Principal Systems Designer - Factory Game (Remote, Germany)

About the role

A small indie studio is looking for an experienced Principal Systems Designer for a brand-new 3D factory game built in Unreal Engine. This is a senior, hands-on position where you take full ownership of the systems you design, from prototyping and testing to making sure they work as intended. The role is fully remote, with hours compatible with the CET time zone.

Key responsibilities

• Design and develop the game's core systems (production chains, resource management, logistics, progression and economy) with the Game Director.
• Turn gameplay mechanics into clear, step-by-step designs that developers can implement.
• Prototype, test and balance systems using spreadsheets, simulations and Unreal Engine Blueprints.
• Maintain detailed design documentation and collaborate daily with programmers, artists and production.
• Organize priorities, track open questions and document decisions, acting as a creative and technical counterpart to the Game Director.
• Eventually lead a small design team including a Level Designer and Content Designer, and help set up the studio's design processes.

Required profile

• At least 8 years of professional game design experience, with significant expertise in systems design.
• Experience shipping at least one game where you were responsible for major gameplay systems, ideally a systems-driven title.
• Genuine passion for factory-building and automation games, played regularly in spare time.
• Systems-oriented mindset covering feedback loops, interconnected mechanics, dependencies, scaling, emergent gameplay and edge cases.
• Hands-on approach to design, including prototyping and testing your own ideas.
• Excellent written and spoken English; availability for CET-compatible hours.

Nice to have

• Blueprints, C++, C#, Python, Lua or similar scripting experience.
• Unreal Engine experience.
• Experience managing, mentoring or guiding other designers, or working in indie studios or fully remote teams.
• Personal projects related to factory or automation games.

What we offer

• Full-time (40h/week), fully remote, with very flexible hours.
• Paid overtime, book and training budget of 100 EUR per month, focus days and yearly on-site team events.
• Automatic 2% annual salary adjustment and hardware/home office budget (2,000 EUR on joining, then 1,000 EUR yearly).
• Job ticket if you live in Germany.