Games Technology Lead, Mattel Digital Studio

Mattelinc; El Segundo (CA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Mattel seeks a Games Technical Lead to provide hands-on technical oversight and publishing support across multiple titles in development with external studios. Focus on mobile free-to-play development and live operations to safeguard delivery and long-term success.

You'll collaborate with production, design, LiveOps and QA to ensure technically sound products, strengthen backend services, and scale globally while mitigating risk and optimizing performance.

Qualifications

• 5+ years in mobile game development and/or publishing with shipped products.
• Experience guiding technical direction for third-party development teams.
• Experience supporting multiple publishing projects and live operations.
• Strong understanding of free-to-play ecosystems, server-authoritative loops, and analytics.
• Familiarity with mobile pipelines and build/content workflows.
• Analytical mindset balancing business priorities with technical risk and feedback.

Responsibilities

• Serve as technical lead between Mattel and external developers from concept to launch and live ops.
• Vet designs, assess partner capabilities, and develop risk mitigation strategies.
• Support multiple titles in parallel, ensuring consistency and alignment with publishing services.
• Collaborate with production, design, LiveOps, QA to deliver high-quality products.
• Provide oversight on engineering practices, performance tuning, and backend integrations.
• Hands-on when needed to diagnose issues and drive resolution, with clear leadership reporting.

Skills

Mobile game dev

Publishing

Third‑party teams

LiveOps

Analytics frameworks

Mobile pipelines

Technical leadership

Risk analysis

Tools

Unity/C#

Unreal/C++

Nakama

GitHub

Backtrace

Jira

CI/CD

BigQuery

Job description

The Opportunity

We are seeking a Games Technical Lead to provide hands-on technical oversight and publishing support across multiple game titles in development with external studios. This role ensures Mattel's publishing goals are achieved through high-quality execution, risk mitigation, and seamless integration of Mattel Game Studios publishing platform and services. With a strong focus on mobile free-to-play development and live operations, you will play a critical role in safeguarding the delivery and ensuring long-term success of our titles.

What Your Impact Will Be

• Serve as the primary technical point of contact between Mattel and third-party developers, owning technical aspects of projects from concept through launch and live operations.
• Uphold quality and reduce risk by vetting technical designs, assessing partner capabilities, and developing mitigation strategies.
• Support the simultaneous development of multiple titles, ensuring consistency, efficiency, and alignment with Mattel's publishing platform services.
• Collaborate closely with production, design, art, LiveOps, and QA teams to deliver technically sound, high-quality products that meet business objectives.
• Provide technical oversight on key areas such as engineering practices, performance optimization, service integration, and backend technologies that scale globally.
• Get hands-on when needed-digging into issues, conducting deep analysis, and driving resolution of complex technical problems.
• Deliver clear and timely reporting to leadership, including risk assessments, technical evaluations, and status updates.

What We're Looking For

• 5+ years in mobile game development and/or publishing, with direct involvement in shipped products.
• Proven experience supporting third-party development teams, resolving engineering challenges, and guiding technical direction.
• Experience supporting multiple projects in a publishing environment.
• Solid understanding of the free-to-play ecosystem and LiveOps requirements, including server-authoritative game loops and analytics/experimentation frameworks.
• Familiarity with mobile game development pipelines, including build and content/art workflows that support efficient production.
• Analytical mindset with the ability to balance business priorities against technical risks; navigating complex issues with timely and understandable feedback and direction.

Preferred Qualifications

• Hands-on experience with Unity / C# or Unreal Engine / C++.
• Familiarity with industry-standard tools and services such as Heroic Labs Nakama, GitHub, Backtrace, Jira, CI/CD (GitHub Actions, Jenkins), big data platforms (e.g. BigQuery).
• Broad knowledge of mobile game development, including performance optimization, rendering techniques, games backend services, authentication systems, analytics, multiplayer & social features.
• Analytical thinker with the ability to balance business priorities against technical risks, providing timely, understandable feedback and direction.
• Demonstrated a growth mindset by staying curious and continuously learning, embracing challenges, and improving themselves.

*The pay range is indicative of projected hiring range, however base pay will be determined based on a candidate's work location, skills and experience. Mattel offers competitive total pay programs, comprehensive benefits, and resources to help empower a culture where every employee can reach their full potential.

How We Work

We are a purpose driven company aiming to empower generations to explore the wonder of childhood and reach their full potential. We live up to our purpose employing the following behaviors:

We collaborate

Being a part of Mattel means being part of one team with shared values and common goals. Every person counts and working closely together always brings better results. Partnership is our process and our collective capabilities is our superpower.

We innovate

At Mattel we always aim to find new and better ways to create innovative products and experiences. No matter where you work in the organization, you can always make a difference and have real impact. We welcome new ideas and value new initiatives that challenge conventional thinking.

We execute

We are a performance-driven company. We strive for excellence and are focused on pursuing best-in-class outcomes. We believe in accountability and ownership and know that our people are at their best when they are empowered to create and deliver results.