Absurd Ventures

Mission Designer

Absurd Ventures · Santa Monica, CA
Santa Monica, CA $100K–$115K Posted 2026-08-06
Salary
$100K–$115K
Type
Full-time
Experience
2+ yr

Summary

We are seeking a  Mission Designer  to create highly memorable missions that combine best-in-class storytelling with action gameplay for an all-new open world IP built in Unreal Engine 5. As a  Mission Designer , you will collaborate with a multi-disciplinary team and be a hands-on contributor and implementer of story missions including critical path and side missions alongside single-player campaign features.

Core Responsibilities

  • Own implementation of engaging, diverse, innovative missions within a story-driven, open-world game.
  • Work with the Lead Mission Designer to develop best practices and robust solutions for faster iteration across the team.
  • Challenge the status quo and demonstrate understanding of where open-world mission design can change and where it’s already working.
  • Build brand new, innovative game systems for missions that can help define core features across the rest of the game.
  • Leverage the game's existing open-world systems and mechanics to create dynamic and unpredictable mission experiences that adapt to player choices and actions.
  • Provide feedback to other mission designers to improve the quality of the design and storytelling.
  • Create documentation to support missions, mission tools, and game features developed for missions.
  • Ability to implement and design changes based on play testing data from both internal and external sources.

Core Qualifications

  • 1-2+ years of experience building mission content, ideally within an open-world game.
  • Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
  • Innovative thinker with creative problem-solving skills who can thrive in a collaborative team environment.
  • High-quality portfolio showcasing previous scripting, encounter or mission design work in games.
  • Strong understanding of storytelling and narrative design.

Plus If...

  • Experience building game-wide systems or features.
  • Experience with level design, blockout or world-building.
  • Experience in UE4 or UE5.
  • Experience working with co-development partners.
  • Experience working on an open world title.

Description

  • Full time job with benefits
  • Role is on-site in Santa Monica, CA
  • Office is located near downtown Santa Monica – near metro and freeways.

The base pay range for this position is $100,000 to $115,000 per year. Actual compensation is based on market location and may vary depending on job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.  We also offer a competitive package of benefits including vacation time, sick time, company holidays, parental leave, medical/dental/vision insurance, life insurance, disability insurance, and 401(k) matching to regular full-time employees. Certain roles may also be eligible for bonus and equity.

$80K — 10th pctl $230K — 90th pctl
This role’s midpoint $107K vs. market median $150K for Design roles
-30%
below median
Based on 2,000+ Design roles with disclosed salary ranges tracked on NewJob.
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