Senior EdTech Game Designer - Remote Contractor

Macmillan Learning; Austin (TX); On-site; USD 96,000 - 124,000; Full time

Job summary

Macmillan Learning is expanding its interactive learning capabilities and seeks a Senior Game Design Consultant to bring dedicated game design expertise across simulations, mini-games, and interactive widgets for digital courses.

Reporting to the Director of Product Design, you will partner with product designers, researchers, product managers, engineers, and content creators to deliver engaging learning experiences that bring our content to life.

Qualifications

• Demonstrated game design craft with a portfolio showing mechanics and player feedback loops.
• Ability to break simulations into reusable components and rule sets to support templatization.
• Strong visual storytelling and storyboarding translating ideas into narrative arcs and branching paths.
• Comfortable working as an independent contributor across high-level design and hands-on grayboxing.

Responsibilities

• Architect core loops, progression models, and level layouts for scenario-driven simulations.
• Develop visual storyboards mapping narrative arcs, character contexts, and branching player choices.
• Design lightweight mini-games and interactive widgets for digital course materials.
• Create reusable components, variables, and rule sets for templatized development.
• Collaborate with designers, researchers, PMs, engineers, and content creators to align interactive concepts with learning goals.
• Coordinate with engineers to translate game mechanics into production builds.
• Use AI tools to prototype assets and test game feel.

Skills

Game design

Systems design

Storyboarding

Independent contributor

Visual storytelling

Mechanics design

Grayboxing

AI prototyping

Tools

Unity

Phaser

PixiJS

WebGL

Job description

Macmillan Learning is expanding its interactive learning capabilities and seeks a Senior Game Design Consultant to bring dedicated game design expertise across simulations, mini-games, and interactive widgets for digital courses.

Reporting to the Director of Product Design, you will partner with product designers, researchers, product managers, engineers, and content creators to deliver engaging learning experiences that bring our content to life.