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Bethesda Game Studios · 3 months ago

Principal Gameplay Programmer

Rockville, MD

Full-time

Onsite

Lead/Staff

$145K/yr - $275K/yr

10+ years exp

Bethesda Game Studios is the award-winning development team behind Starfield, The Elder Scrolls, and Fallout. They are seeking a Principal Gameplay Programmer to design, implement, and maintain gameplay systems for Fallout 76, guiding complex gameplay features and collaborating with other team members to enhance player experience.

GamingSoftwareVideoVideo Games

Responsibilities

You will easily dive in and become familiar with the game systems in our client/server engine

You will implement, guide, and review game systems for Fallout 76

You will work closely with designers, artists, and other programmers to iterate on gameplay features and ensure a great player experience

You will take ownership of and help shape the overall game experience, extending beyond programming responsibilities

You will own at least one major technology and/or game system in Fallout 76

You will solve the more difficult bugs, problems, architectural dilemmas, or optimization issues

You will be a leader in shaping programming policies and exploring new technologies and processes, especially in areas where others may face challenges

You will help guide the direction of gameplay features and suggest options and alternatives that will improve the product

You will code review and mentor more junior team members

You will manage your time effectively with little to no guidance and prioritize work based on ROI and risk

Qualification

C++Networking game featuresGameplay systemsAsynchronous programmingService-based gamesLinux environmentCloud ArchitectureTeam leadershipMentoringProblem-solving

Required

10+ years' experience programming, with most of it in AAA games and gameplay programming in C++

B.S. (or higher) in Computer Science, or equivalent work experience

Expert experience in networking game features and awareness of the complexities of networked gameplay (replication of state, behaviors, physics, client/server breakdown of features and game systems)

Owned major systems and features including such things as combat, movement, camera, player progression, crafting/building, player stats, player creation and loadout, quests, events, repeatable missions, systematic content, player input, dialogue, companion/NPC/AI, and UI

Expert in programming game systems in an asynchronous environment whether that be threaded, across frames, or across processes via a network

Part of creating and launching a AAA title from beginning to end

Significant experience with service-based games

Significant experience in securing multiplayer systems from bad actors as well as experience in detecting them

Responsible for coding and/or reviewing the code for most of the Skills listed

Significant experience working in a Linux based environment including basic system administration and performance management

Familiarity with Cloud Architecture in AWS and Azure and DevOps principles

Preferred

Expert computer science fundamentals including design patterns, algorithms and algorithmic complexity, memory management, state/object management, compilation, execution, and asynchronous processing and how all these apply to game systems in C++

Expert understanding of OO principles including application of composition vs inheritance as well as SOLID principles as it applies to game systems in C++

Expertise in async programming principles and networked applications

Ability to comfortably work with a legacy engine and make major changes while maintaining stability

Solid understanding of all traditional gameplay systems within a game loop across multiple engines such that you understand dependencies between systems and the direction things should be pushed in

Expertise with the three C's (Character, Camera, Controls)

Expertise in NPC AI

Expertise in combat systems

Expertise in how to ‘hide the latency' and produce smooth seamless gameplay in a networked environment

Expertise in game state validation techniques that still maintain seamless gameplay

Ability to diagnose performance and connectivity issues in Linux, Windows, and Consoles environments

Expertise in profiling across platforms with tools suited to each platform

Expertise in debugging across multiple platforms