Staff Platform Engineer New Austin, Texas, United States

2K Games, Inc.; Austin (TX); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

2K Games, Inc. seeks a Staff Platform Engineer to architect the Internal Developer Platform (IDP) and lead Kubernetes infrastructure efforts across multi-cloud environments.

You will enable Game Service Developers with self-service tools, automation, and scalable deployments while shaping the platform roadmap. Ideal candidates have 10+ years in infrastructure/DevOps, strong Kubernetes expertise, and experience building internal platforms or Kubernetes tooling.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent professional experience in CS/Engineering.
• 10+ years in Infrastructure/DevOps/Platform Engineering.
• 4+ years building internal developer platforms or Kubernetes-based tooling.
• Deep AWS/GCP production workloads experience.
• Proficiency in Go, Python, or Java for automation.

Responsibilities

• Lead design, development, and delivery of scalable Kubernetes infrastructure for the Internal Developer Platform (IDP).
• Automate environment bootstrapping, provisioning, and security workflows using AI/LLM-backed approaches.
• Improve developer velocity with DevEx automation across the lifecycle.
• Maintain modular IaC libraries (Terraform) for multi-cloud provisioning.
• Define standards for orchestration, CI/CD, and service discovery in Kubernetes.
• Provide Tier 3 support and drive platform stability through RCA and architectural changes.

Skills

Kubernetes

Cloud-native

Go

Python

Terraform

CI/CD

AWS

GCP

On-call

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field

Tools

Terraform

GitHub Actions

Jenkins

Ansible

Puppet

Kubernetes Operators

Job description

At 2K, we create some of the most iconic and culture-shaping video games in entertainment, including NBA® 2K, one of the top-selling franchises in the world, and legendary titles like BioShock®, Borderlands®, Mafia, Sid Meier’s Civilization®, and XCOM®, as well as fan favorites WWE® 2K, TopSpin®, and PGA TOUR® 2K. We build unforgettable experiences by pushing the boundaries of creativity, authenticity and innovation across every genre.

Our portfolio is brought to life by some of the most influential game development studios in the world. Visual Concepts, Firaxis Games, Hangar 13, Cat Daddy Games, 31st Union, Cloud Chamber, Gearbox, HB Studios, and 2K SportsLab create world-class experiences across platforms.

But what truly powers 2K is our people.

We believe the best ideas come from teams that feel empowered, supported, and inspired. As an equal opportunity employer, we are committed to fostering a diverse, inclusive workplace where people are encouraged to come as they are and do their best work.

What We Need

The Staff Platform Engineer is a principal-level technical leader at 2K, serving as the architect and champion of our internal developer ecosystems. This role is dedicated to treating the platform as a product, with the primary goal of optimizing the experience for internal Game Service Developers. By building robust "paved paths," self-service infrastructure, and sophisticated automation, the Staff Platform Engineer enables our development teams to deploy and scale services with maximum velocity and minimal friction. This role operates at a high level of technical influence, shaping the long-term roadmap for platform engineering and mentoring senior talent across the organization.

Responsibilities & Requirements

Duties

• Platform Product Ownership: Lead the design, development, and delivery of scalable Kubernetes infrastructure, ensuring seamless integration into the Internal Developer Platform (IDP) to provide Game Service Developers with intuitive, self-service infrastructure capabilities.
• AI Strategy & Execution: Utilize AI and LLM-backed agentic workflows to automate environment bootstrapping, infrastructure provisioning, security vulnerabilities, and context-aware troubleshooting.
• Developer Experience (DevEx) Strategy: Identify bottlenecks in the software development lifecycle and build automated solutions to improve developer velocity and autonomy.
• Infrastructure as Code (IaC): Architect and maintain modular, reusable IaC libraries (e.g., Terraform) to standardize environment provisioning across multi-cloud and terrestrial data centers.
• Standardization & Governance: Define and implement organization-wide standards for container orchestration, CI/CD pipelines, and service discovery within the Kubernetes ecosystem.
• Advanced Troubleshooting: Provide Tier 3 support for complex platform-level issues, conducting deep-dive root cause analysis and implementing architectural changes to prevent systemic recurrence.
• Technical Leadership: Serve as a primary consultant to Product Engineering teams, ensuring their services are architected to leverage the platform and Kubernetes patterns effectively.
• On-Call Leadership: Participate in and lead the escalation path for the platform engineering on-call rotation, ensuring platform availability for internal customers.

Must-Haves

• Behavioral: Strong "customer-first" mindset with a focus on internal developer needs; ability to influence without authority across different studios and time zones.
• Functional / Technical: Expert-level mastery of Kubernetes architecture, cloud-native ecosystems, and the "Platform-as-a-Product" philosophy.
• Strategic Influence: Ability to translate long-term business goals into technical roadmaps for the platform team.
• Educational Background: Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent professional experience.
• Experience: 10+ years of experience in Infrastructure, DevOps, or Platform Engineering, with at least 4+ years specifically focused on building internal developer platforms or Kubernetes-based tooling.
• Cloud Expertise: Deep expert-level experience with AWS and/or GCP, specifically managing highly elastic, mission-critical production workloads.
• Orchestration & Containers: Expert knowledge of Kubernetes internals (operators, controllers, CRDs) and container security at scale.
• AI & Agentic Engineering Skills: Proven foundational knowledge or hands-on experience incorporating Large Language Models (LLMs) and AI agents into automated engineering workflows, APIs, or platform tools.
• Programming: Advanced proficiency in Go, Python, or Java, with a focus on building automation tools, Kubernetes operators, and APIs.
• CI/CD & Tooling: Mastery of Git, Jenkins, GitLab CI, or GitHub Actions, and configuration management tools (Ansible, Puppet) alongside Terraform.
• Architecture: Proven ability to architect multi-region, high-availability systems that support global user bases.
• Availability: Willingness and ability to participate in a 24/7 rotational on-call schedule to support platform stability.

Nice-to-Haves

• Prior experience in the gaming industry, specifically supporting large-scale multiplayer backend services.
• Experience contributing to open-source projects related to platform engineering (e.g. Backstage, Crossplane).
• Deep understanding of networking protocols and global traffic management.

As an equal opportunity employer, we are committed to ensuring that qualified individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform their essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us if you need reasonable accommodation.

Please note that 2K Games and its studios never uses instant messaging apps or personal email accounts to contact prospective employees or conduct interviews and when emailing, only use 2K.com accounts.

Please note that 2K Publishing is unable to provide visa sponsorship or assistance for this positio n. All candidates must be legally authorized to work in the United States without requiring current or future employer sponsorship.

#LI-Hybrid

As set forth in 2K’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy,we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection. As a government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measurethe effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categoriesis as follows:

A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.

A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.

An "active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.

An "Armed forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.

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