Staff Software Engineer, Riot Games
Build Systems, VALORANT, Foundations
$183.3-256.6k
+ Incentive compensation + Equity
Player-focused game development platform
Open for applications
Player-focused game development platform
1001+ employees
Open for applications
$183.3-256.6k
+ Incentive compensation + Equity
1001+ employees
Company mission
To be the most player-focused game company in the world.
Role
Who you are
- 6+ years of experience as a software engineer
- BS degree or equivalent experience
- Experience architecting and maintaining developer-facing products and platforms, supporting complex workflows and emerging requirements
- Experience building automated build, test, and release pipelines
- Strong empathy for improving the developer experience and iteration loop
- Game DevOps experience not required, but a plus
- Expertise with C++, C#, Java, Golang, or similar language(s)
- Ability to communicate complex technical subjects to all levels
- Willingness to jump into unfamiliar technologies and take on new challenges
- Experience mentoring other engineers
Desirable
- Professional experience working with cloud computing and cloud technologies
- Experience working directly with game build systems utilizing Unreal Engine
- Build Graph (& Horde) experience a plus
- Professional experience being a technical lead on a team of engineers
- Professional experience building large scale backend systems or game services
What the job involves
- As a Software Engineer, you’ll also dive into projects that focus on team cohesiveness and cross-team goals. You’ll lead without authority and provide other engineers with a clear illustration of extraordinary engineering
- As a Staff Software Engineer on the VALORANT Build Platforms team, you will develop and improve on the technologies that enable us to deliver VALORANT into our players’ hands
- You will work on improving the iteration flow for hundreds of developers with the opportunity to improve the experience of designers, artists and engineers alike
- Your work will lay a critical foundation for teams across the globe as they work to delight players by adding new features, skins, maps and agents to our game
- In addition, you will support our aspirations to expand to additional platforms and titles. You will report into the Engineering Manager on the team
- Drive the technical direction and decision-making at the team-level, advising on aspects of delivery such as architecture, maintenance, cost and scale
- Work on a range of tech stacks including underlying infrastructure, build and test automation, release pipelines, and developer tooling
- Work with VALORANT developers and stakeholders to align on priorities and deliverables
- Lead efforts to break down and execute on multi-month engineering efforts, partnering with central technology teams to leverage their expertise
Our take
Riot Games has grown into one of the world’s most prominent online and mobile game developers, due in large part to the success of its 2009 flagship title League of Legends which hosts just under seventy million users every month.
Riot is riding the wave of online gaming growth, having made a well timed switch from PC-only into mobile-based gaming, as capitalising on the rising popularity of esports, with the League of Legends World Championships one of the most watched events in the space.
However, adding further titles to its resume will be key to building on its success, as League of Legends was its only offering for the best part of a decade. Since being acquired by Chinese tech giant Tencent in 2011, the company has grown significantly in Asian markets, opening its Shanghai Game Studio in 2021 and expanding its China Game Studio Group in 2022. These two hubs will help Riot Games make further inroads in a country where PC gaming is already huge and continues to grow.
Regardless of League of Legends' success both online and in live arenas, the company nevertheless experienced a round of layoffs internationally that amounted to 11% of its workforce. Pair that with legal troubles in 2024 concerning the company’s partnership with now bankrupt crypto exchange FTX, and Riot Games appears to be in a period of transition. Thanks to the strength of its gaming products, however, Riot will no doubt maintain a comfortable position within the gaming world.
Freddie
Company Specialist
Insights
Most candidates hear
back within 2 weeks
24% employee growth in 12 months
Company
Funding (2 rounds)
Sep 2009
$8m
SERIES C
Jul 2008
$7m
EARLY VC
Total funding: $15m
Company benefits
- We offer medical, dental, and vision plans that cover you, your spouse/domestic partner, and children
- Life insurance, parental leave, plus short-term and long-term disability coverage are also available
- Riot will support your retirement benefits with a company match, and double down on your donations of time and money to non-profit charitable organizations
- Balance between work and personal life is encouraged with open paid time off, and a play fund so you can broaden and deepen your personal relationship with games
Company values
- Player experience first
- Dare to dream
- Thrive together
- Execute with excellence
- Stay hungry, stay humble
Company HQ
Sawtelle, Los Angeles, CA
Articles
Leadership
Brandon Beck
(Co-Chairman)Having studied at the University of Southern California, they worked as a Management Consultant at Bain & Company. they left this role in September 2006 to co-found Riot Games, where they served initially as co-CEO.
Marc Merrill
(Co-Chairman)After a degree at the University of Southern California, they worked as a U.S. Bank Analyst and a Manager of Advanstar Communications. They co-founded Riot Games with Brandon in September 2006, alongside being a Principal of NaHCo3 since 2016.
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