Lead Software Engineer - Unity

Lead Software Engineer - Unity

Requisition ID

R027337

Job Description

Join the Hearthstone team at Blizzard as a Lead Software Engineer, Unity, and lead our growing Client Foundations team. This critical team architects and builds systems to scale our game's client for a massive player base, ensuring a performant and responsive experience.

We seek a candidate with deep technical expertise in Unity, C#, and .NET, a proven history of leading engineers in game client development, optimizing for multi-platform delivery, and collaborating with technical artists to create scalable systems for delightful player experiences.

We value diverse voices and backgrounds, and we're looking for individuals to help us build fun, compelling, and inclusive gameplay and experiences.

This role offers a flexible hybrid work week from our Irvine, CA studio, with options for remote and on-site days. Full-time on-site work is also welcome.

Responsibilities

• Lead, mentor, and grow our engineering team, fostering collaboration, technical excellence, and accountability while being a key code contributor.
• Manage priorities, deadlines, and deliverables, ensuring clear communication and alignment across peers and disciplines.
• Proactively identify and address technical and execution risks within the Client engineering domain.
• Collaborate with game developers to ensure a smooth and enjoyable development process.
• Partner across disciplines to optimize game performance on multiple platforms.

Minimum Requirements

• Deep, hands-on expertise with Unity, C#, and .NET, including architecting and delivering game client projects.
• Experience building and shipping games for multiple platforms (mobile, PC).
• Proven people management experience leading engineering teams in game development, with a dedication to building inclusive, high-performing teams.
• Demonstrated ability to balance technical contribution (coding/architecture) with leadership responsibilities.
• Background in live-service games, content pipelines, and iterative game client updates.
• Strong cross-functional communication skills, bridging engineering, art, and design.

Bonus Points

• Comfort with data-informed development and telemetry for measuring player impact.
• Experience building tooling within Unity for game developers.
• Contributions to an inclusive team culture, fostering psychological safety and collaboration.

Your Platform

Blizzard Entertainment, Inc., known for iconic universes like Warcraft®, Overwatch®, Diablo®, and StarCraft®, is a premier developer and publisher of entertainment experiences. As a division of Activision Blizzard, acquired by Microsoft, Blizzard has a 30-year track record of critically acclaimed and genre-defining games. We engage millions of players worldwide across PC, Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo Switch, iOS, and Android.

Our World

Activision Blizzard, Inc. is a global leader in interactive entertainment, at the intersection of media, technology, and entertainment. We are home to beloved franchises including Call of Duty®, World of Warcraft®, Overwatch®, Diablo®, Candy Crush™, and Bubble Witch™. Our network reaches hundreds of millions of monthly active users globally, making us the largest gaming network.

We believe diverse teams in an inclusive environment enhance our ability to create immersive and innovative worlds. We aspire to a culture where everyone can thrive, connecting and engaging the world through epic entertainment. Our benefits promote physical, emotional, and financial well-being for all.

The video game industry is fast-paced and evolving. The duties and responsibilities of this role may change as directed by the Company to support our business and industry relationships. We encourage applications from enthusiastic individuals. If you're unsure about meeting every qualification, please apply – we value your potential! Research indicates that women and under-represented groups may not apply if they don't meet all criteria, though they often possess the necessary skills. We are committed to diversity and inclusion.

We provide reasonable assistance to individuals with disabilities. For accommodation requests during the application process, please email [email protected]. General employment questions cannot be processed here.

We are an equal opportunity employer valuing diversity. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.

Rewards & Requirements

We offer a suite of benefits promoting physical, emotional, and financial well-being:

• Medical, dental, vision, HSA/HRA, healthcare/dependent care spending accounts, life/AD&D insurance, disability insurance.
• 401(k) with Company match, tuition reimbursement, charitable donation matching.
• Paid holidays, vacation, sick time, floating holidays, compassion/bereavement/parental leaves.
• Mental health & wellbeing programs, fitness programs, free/discounted games, and other voluntary benefits (supplemental life/disability, legal services, ID protection, rental insurance).
• Relocation assistance may be available if required for the job.

Eligibility may vary for part-time, temporary, and intern employees. Learn more at https://www.benefitsforeveryworld.com/.

In the U.S., the standard base pay range for this role is $121,500.00 - $224,880.00 annually. This range reflects expected base pay for new hires across all U.S. locations. Your specific compensation will depend on factors like relevant experience, performance, and work location. Your Talent Professional can provide detailed range information for your geography during the hiring process. Employees in this role may be eligible for incentive compensation, which is not guaranteed. New hire compensation is negotiable.