Character Artist - StarCraft | Irvine, CA

Blizzard Entertainment; Irvine (CA); Hybrid; USD 43,000 - 77,000; Full time

Job summary

Blizzard Entertainment is seeking a Character Artist to help craft StarCraft's next chapter in Irvine, CA. You will model, texture, and polish photorealistic characters, weapons, and props using Maya, ZBrush, Substance Painter and Unreal Engine 5.

You'll collaborate with art directors and engineers to ensure art direction and performance goals are met, while mentoring teammates and pushing innovative workflows in a hybrid work setup.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in game development as a character artist.
• Proficient in Maya, ZBrush, Substance Painter and texturing pipelines.
• Strong knowledge of human and creature anatomy and hard-surface modeling.
• Ability to optimize models for performance in Unreal Engine 5.
• Excellent communication and ability to work within a team.

Responsibilities

• Create high quality 3D character models, props and weapons.
• Collaborate with art director to ensure consistency and style.
• Optimize models for real-time performance across platforms.
• Mentor junior team members and share feedback.
• Stay updated on industry trends to improve workflows.

Skills

Character modeling

Team collaboration

Artistic eye

Tools

Maya

Photoshop

Substance Painter

Zbrush

Mudbox

Unreal Engine 5

Job description

Job Title

Character Artist - StarCraft | Irvine, CA

Team Name

StarCraft

Requisition ID

R028136

Job Description

Blizzard Entertainment is assembling a team to build the next chapter of StarCraft, returning to a universe forged in interstellar war. This mission offers something new: crafting an original story-driven, open-world shooter while honoring the legacy of one of Blizzard's most beloved games.

We are here to reignite this universe alongside you. We are here to make StarCraft, and it's about damn time.

We are looking for a Character Artist to help craft this new game for Blizzard. As a key member of the development team, you will be responsible for delivering. As an essential part of the development team, you should have extensive experience working with modeling, sculpting, and texturing tools to achieve photorealistic characters, weapons, and props. Additionally, you should have expertise in human and creature anatomy, hard surface modeling, and Unreal Engine 5 paired with a strong technical background in game development and the character pipeline.

This role offers a hybrid work week, with a mix of work-from-home and on-site days, based out of our Irvine studio.

Responsibilities

• Contribute to the creation of high-quality, detailed 3D models from realistic humans and creatures to vehicles, weapons and props.
• Collaborate with the art director and team leads to ensure artistic consistency and quality.
• Work closely with the animation and technical teams to ensure models are optimized for performance.
• Provide occasional mentorship or feedback to junior team members.
• Stay current with and continually research trends, tools, and techniques within our industry to see how they can benefit our workflows and push innovation.

Requirements

• 5+ years of experience in game development as an artist specializing in character modeling using Maya, Photoshop, Substance Painter, Zbrush or Mudbox.
• Strong understanding of asset creation pipelines and tools.
• Strong understanding of sculpting form, shape, structure, and silhouette.
• Demonstrated proficiency in traditional hard-surface poly modeling techniques.
• Great eye for light, shading, color, and detail in creating texture maps.
• Self-motivation, outstanding communication skills, and a great team-player attitude.
• Able to work creatively as part of a large or small group.
• Proven problem-solving / prototyping ability.
• Able to effectively collaborate with every department of a game development team (game designers, programmers, tech art, animation, etc.).
• Passion for video games.

Bonus Points

• Experience working with a AAA game engine, e.g. Unreal, Unity, etc.
• Knowledge of scripting languages such as Python or MEL.
• Experience with photogrammetry and scanning techniques.
• Experience using Marvelous designer and hair systems.
• Understanding of rigging and deformation.
• Familiarity with Blizzard games and Cinematics

Submission / Portfolio Requirements

• Portfolio and / or reel demonstrating relevant artistic skills
  • Only online artwork submissions will be accepted (e.g. website, blog or online album).

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!

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 [e-mail]. 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.

Rewards

We Provide a Suite Of Benefits That Promote Physical, Emotional And Financial Well-being For ‘Every World’ - We’ve Got Our Employees Covered! Subject To Eligibility Requirements, The Company Offers Comprehensive Benefits Including:

• Medical, dental, vision, health savings account or health reimbursement account, healthcare spending accounts, dependent care spending accounts, life and AD&DD insurance, disability insurance;
• 401(k) with Company match, tuition reimbursement, charitable donation matching;
• Paid holidays and vacation, paid sick time, floating holidays, compassion and bereavement leaves, parental leave;
• Mental health & wellbeing programs, fitness programs, free and discounted games, and a variety of other voluntary benefit programs like supplemental life & disability, legal service, ID protection, rental insurance, and others;
• If the Company requires that you move geographic locations for the job, then you may also be eligible for relocation assistance.

Eligibility to participate in these benefits may vary for part time and temporary full-time employees and interns with the Company. You can learn more by visiting https://www.benefitsforeveryworld.com/.

In the U.S., the standard base pay range for this role is $30.47 - $56.35 Hourly. These values reflect the expected base pay range of new hires across all U.S. locations. Ultimately, your specific range and offer will be based on several factors, including relevant experience, performance, and work location. Your Talent Professional can share this role’s range details for your local geography during the hiring process. In addition to a competitive base pay, employees in this role may be eligible for incentive compensation. Incentive compensation is not guaranteed. While we strive to provide competitive offers to successful candidates, new hire compensation is negotiable.