Visual Development Artist (Contract)

Role Summary:

Volley is seeking a Visual Development Artist to create original IP and visual identities for our family-friendly voice-controlled games for Smart TVs. You'll establish the characters, worlds, and styles that will define game experiences for millions of players. This role is perfect for someone who loves character design, world-building, and creating cohesive visual languages that bring game concepts to life.

What You'll Do at Volley

• Create visual IP from scratch, developing protagonist and antagonist characters, themed environments, and overall visual worlds that support engaging game experiences

• Lead style exploration and visual direction, researching competitors, exploring multiple visual approaches, and defining distinctive looks that capture the essence of each game concept

• Design characters with personality and appeal, ensuring they resonate with family audiences across all ages and work effectively within TV/Smart TV technical constraints

• Develop comprehensive style guides including color scripts, mood boards, character sheets, environment concepts, and key art that establishes the visual language for entire games

• Partner with game designers to bring thematic visions to life, translating gameplay concepts and narrative beats into compelling visual moments

• Collaborate with user research to test concepts early, incorporating player feedback and iterating on character designs and visual directions to ensure broad appeal

• Work closely with UI/UX designers to ensure your visual language translates effectively into functional game screens and maintains consistency throughout

• Create key art and marketing visuals that can be used for promotional materials and platform featuring

• Consider technical constraints including Smart TV performance, texture budgets, and the need for clear readability at 10-foot viewing distances

We're Excited About You Because You Have

• 5+ years in visual development, concept art, or character design with a strong portfolio showcasing original IP creation, character work, and style exploration

• Exceptional character design skills with ability to create appealing, memorable characters that work for family audiences and diverse age groups

• Strong visual storytelling and world-building abilities, translating thematic concepts into cohesive visual languages

• Experience developing style guides and design language that other artists can successfully implement and maintain

• Collaborative mindset for working with game designers, UI designers, motion designers, and user researchers throughout the creative process

• Comfort with iteration and feedback, pivoting visual directions based on playtesting and stakeholder input while maintaining creative vision

• Understanding of casual/party game aesthetics and what makes visuals appealing for family-friendly, entertainment-focused experiences

Bonus Points

• Experience with casual games, party games, or entertainment-focused game IP

• Comfort using AI tools as part of the creative process to accelerate iteration and exploration (we see AI as augmenting artistic vision, not replacing craft)

• Background in animation or motion-friendly character design

• Familiarity with designing for TV/console platforms and technical constraints

• Experience creating character rigs or assets for implementation by other artists

• Understanding of accessibility and inclusive character design principles

Contract Details: 4-month contract at $100-150/hour (based on experience), remote position with flexible start dates based on project needs.

Why Join Volley

Volley is building innovative gaming experiences that reach millions of players across Smart TV platforms. As a Visual Development Artist, you'll create original IP and visual foundations for games that bring families and friends together. You'll work with a collaborative team that values creative excellence and player-focused design, with the opportunity to establish visual identities that could expand across multiple games and platforms.