The Company
Classic video games deserve better. At Digital Eclipse, we treat them with the same care and respect given to other artistic mediums. In its original incarnation in 1994, Digital Eclipse pioneered accurate video game re-releases, emulating vintage arcade games well before “emulation” was a household word. 25 years later, we’ve been reborn as a new kind of studio - one dedicated to not only restoring gaming’s heritage, but to preserving it and keeping it alive and available for future generations.
We've released critically acclaimed games like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Cowabunga Collection and Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration, worked with Mega Man, Street Fighter, and Disney, and developed successful original IP like #IDARB. And we're just getting started.
The Role
As a Technical Artist, you will serve as a crucial link between artists and programmers, primarily for our remakes and demakes of classic games and IP’s. You will work closely with artists, creative directors, and lead programmers to set up and maintain the workflow of art production. You'll help decide which packages and tools our studio should use, investigate new techniques, and move forward with implementing them. Ideally, you will also spend some of your time producing visual effects and materials for use in Digital Eclipse's games.
What You’ll Do
- Work with engineers to develop technical plans to create and implement all art for game projects.
- Author, and assisting in the authoring of, visual effects and material shaders in Unreal or Unity.
- Coordinate with the art and design disciplines to achieve the best possible visuals for the game vision, within the technical constraints of the engine and target platforms.
- Create and oversee the art production workflow from beginning to end with both internal artists and outsourcers.
- Research, develop, and implement high-quality rendering techniques that suit a project's needs.
- Decide what software and tools are necessary for a given project.
- Create scripts or tools to simplify or automate complex workflows.
- Establish naming and organization conventions for assets and enforce adherence.
- Work with engineers to establish memory and performance constraints— texture sizes, polygon counts, bone count, scene density, shader complexity, physics and collision costs, scripting cost, load times, disk space, etc.
- Create a plan to stay within established performance and memory constraints, monitor success and adherence to the plan, and correct when necessary.
- Optimize assets to stay within established performance and memory constraints.
- Maintain technical documentation related to art.
Must Haves
- 4+ years of experience working as a Technical Artist or similar position on video game projects.
- Experience in digital art content creation and workflows—high- and low-poly modeling, unwrapping, baking, texturing, level art, animation, etc.
- Experience producing visual effects and shader development for video games in Unreal, Unity, or similar game engines.
- Strong familiarity with common art tools such as Photoshop, Maya, Blender, Substance Painter, etc.
- Excellent communication and collaboration skills.
- A strong portfolio or demo reel.
- Ability to commute or relocate to the Emeryville, California area.
Bonus Points
- Working knowledge of C/C++.
- Scripting/programming experience to support art pipeline workflows.
- Strong familiarity with Unreal and Unity game engines.
- Passion for video games, especially retro games.
Compensation, Benefits + Perks:
- Salary Range: $95,000 - $125,000/year. Salary commensurate with skills, qualifications and experience.
- Full medical and dental benefits.
- Generous parental leave.
- 16+ paid holidays + paid time off
- A small team atmosphere with awesome teammates, arcade machines, and a rooftop deck to enjoy the California weather and office BBQs.
To Apply:
Please submit a resume, cover letter and link to portfolio or demo reel. Initial applicant review will begin on April 15, 2023.
EEO Statement
Digital Eclipse is an equal opportunity employer and we are committed to providing a workplace free from harassment and discrimination. We are committed to equal employment regardless of race, religion or lack thereof, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, marital status, medical condition, veteran status, ancestry, disability status, pregnancy, parental status, genetic information, political affiliation, or any other status protected by the laws or regulations in the locations where we operate.
Job Type: Full-time
Pay: $95,000.00 - $125,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- Dental insurance
- Health insurance
- Paid time off
Schedule:
- 8 hour shift
- Monday to Friday
Ability to commute/relocate:
- Emeryville, CA 94608: Reliably commute or planning to relocate before starting work (Preferred)
Application Question(s):
- Do you have experience using Unreal/Unity or a similar game engine?
- Which art tools are you familiar with (Photoshop, Maya, Blender, Substance Painter, other)?
- Do you have experience in digital art content creation and workflows—high- and low-poly modeling, unwrapping, baking, texturing, level art, animation, etc.?
Work Location: Hybrid remote in Emeryville, CA 94608
