Character Artist: Materials and Customisation

At Rockstar Games, we create world-class entertainment experiences.

A career at Rockstar Games is about being part of a team working on some of the most creatively rewarding and ambitious projects to be found in any entertainment medium. You would be welcomed to a dedicated and inclusive environment where you can learn, and collaborate with some of the most talented people in the industry.

Rockstar North are looking for a Character Artist with specific knowledge and experience of real-time creative pipelines, and who has a proven track record working with Materials and Parameterized Customization systems on AAA titles. They will have a passion for working in a specialized team setting – helping create humans, creatures, clothing and accessories to the highest visual standards.

This is a full-time, permanent and in-office position based in Rockstar’s state-of-the-art game development studio in Edinburgh, Scotland. 

WHAT WE DO

• We design, create and populate the world with the people and creatures that bring the story and play to life, for both our story-driven and online game worlds.
• Our characters are the embodiment of the player’s experiences and their interactions when they play – how they look, feel and interact with other living things.
• We design in-deep customization and functionality to character assets for the game’s specific needs.
• We work with a broad range of digital tools for sculpting, modelling and texture panting, with fundamental basis in observational art creation and an explicit attention to detail.
• We use other technical tools for cloth simulations, photogrammetry and physically based shader pipelines to help us create believable characters.
• You’ll join a global team setting high standards across all of our projects, who have an exacting production focus and an obsession for getting the minutiae right.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Work within the Character Art asset creation pipeline for all our global titles.
• Work with Art Direction and Leadership Team to achieve creative and production goals whilst working under your own initiative.
• Work with the Character and Technical Art teams to create balanced, pragmatic and timely solutions to all related technical and aesthetic issues.

QUALIFICATIONS

• 3+ years of development experience, having shipped AAA console titles as part of a character art team.
• A comprehensive portfolio showing final art 3D character assets - ideally created as part of a specialized development team - highlighting specific abilities in the representation of realistic surfacing treatments on clothing, accessories and skin, and other current-generation technical character features.

SKILLS

• Extensive experience and understanding of material pipelines, including material generation using Substance Designer and Substance Painter.
• A deep knowledge of the utilisation of tiled texture inputs to achieve high resolution assets at runtime.
• Experience in creating and organising the art and assets that facilitate the asset creation and subsequent customisation of characters in editor tools.
• Has a detail-obsessed eye for creating and manipulating texture maps and surface patterns, and excellent understanding of the value of UV space.
• A full understanding of all current generation production workflows as they pertain to character art asset production - including an understanding of PBR/Lighting pipelines, shader tools and technical shader approaches.
• Ability to work with bespoke engine toolsets, defined asset workflows, and contribute to overall character department goals and working practices.
• Positive, solution-oriented individual with a passion for making great game art in a team setting.
• Self-motivated and flexible, with excellent communication skills.
• Prioritises consistent delivery of high-quality Character art to meet goals.

PLUSES

Please note that these are desirable skills and are not required to apply for the position.

• A keen understanding of the human body and facial anatomy; creature anatomy; asset form, structure and silhouette in respect of economical and appropriate modelling for game target assets and polycounts.
• A keen interest and passion for clothing, worn accessories and garment construction detailing; as they relate explicitly to specific real-world references and concepts, mood boards and directed styling cues.
• An inherent appreciation and understanding of fashion and street style, and era-specific culture as they relate to costuming and dressing.
• Excellent problem-solving skills. Ability to work in a self-directed manner and to make timely, well-reasoned decisions.
• Great interpersonal skills. Must be able to work closely in a team setting and with other dependent departments.

HOW TO APPLY

Please apply with a CV and cover letter demonstrating how you meet the skills above. If we would like to move forward with your application, a Rockstar recruiter will reach out to you to explain next steps and guide you through the process.

Rockstar is proud to be an equal opportunity employer, and we are committed to hiring, promoting, and compensating employees based on their qualifications and demonstrated ability to perform job responsibilities.

If you’ve got the right skills for the job, we want to hear from you. We encourage applications from all suitable candidates regardless of age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, belief, race, or any other protected category.

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