Head of Game Design

About the role:

Permanent full-time on-site in Wellington, NZ – 40 hours per week – $100k+  based on experience. International applicants are welcome to apply, but must keep in mind the visa requirements for immigration.

We’re Dinosaur Polo Club, an award-winning video game studio full of lovely people making games in Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington, Aotearoa New Zealand.

After developing and supporting two successful titles in our Mini franchise, we’re expanding our catalogue of games and are on the look-out for an enthusiastic and experienced Head of Game Design to join our team. Positive and professional with great organisational and interpersonal skills, they will be helping us to support our wonderful team of game designers across projects. Hopefully this person is you!

We’re looking for someone with several years of experience as a professional game designer, and experience leading and supporting teams. We’d like someone who is confident in establishing and leading a Game Design Department, as this is a new role, and will work closely with our team to improve the way the department operates within Dinosaur Polo Club. As the Head of Game Design you’ll be responsible for making sure that the team is well resourced, follows best practice, works effectively with our other departments, and are thriving in their roles.

What you'll do in this role:

• Lead, build and support our wonderful game design team to help them thrive at Dinosaur Polo Club.
• Support the development of your team, by conducting 1:1s, establishing clear professional development goals and providing regular feedback.
• Oversee all projects in the Game Design Department from a delivery and resource perspective and ensure they’re well resourced to meet deadlines.
• Collaborate with our vision holders to effectively deliver each game’s intended experience.
• Facilitate the mentorship of the game design team, offering guidance and coaching where necessary.
• Nurture a close working relationship with your department and wider team, liaising with the other departments to ensure robust understanding of implementation requirements.
• Regularly take part in project reviews, being comfortable with both offering and responding to feedback from others in the team.
• Lead the improvement of the studio’s workflow, tools, and creative direction and bring others in the team along the journey.
• Share knowledge, recommend best practices, and champion a culture of learning within the Game Design Department.
• Be a part of both a department and studio team, actively seeking to develop a method of communicating that is understandable to those outside of your immediate department.

The skills and experience we're looking for:

• At least five years professional experience working within the field of game design in the games industry or a similar creative industry;
• Solid understanding of design principles, methodologies and practices;
• Fantastic organisational skills, with a high level of initiative;
• Experience leading teams and managing people;
• Ability to support and mentor other members of the team;
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, fluent in English;
• An interest in developing unique and high-quality video games;
• Dedication to working in a professional, inclusive, and supportive environment. As a Head of Department, you will be responsible for ensuring all of these qualities are maintained within our team.

Your skills may also include:

• A tertiary qualification in an equivalent field would be nice to have, but is not essential;
• Experience working within game engines such as Unity and Unreal Engine would be beneficial, but not required.

About us:

At Dinosaur Polo Club we value a healthy work-life balance where our dinos can flourish both inside and outside of the studio. We have a creative team, opportunities for growth, and a wholesome, supportive studio environment.

We value diversity and believe that our team should be as varied and wonderful as the people who play our games all around the world. Differences such as disabilities, gender identity, sexual orientation, ethnicity and any other aspects of various cultures and identities are important perspectives that contribute to an inclusive, well-rounded, and engaging work environment. We know we’re creating better games when we have varied perspectives and experiences contributing to them. Women, LGBTQ+ community, Māori and Pasifika  – we want to hear from you!

If there is anything we can do to allow for easier participation in the interview process, please let us know at careers@dinopoloclub.com.

What we can offer:

• A lovely bunch of skilled and enthusiastic team members for you to work alongside.
• Generous training allowance for things such as conferences, workshops, online courses and self-directed learning.
• Dedicated training days.
• A studio trialing a four day work week.
• Support structure including regular one-on-ones.
• Team activities such as a quarterly pot-luck lunch, movie nights at the studio, holiday functions and more.
• Healthy snacks, yummy treats, and close proximity to some of Wellington’s best eateries! Plus an impressive array of locally made tea and coffee.
• Quarterly personal discretionary wellness allowance.
• Quarterly bonuses based on studio performance.
• Monthly workplace massages.
• Friday afternoon socials.
• Flexible workplace with core hours and optional work-from-home days.