Senior Designer

at  PlaySide Studios

WHO IS PLAYSIDE?

PlaySide Studios is a dynamic and innovative company that employs individuals across Australia, New Zealand and the UK. As Australia’s largest publicly listed independent video game developer, PlaySide is committed to delivering cutting-edge interactive experiences across mobile, VR, AR, and PC platforms. With a diverse portfolio of more than 60 titles and collaborations with industry giants like Netflix and Activision Blizzard, working at PlaySide is not just a job but an opportunity to be part of innovating the gaming industry.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Proven experience in game design, particularly in owning mid-scale design areas on larger games, or leading entire smaller-scale game projects on mobile.
• Strong understanding of the development pipeline and ability to align designs with project vision and goals.
• Proficiency in industry-standard design tools and excellent communication skills.
• Ability to conduct playtests, evaluate feedback, and collaborate effectively.
• Player-first mindset with a well-researched understanding of the target audience.

• Define and own mid-scale designs within a focused project area, managing entire levels or liveops features for games across different platforms with lead designer feedback.
• Align designs and implementation details with project vision and goals, explaining and defending design choices to stakeholders.
• Deliver concise designs to solve mid-scale problems, generating reliable estimates and consistent effort sizes.
• Utilize industry-standard tools effectively, identifying opportunities for efficiency.
• Define documentation structure for larger games or game design documentation for smaller games, presenting designs effectively.
• Listen to player feedback to inform decisions, orchestrate playtests, and evaluate feedback for leads.
• Propose solutions aligned with design goals and project pillars, reviewing and refining design goals across problem and solution spaces.
• Resolve uncertainty through collaboration, defining acceptance criteria and validating implementations independently.
• Prioritize MVP components of designs, considering scope cuts and feedback from leadership and the team.
• Design player-first, tailoring designs to the intended target group with a well-researched understanding of the audience.
• Critique and deconstruct reference work to inform future designs, identifying design intent behind mechanics in reference titles.
• Facilitate collaborative design activities and align team discussions with design strategy.
• Contribute significantly to sprint review feedback, dynamically defining designs based on development complexity and iterating based on feedback.
• Advocate for an exciting player experience, pushing for creative designs that support the game’s fantasy and player experience while scrutinizing proposals through a lens of development cost and outcome value.