Engineering Director

Mob Entertainment is a startup multimedia studio known for the hit indie horror game 'Poppy Playtime'. They are seeking a seasoned Director of Engineering to lead and evolve their engineering organization, overseeing gameplay and game systems engineering while driving technical vision and excellence.

Responsibilities:

• Define and drive the studio’s technical strategy across gameplay engineering, game systems, tools, performance, and platform support
• Partner with creative, production, and design leaders to align technical execution with game vision and business goals
• Establish engineering standards, processes, and staffing plans that scale with the team and product roadmap
• Identify and mitigate technical risks across gameplay features, backend systems, and performance goals
• Oversee the development of gameplay features, character mechanics, AI systems, physics interactions, and animation integrations
• Lead the architecture and implementation of core game systems—including engine extensions, save systems, frameworks, data pipelines, networking components, and optimization paths
• Ensure systems and gameplay engineering teams deliver clean, scalable, maintainable code in alignment with studio best practices
• Provide technical direction and hands-on guidance in complex engineering challenges
• Manage and grow a multi-disciplinary engineering team, including Leads, Senior Engineers, and technical specialists
• Build a culture of ownership, collaboration, innovation, and continuous improvement
• Mentor engineers in career development, technical skills, and leadership capabilities
• Partner with People Operations to optimize hiring, onboarding, training, and team structures
• Work closely with Production to define milestones, scope, schedules, and resourcing
• Collaborate with Art and Design to translate creative concepts into technically feasible solutions
• Champion quality by working closely with QA, ensuring performance, stability, and reliability across all releases
• Oversee build pipelines, version control workflows, automation processes, and CI/CD strategies
• Guide performance optimization efforts across platforms and hardware specifications
• Ensure smooth releases and patches through close coordination with publishing, QA, and support teams
• Evaluate, adopt, and integrate new technologies, tools, or workflows

Requirements:

• 10+ years experience in game engineering, including gameplay and/or systems engineering
• 3+ years in a senior engineering leadership or director-level role within a game studio
• Strong proficiency with Unreal Engine, including C++ and real-time game development
• Proven experience shipping at least one AAA or high-quality indie/mid-scope title
• Demonstrated ability to lead engineering teams through full production cycles
• Strong understanding of game architecture, systems design, gameplay mechanics, performance optimization, and platform constraints
• Experience at a small-to-mid sized studio or startup environment
• Understanding of backend or online systems integration for live games
• Familiarity with DevOps tools, CI/CD pipelines, and automated build/testing strategies
• Passion for player experience and high-quality gameplay