Associate Art Director, Visual Design - Unpublished R&D Product

Riot Visual Designers craft the best player experiences through their knowledge of systemic design, graphic design, interactivity, layout, typography, color theory, and illustration. Designers collaborate with cross-disciplinary teams and act as both artistic and design problem solvers. They understand players and ask questions about the what, who, and how when solving for an interface or communication challenge. 

As an Associate Art Director, Visual Design on an R&D game project, you’ll be responsible for moving a game from prototype through pre-production and into production. Your scope of responsibilities covers a wide range of initiatives. These responsibilities include overall culture, performance, and growth of your direct reports, and gaining alignment with other discipline leads. You will manage a cross-disciplinary team of artists, set goals, and own the execution strategy. You will identify strategic art resource needs and promote hiring for all art roles on the team. As a part of the leadership team, you’ll develop strategies and eliminate obstacles with other leaders to achieve broader product goals.

Responsibilities:

• Establish and drive a vision that is aligned with the project goals
• Set product-wide art goals and timelines
• Work closely with design and develop direct understanding of the player experience to ensure the art supports the game
• Balance visual satisfaction and gameplay clarity to ensure amazing worlds and characters 
• Create prototype assets, concept art, and 3D benchmark assets
• Set a clear vision, provide consistent feedback, and build trust with your team
• Take initiative to solve problems with excellent follow through
• Build, manage, lead, and mentor a team of artists

Required Qualifications:

• 10+ years experience developing art in the games industry
• 5+ years of direct experience in visual design
• 3+ years of professional experience managing other artists and art leaders
• Sufficient development expertise in Unreal Engine to make tools and pipeline recommendations for game development pipelines.
• Professional experience establishing creative vision and strategy
• Ability to plan, organize, and prioritize team work in the context of given time and quality requirements 
• Deep knowledge of various art sub-disciplines 

Desired Qualifications:

• Knowledge of current trends in games
• The ability to talk to and collaborate with tangential disciplines as they relate to Visual Design (Game Design, VFX, Tech Art, Audio, Engineering)
• Strong implementation experience
• Extreme proficiency in art fundamentals, visual storytelling and color theory
• Professional experience shipping at least one AAA game title
• Knowledge of the League of Legends game and IP
• A portfolio that backs up your ability to set a marketable artistic vision

For this role, you'll find success through craft expertise, a collaborative spirit, and decision-making that prioritizes the delight of players. We will be looking at your past studies, experience, and your personal relationship with games. If you embody player empathy and care about players' experiences, this could be your role!

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. 

(Redwood City Only) Base salary range between $222,200.00 - $310,600.00 USD + incentive compensation + equity + 401K with company match + medical, dental, vision, and life insurance + short and long-term disability + open PTO.