accessing Company assets, secure digital systems, and networks
• Ensuring a safe interactive environment for players and other Rioters

These duties are directly related to essential operations, safety, trust, and compliance obligations within our organization. Please note that job duties may evolve based on business needs and additional responsibilities may be assigned as necessary to maintain operational efficiency and security.

• (Los Angeles Only) Base salary range between $161,500.00 - $227,000.00 USD + incentive compensation + equity + 401K with company match + medical, dental, vision, and life insurance + short and long-term disability + open PTO.