Associate Technical Artist

LNW Gaming, Inc.(KAC); Reno (NV); On-site; USD 85,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Light & Wonder, Inc. is seeking a skilled translator between art and engineering to bring game visuals to life. You will work under technical artists and engineers to realize player-facing visions for game themes, supporting asset implementation and improving the content pipeline.

Applicants should have hands-on knowledge of a modern game engine, solid coding fundamentals, and a keen eye for detail. You will collaborate with artists, animators, and engineers to optimize performance and ensure

Qualifications

• Bachelor of Arts in art, animation, computer science, or equivalent experience.
• Proficiency with Unity and asset pipelines.
• Experience writing shaders and art tools.
• Familiarity with 3D animation pipelines and C# scripting.

Responsibilities

• Create, edit, and implement technical components of visual elements and animations used in games, following established pipeline standards for import settings and technical requirements.
• Assist with setting up and troubleshooting animation in engine, including rigs, skinning, animation clips, state transitions, and playback timing.
• Use programming languages and 3D graphics packages such as 3ds Max and Maya to modify art and animation assets for technical viability and performance.
• Evaluate asset rendering and animation playback, and modify models, rigs, and animations to improve performance, memory footprint, and responsiveness on supported hardware.
• Build and test prototypes of game functionality, animation behavior, and theme dynamics under direction.
• Identify and fix asset, animation, and code errors, escalating complex issues to senior team members.
• Assist Artists, Animators, and Engineers with routine technical issues related to the art and animation pipeline, and help document best practices.
• Actively seek feedback and mentorship to grow technical and pipeline skills.

Skills

Unity

JavaScript

MAXScript

C++

C#

Photoshop

After Effects

3DS Max

Perforce

Art tools

Shaders

UI/UX

Education

Bachelor of Arts in art, animation, computer science, or equivalent experience

Job description

Gaming: Welcome to the world of land-based gaming. At Light & Wonder, it's all about the games, and our Gaming team builds cutting-edge technology, products, and content for the most iconic casinos and operators across the globe.

Position Summary

Help bring our games to life as a translator between art and engineering. Working under the guidance of technical artists and engineers, you will support the studio in achieving the player-facing vision for each game theme. Other duties include following and helping improve the content and animation creation pipeline, assisting game artists and animators with asset implementation, and building familiarity with current game industry tools and processes. Requires working knowledge of a modern game engine and its scripting language, solid coding fundamentals, and a good eye for detail.

Essential Job Functions

• Create, edit, and implement the technical components of artistic visual elements and animations used in games, following established pipeline standards for import settings and technical requirements
• Assist with setting up and troubleshooting animation in engine, including rigs, skinning, animation clips, state transitions, and playback timing
• Use programming languages and 3D graphics packages such as 3ds Max and Maya to modify art and animation assets for technical viability and performance
• Evaluate asset rendering and animation playback, and modify models, rigs, and animations to improve performance, memory footprint, and responsiveness on supported hardware
• Build and test prototypes of game functionality, animation behavior, and theme dynamics under direction
• Identify and fix asset, animation, and code errors, escalating complex issues to senior team members
• Assist Artists, Animators, and Engineers with routine technical issues related to the art and animation pipeline, and help document best practices
• Actively seek feedback and mentorship to grow technical and pipeline skills

Qualifications

Education/Experience: Bachelor of Arts in art, animation, computer science, or equivalent experience.

Requirements

• Unity familiarity, including Prefabs, Particle Systems, and Materials preferred
• Fluency in other coding languages, especially JavaScript, MAXScript, and C++
• Working knowledge of C#
• Proficient in Photoshop
• Familiarity with motion graphics & compositing editors (After Effects preferred)
• Familiarity with 3D animation & rendering applications (3DS Max preferred)
• Working knowledge of versioning software (Perforce preferred)
• Experience writing art tools
• Experience writing shaders (Cg preferred)
• Understanding of UI / UX principles across various platforms

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Familiarity with technical documentation
• An understanding of artistic concepts and pipeline
• Working knowledge of animation state machines
• Strong problem-solving skills
• Excellent organizational skills
• Interact and collaborate with immediate peers
• Experience working with a team under tight deadlines
• Self-motivated and able to work on multiple projects with minimal direction
• Familiarity with AI tools is a plus

Physical Requirements

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit, stand, walk, bend, use hands, operate a computer, and have specific vision abilities to include close and distance vision, and ability to adjust focus working with computer and business equipment.

Work Conditions

Light & Wonder and its affiliates (collectively, L&W) are engaged in highly regulated gaming and lottery businesses. As a result, certain L&W employees may, among other things, be required to obtain a gaming or other license(s), undergo background investigations or security checks, or meet certain standards dictated by law, regulation or contracts. In order to ensure L&W complies with its regulatory and contractual commitments, as a condition to hiring and continuing to employ its employees, L&W requires all of its employees to meet those requirements that are necessary to fulfill their individual roles. As a prerequisite to employment with L&W (to the extent permitted by law), you shall be asked to consent to L&W conducting a due diligence/background investigation on you. This job description should not be interpreted as all-inclusive; it is intended to identify major responsibilities and requirements of the job. The employee in this position may be requested to perform other job-related tasks and responsibilities than those stated above.

#LI-JA1 Light & Wonder is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate against applicants due to race, color, sex, age, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, status as a veteran, and basis of disability or any other federal, state or local protected class.

Light & Wonder, Inc. is the leading cross-platform global games company. Through our three unique, yet highly complementary businesses, we deliver unforgettable experiences by combining the exceptional talents of our 7,000+ member team, with a deep understanding of our customers and players.

We create immersive content that forges lasting connections with players, wherever they choose to engage.

At Light & Wonder, it's all about the games.

The Company is committed to the highest standards of integrity, from promoting player responsibility to implementing sustainable practices.

To review our applicant data use practices, please visit: https://explore.lnw.com/careers/data-privacy/