Senior 3D Character Artist

Team Name:

Unannounced Project

Job Title:

Senior 3D Character Artist

Requisition ID:

R025328

Job Description:

At Blizzard, we craft genre-defining games and legendary worlds for all to share. Through unparalleled creativity and storytelling, we create immersive universes and iconic characters that are beloved across platforms, borders, backgrounds, and generations – only made possible by building a work environment that nurtures the artistry of game development and unleashes the aspirations of our people.

As a Senior II - 3D Character Artist you will be responsible for the creation of 3D characters for a new, unannounced game for Blizzard. You will have the opportunity to be a part of a dynamic art team, bringing to life many characters for both core gameplay and meta.

You will  partner with experienced visual development artists, technical artists, and animators to create extraordinary and unforgettable characters within our game's universe that will be experienced by millions of players around the world. The role will be complex, creative, and fun with loads of opportunities to hone your skills and try new things.

We’re an inclusive team that welcomes new members with unique perspectives. We care deeply about the games we build and how we create them. We can't wait to meet you!

Responsibilities 

• Create both high-resolution 3D sculpts and final low-polygon models, LODs, and texture game assets.

• Review assets and oversee integration into our game engine, ensuring assets meet performance requirements and visual standards.

• Provide guidance and mentorship to other artists, helping them refine their artistic and technical skills.

• Help the larger game team with feedback and iterate on game assets with artists and designers via prototyping and group critiques.

• Support the submission of feedback to external outsource partners, where needed. 

Minimum Requirements :

• Highly proficient in crafting high-quality 3D characters and props, encompassing both organic and hard surface modeling techniques as well as the subtleties of the human shape and form.

• Strong understanding of efficient UV layout, PBR pipeline, and topology.

• Strong understanding of how to translate 2D concepts into fully realized 3D models, making artistic decisions throughout the process to refine and enhance the final design.
   

Knowledge & Skills

• An in-depth understanding of sculpting form, shape, structure, and silhouette, with an ability to accurately understand the nuances of art styles and commit them to 3D.

• Ability to couple hand-crafted techniques and PBR workflow to achieve our unique style.

• Great eye for light, shading, color, and detail, especially for the creation of texture maps.

• Very knowledgeable in the technical aspects of creating in-game characters, covering the full end-to-end pipeline, and adept at implementing art into a game efficiently, with a focus on clean, structured, and optimized processes.

• In-depth knowledge of current industry-standard software for the creation of 3D art and any industry-relevant game engine where it can be implemented into game.

• Ability to provide accurate and valuable visual and technical feedback to artists, both internal and external to the team.

Key Attributes

• A passion for making high-quality games in a cross-discipline, highly collaborative team.

• Able to work creatively as part of a large or small group.

• Self-motivated, outstanding communication skills, and a great team-player attitude.

• Understanding of the playability and visual style of Blizzard, with a passion to push it to the next level.

• Demonstrates initiative in proactively identifying risks and opportunities within the art pipeline, proposing creative and practical solutions.

• A natural problem solver, keen to do what’s right for the character art and the game as a whole, with an eye on quality, balanced with a pragmatic approach of spending energy on the right things for the player. 

• Proactively stays up to date and knowledgeable about the latest techniques, tools, and artistic trends in the industry. 

Nice to Have

• Experience with rigging and skinning.

• Skills in character concept art.

Your Platform

Best known for iconic video game universes including Warcraft®, Overwatch®, Diablo®, and StarCraft®, Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. (www.blizzard.com), a division of Activision Blizzard, which was acquired by Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT), is a premier developer and publisher of entertainment experiences. Blizzard Entertainment has created some of the industry’s most critically acclaimed and genre-defining games over the last 30 years, with a track record that includes multiple Game of the Year awards. Blizzard Entertainment engages tens of millions of players around the world with titles available on PC via Battle.net®, Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo Switch, iOS, and Android.

Our World

Activision Blizzard, Inc., is one of the world's largest and most successful interactive entertainment companies and is at the intersection of media, technology and entertainment. We are home to some of the most beloved entertainment franchises including Call of Duty®, World of Warcraft®, Overwatch®, Diablo®, Candy Crush™ and Bubble Witch™. Our combined entertainment network delights hundreds of millions of monthly active users in 196 countries, making us the largest gaming network on the planet!

Our ability to build immersive and innovate worlds is only enhanced by diverse teams working in an inclusive environment.  We aspire to have a culture where everyone can thrive in order to connect and engage the world through epic entertainment. We provide a suite of benefits that promote physical, emotional and financial well-being for ‘Every World’ - we’ve got our employees covered!

The videogame industry and therefore our business is fast-paced and will continue to evolve. As such, the duties and responsibilities of this role may be changed as directed by the Company at any time to promote and support our business and relationships with industry partners.

We love hearing from anyone who is enthusiastic about changing the games industry. Not sure you meet all qualifications? Let us decide! Research shows that women and members of other under-represented groups tend to not apply to jobs when they think they may not meet every qualification, when, in fact, they often do! We are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment and strongly encourage you to apply.

We are committed to working with and providing reasonable assistance to individuals with physical and mental disabilities. If you are a disabled individual requiring an accommodation to apply for an open position, please email your request to [email protected]. General employment questions cannot be accepted or processed here. Thank you for your interest.

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status, among other characteristics.