Principal Game Designer

Overview

As Lead Game Designer for a new Merge 2 title, you own the creative vision from 0 to 1 and guide its core loop, progression, and meta-game. You drive the project through soft launch and live operations, balancing the economy and shaping monetization to sustain long-term retention. You collaborate with product, engineering, and art, mentoring a design team to deliver cohesive, player-centric experiences. This role combines strategic design leadership with hands-on execution in a dynamic, cross-functional environment at Zynga.

Pay / Benefits

• Highly competitive salary
• Private medical care
• Company bonus scheme
• Relocation assistance for UK
• Onsite chef serving meals
• Life insurance and pension scheme

Responsibilities

• Own and communicate the game’s vision aligned with product goals to secure team and stakeholder buy-in
• Lead ideation and translate player motivations into UX stories, wireframes, and feature designs
• Mentor and grow a diverse design team with clear goals and execution standards
• Partner with product, engineering, and art to guide features from concept through implementation
• Improve design tools and processes to streamline the pipeline and boost productivity
• Use live feedback and analytics to refine systems, balance the economy, and uphold design best practices

Key requirements

• Effective communicator with strong verbal, written, and presentation skills
• Strong mathematical concepts and formula creation in a game environment
• Proven history designing systems that influence player behavior and meet product KPIs
• Expert in crafting features, systems, core loops, economies, and meta-designs
• Experience in live service games and iterating from community feedback
• Solid experience in the gaming industry in a design role with contributed released titles
• Extensive experience leading a diverse design team
• Proven track record of shipping games

• Clear communication
• Collaborative mindset
• Leadership and mentorship
• Game economy design
• Core loop design
• Meta-design and systems design

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