Environment Gameplay Designer

Sunblink; Boulder (CO); On-site; USD 55,000 - 96,000; Full time

Job summary

Sunblink is seeking a mid-to-lead level designer for a ~30 hour/week contract in Boulder to design and prototype open-world environments from blockout to playable spaces.

You will balance visual spectacle with tight playability, define flow of large spaces, and build traversal systems and POIs that drive the player's journey. Collaboration across art, design, and engineering is essential.

Qualifications

• Experience designing large-scale, non-linear spaces with a portfolio showing layout and gameplay work.
• Ability to balance visual spectacle with playability and pacing in open-world environments.
• Prototyping in-engine using scripting or visual scripting to test ideas early.

Responsibilities

• Design and prototype open-world environments end to end from blockout to gameplay-ready spaces.
• Define layout, sightlines, traversal routes, choke points, and pacing between areas of differing intensity.
• Design and implement traversal systems, POIs, encounters, and interactive environmental gameplay.

Skills

Open-world design

Prototyping

Unreal/Unity

Blueprints/scripting

Navigation & guidance

POIs and encounters

Art/design collaboration

Tools

Unreal Engine

Unity

Scripting (C#, C++, Lua, Python)

Job description

This is a ~30 hour/week contract position for mid-to-lead level.

A combination aesthetic and gameplay oriented role for folks who can quickly graybox open worlds and prototype the dense, rich interactions that make them satisfying - all while keeping visual design top of mind.

Core Responsibilities

• Design and prototype open-world environments end to end, from blockout through gameplay-ready spaces, balancing visual spectacle with moment-to-moment playability
• Define the layout and flow of large spaces: sightlines, landmarks, traversal routes, choke points, and pacing between areas of high and low intensity
• Design and implement pathing systems, including critical paths, secondary routes, shortcuts, and traversal options that support multiple playstyles
• Conceive, place, and iterate on Points of Interest (POIs), defining each one's purpose, encounter structure, rewards, and role in the player's broader journey
• Build interactive environmental gameplay, such as traversal mechanics, destructibles, hazards, puzzles, and systemic interactions that make spaces feel reactive and alive
• Rapidly prototype in-engine using scripting, visual scripting, or code to test and validate ideas early, with a bias toward playable builds over documents
• Present design intent and prototypes clearly to leads, stakeholders, and cross-discipline partners, and incorporate critique constructively

Required Experience

• Demonstrated ability to design large-scale, non-linear spaces, with a portfolio showing both layout and gameplay work
• Strong understanding of player navigation, visual communication, and guiding players without heavy UI or explicit direction
• Hands-on experience prototyping in a modern engine (Unreal Engine or Unity), including blockout tools, terrain and landscape tools, and gameplay scripting
• Proficiency in visual scripting (e.g., Blueprints) and/or a scripting language (C#, C++, Lua, Python) to build and iterate on interactions
• Experience designing POIs, encounters, or activities and integrating them into a cohesive world
• Solid grasp of gameplay systems design, including how traversal, combat, AI, and exploration interact within an environment
• Ability to balance creative ambition with technical constraints such as memory, streaming, draw distance, and content budgets
• Excellent communication skills, with experience collaborating across art, design, and engineering disciplines
• Comfort with iterative, feedback-driven development and with taking a prototype from rough concept to polished, playable content

Bonus Experience

• Shipped at least one open-world or large-scale exploration title
• Experience with procedural or semi-procedural tools (e.g., Houdini, PCG, world-building tools) for environment and content placement
• Background in systemic or emergent design, such as ecosystems, dynamic events, or AI-driven world behaviors
• Technical art or environment art skills, including blockout-to-art handoff and kit-bashing
• Experience with traversal-focused design (climbing, gliding, vehicles, mounts, etc.)
• Familiarity with analytics and telemetry tools for evaluating player movement and engagement
• Experience with world streaming, World Partition, or level-of-detail strategies in large environments
• Contributions to game jams, mods, or personal projects that show initiative and creative range
• Experience mentoring designers or leading small cross-discipline strike teams
• Passion for exploration-driven games, with a strong point of view on what makes a world feel worth exploring

Hours & Expectations

This is a 3 - 6 month initial contract with opportunities for extension or hire depending on project status and work compatibility. We expect 30-40 hours a week most weeks.

Help Enrich Our World

We encourage underrepresented applicants to apply even if you do not meet 100% of the qualifications.

Transparency in LLM Usage

If you’re using an LLM to write your cover letter, please disclose it with a brief initial sentence (and whether you are or aren’t, please let us know your favorite pop culture creature then, too). We consider transparency in AI usage important. (We used it to help with this req, for instance!)