Senior Software Engineer, Combat Systems - Unannounced Game

Team Name:

Unannounced Project

Job Title:

Senior Software Engineer, Combat Systems - Unannounced Game

Requisition : R026821

At Blizzard, we craft genre-defining games and legendary worlds for all to share. Through unparalleled creativity and storytelling, we create immersive universes and iconic characters that are beloved across platforms, borders, backgrounds, and generations - only made possible by building a work environment that nurtures the artistry of game development and unleashes the aspirations of our people.

As a Senior Combat Systems Engineer
, you will design, architect, and evolve the core systems that power high-quality combat experiences. You will work closely with gameplay engineers, designers, animators, and artists to build scalable, extensible, and performant combat & gameplay frameworks that support complex enemy behavior and expressive player interactions.

This role is highly technical and systems-focused, with a strong emphasis on architecture, long-term maintainability, and empowering content teams through robust tools and workflows. You will help define and execute a technical vision that meets both immediate gameplay needs and long-term project goals.

This role is a hybrid work position, with some work on-site and some work-from-home. The home studio for this role is Irvine, CA.

Priorities can often change in a fast-paced environment like ours. Responsibilities will include, but are not limited to:

• Architecting and implementing core combat systems and frameworks, including combat state management, abilities, damage, and gameplay logic.
• Owning the technical design and long-term health of combat-related systems, ensuring they are scalable, modular, and maintainable.
• Empowering designers, artists, and other engineers to deliver the vision of the game and ensuring we delight and entertain our players.
• Collaborating with designers and engineers on gameplay teams to learn and understand their needs and offer technical solutions.
• Optimizing team productivity by supporting pipelines, tool development, and workflow improvements.
• Identifying performance risks in combat systems and leading optimization efforts to meet release-quality standards.

• 8+ years of experience in gameplay engineering or a combination of applicable training and experience.
• Experience developing using the Unreal engine (both C++ and Blueprint).
• Proven ability to work effectively in cross-disciplinary teams.
• Experience working on AAA-quality combat systems, including interaction with animation, VFX/SFX, and gameplay feel.

• The ability to understand and write production-grade C++ code.
• The capacity to make frequent, readable, well-tested code commits.
• The ability to communicate and articulate vision, ideas, learnings from others, and to give meaningful feedback.
• Excellent problem-solving and debugging skills.
• Experience analyzing game features and content for performance and optimizing a game to release quality.
• Experience working closely in multi-disciplinary teams with people of diverse mindsets.
• Mentorship mindset and excellent attitude to helping others level up their knowledge.

• Computer science, mathematics, physics, or related degrees.
• Experience developing and shipping AAA game titles for PC, Xbox, and Play Station consoles.

• Experience working on 3D action multiplayer games.
• Experience with a large codebase.

Best known for iconic video game universes including Warcraft®, Overwatch®, Diablo®, and Star Craft®, Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. (), a division of Activision Blizzard, which was acquired by Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT), is a premier developer and publisher of entertainment experiences. Blizzard Entertainment has created some of the industry’s most critically acclaimed and genre-defining games over the last 30 years, with a track record that includes multiple Game of the Year awards.

Blizzard Entertainment engages tens of millions of players around the world with titles available on PC via ®, Xbox, Play Station, Nintendo Switch, iOS, and Android.

Activision Blizzard, Inc., is one of the world's largest and most successful interactive entertainment…