Senior/Principal Animator

Job title: Senior/Principal Animator

About the Role Senior/Principal Animator to help define the animation language of Arkheron, a fast-paced competitive PvP game. You’ll shape the feel of every ability, encounter, and moment of impact on a small team, owning features end-to-end from concept to polish.

What You'll Do

• Create high-quality, in-game character animations that bring combat, movement, and moment-to-moment gameplay to life.
• Collaborate closely with designers, engineers, and tech artists to develop combat that feels responsive, readable, and satisfying in a competitive multiplayer environment.
• Partner with animation, engineering, and tech art to shape rigs, tools, and animation systems that improve workflows and elevate quality.
• Own animation features end-to-end, from early exploration and iteration through polish and final implementation.
• Align with the animation team on style, quality bar, and execution, while contributing your own ideas, taste, and problem-solving.
• Participate actively in playtests, evaluating your work through the lens of the player experience and iterating based on feel, clarity, and gameplay impact.
• Balance animation fidelity with gameplay needs, making smart tradeoffs that serve performance, readability, and fun.
• Wear multiple hats in a small, focused team and contribute beyond your core lane when it helps the game or studio.
• Help shape a new IP, contributing creatively and thoughtfully as the game, systems, and pipelines evolve.

What We're Looking For

• Strong experience creating high-quality gameplay animation, ideally across multiple shipped titles.
• Genuine excitement for competitive multiplayer combat and understanding of how animation affects feel, fairness, and clarity.
• Deep understanding of combat systems and how animation drives responsiveness and player satisfaction.
• Experience with animation systems and tools, including in new or evolving engines.
• Comfortable owning work independently, from concept to completion.
• Highly skilled at conveying character through gameplay animation, not just cinematics.
• Push for animation excellence while prioritizing gameplay quality.
• Self-motivated and able to identify what matters most for the game.
• Thrive in highly collaborative, cross-disciplinary teams and communicate clearly with partners in all disciplines.
• Value trust, openness, and diverse perspectives, and enjoy learning from others.
• Growth mindset and commitment to raising the quality bar for both yourself and the team.
• Passionate about the creative process and excited to help build something new together.

Nice to Have

• A reel or portfolio demonstrating gameplay animation in action.

Compensation & Benefits

• Base salary range: $196,500 - $247,133 USD. The offer may be above or below this range depending on experience and level.