Manager, 3D Character Art - Unpublished R&D Product

Riot Games was established in 2006 by entrepreneurial gamers who believe that player-focused game development can result in great games. In 2009, Riot released its debut title League of Legends to critical and player acclaim. As the most played PC game in the world, over 100 million play every month. Players form the foundation of our community and it’s for them that we continue to evolve and improve the League of Legends experience.

We’re looking for humble but ambitious, razor-sharp professionals who can teach us a thing or two. We promise to return the favor. Like us, you take play seriously; you’re passionate about games. We embrace those who see things differently, aren’t afraid to experiment, and who have a healthy disregard for constraints.

That's where you come in.

As a 3D Character Lead in the Singapore Studio for one of Riot’s unpublished R&D product, you will channel your knowledge of color and light to explore and produce the best player value for players.

You’ll guide the exploration and execution of the 3D discipline across Character and Environment content. In addition to providing clear direction, you’ll implement the sleek, dynamic and dramatic visual effects that add atmosphere and depth to the gameplay. Through your expertise, you’ll mentor and level-up the craft and game developer skills of your 3D team. You will work with the Associate Art Director to implement a 3D style that fits within the art pillars and punctuates the game design. You will implement the effects and set the high quality bar.

You’ll expand and support a high-performing external team and give them guidance and knowledge. You will set high expectations, push for growth for both each individual artist and the entire team, and streamline the production efficiency. You will use your broad knowledge of art, craft, technique, and people management, to set clear goals for your team and make sure the process of delivering those goals is as smooth as possible for your team and their stakeholders. You will ensure your team stays motivated and empowered to take ownership of creativity, you will coach your team to be a triple A team.

You will work closely with Product Leads, Delivery Leads, Stakeholders, and the Associate Art Director to stay aligned on vision and priorities. Quickly mediate and resolve craft disagreements and misalignments. Prioritize the craft’s health and support, above personally contributing to art production. Run and manage healthy and productive craft review sessions. Work closely with the others 3D Leads on your team to cultivate a great cohesive culture and ensure a consistent quality and style.

Responsibilities:

• Lead and be accountable for the quality of 3D character and environment deliverables

• Provide clear artistic and technical direction to the 3D team

• Oversee and support the 3D production pipeline from concept through final delivery

• Partner with Art Direction and Production to align on priorities and execution

• Mentor and develop team members through coaching, feedback, and performance management

• Collaborate with external vendors to ensure consistent quality and expectations

• Improve team workflows, processes, and rituals to increase efficiency and scalability

• Foster a collaborative, inclusive, and high-performing team environment

Required Qualifications:

• 5+ years of professional experience in 3D art within the game industry

• 2+ years of management experience of leading/mentoring teams and individuals

• Advanced skills in 3D/2D Software - Maya, 3DS Max, Photoshop

• Experience creating high-quality, stylized 3D models and textures

• Shipped titles as a Senior or Lead 3D Artist

• High proficiency in 3D production development, including fundamentals such as shape language, anatomy, composition, design and color theory

Desired Qualifications:

• AAA Feature/Game experience

• Experience giving direction and delivering clear, constructive feedback to vendors

• Past leadership or management experience

• Development experience creating materials and PBR assets within modern game engines (Unreal, Unity, etc)

• Broad experience of collaborating with other art disciplines, working production end to end

• Well-versed in 3D work design for themed and cosmetic content across a variety of game titles, with the ability to form and articulate thoughtful creative insights.

• Tools experience: have worked in several tools, pipelines, and game engines

• Fluent in Mandarin Chinese and English, with the ability to communicate effectively in multilingual, cross-cultural treatments

• Experience managing distributed teams across time zones and in remote work environments

For this role, you'll find success through craft expertise, a collaborative spirit, and decision-making that prioritizes the delight of players. We will be looking at your past studies, experience, and your personal relationship with games. If you embody player empathy and care about players' experiences, this could be your role!

Our Perks:

• Full relocation support

• Comprehensive health insurance for you, your spouse, and children

• Open paid time off

• Retirement benefits with company matching

• Life insurance, parental leave, plus short-term and long-term disability

• Play Fund so you can deepen your knowledge of our players and community through games

• We’ll double down on your donations of time and money to non-profits