At a Glance
- Tasks: Create stunning VFX and animations for exciting mobile games from concept to final implementation.
- Company: Join Gram Games, a creative studio part of Zynga & Take-Two Interactive.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, private medical care, company bonuses, and delicious onsite meals.
- Other info: Collaborative environment with opportunities for personal growth and diverse perspectives.
- Why this job: Make a real impact on player experiences with your creative vision and technical skills.
- Qualifications: Proven experience in VFX and animation for mobile games, especially casual puzzle titles.
The predicted salary is between 50000 - 60000 £ per year.
Who We Are
Gram Games is the studio behind popular titles like 1010!, Six!, Merge Dragons!, and Merge Magic!, with more exciting projects in the pipeline.
We are proudly part of the Zynga & Take-Two Interactive family.
We do things differently here: we work in small self-managing teams, giving you an incredible amount of ownership, autonomy, and impact.
At Gram, everyone is expected to have a razor-sharp focus on creating a tangible impact on their team, their work environment, and on the overall company strategy.
If you are motivated by autonomy, constant improvement, collaboration, and a sense of belonging, this is the place for you.
The New Games team is looking for a highly skilled Senior VFX & Animation Generalist to join us.
This is a hands-on and creative role for someone who can take visual effects and motion design from ideation to final in-game implementation.
You will help design, build, and polish the VFX and motion language of the game, working closely with art, design, tech art, engineering, and production.
Crucially, we need someone who can take full ownership of the pipeline that drives the dynamic, deeply satisfying VFX and interactions seen in top-tier, highly polished casual puzzle games.
We are looking for a generalist who combines strong artistic judgment with deep hands-on Unity experience.
Responsibilities
- Own, build, and optimize the VFX and animation pipeline, establishing efficient workflows tailored to producing the highly dynamic and rewarding interactions expected in top-tier casual puzzle games.
- Create high-quality VFX and animations from ideation, concept, and visual exploration through to final implementation in Unity.
- Design and implement "juicy" interactions and celebratory effects that make every player interaction feel incredibly tactile and satisfying.
- Bring your own creative ideas to the table to make the puzzle pieces, UI, environments, and effects feel alive and responsive.
- Work hands-on with modern Unity workflows, including the Animation timeline, Particle System, Shader Graph, URP, custom materials, and animation-driven effects.
- Translate concepts, prototypes, gameplay needs, and rough ideas into clear, polished in-engine effects and motion.
- Optimize VFX and animations for mobile, balancing visual ambition with performance, memory, readability, and production constraints.
- Identify visual, technical, and workflow bottlenecks in the pipeline, and propose practical solutions.
- Collaborate with tech art and engineering on shaders, tools, profiling, and runtime performance.
Requirements
- Significant experience (at a Senior, Lead, or Principal level) creating real-time VFX and animations for games, specifically casual puzzle games or highly polished free-to-play titles.
- Proven experience owning, building, or significantly contributing to a VFX and animation pipeline for mobile.
- A strong grasp of fundamental animation principles applied to gameplay elements, UI, and effects.
- Strong hands-on experience making VFX and animations directly in Unity.
- A strong portfolio showing high-quality in-game VFX and motion design from idea to final implementation, highlighting "juicy" and satisfying visual feedback.
- The ability to create assets from early ideation, concept, mood boards, mockups, prototypes, or rough direction and turn them into polished in-engine results.
- A strong understanding of mobile performance constraints and optimization techniques.
- The ability to troubleshoot visual bugs, sorting issues, and performance problems.
- Strong collaboration skills across art, design, technical art, engineering, and production.
- A proactive, organized, and self-driven approach to your work.
- What Makes You Successful In This Role
- You are not waiting for tasks to be assigned. You look at the game, understand what it needs, and help raise the bar.
- You are comfortable owning a feature’s VFX and motion from start to finish: shaping the idea, exploring the visual direction, implementing it in Unity, polishing it, and keeping stakeholders informed and aligned.
- You can explain your creative and technical choices clearly, take feedback well, and help the team make better visual decisions.
- Most importantly, you make the game feel better and the player feel profoundly rewarded.
What We Offer You
- Highly competitive salary
- Private medical care
- Company bonus scheme
- Awesome onsite chef serving breakfast, lunch, and lots of treats (naughty and nice)
- Life insurance and a favorable pension scheme
- Healthcare cash plan including dental and optical coverage
- Amazing tech to work with and consoles to play and relax with everywhere you look!
We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer, which means we are committed to creating and celebrating diverse thoughts, cultures, and backgrounds throughout our organization.
Employment with us is based on substantive ability, objective qualifications, and work ethic – not an individual’s race, creed, color, religion, sex or gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin or ancestry, alienage or citizenship status, physical or mental disability, pregnancy, age, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, status as a victim of domestic violence or sex offenses, reproductive health decision, or any other characteristics protected by applicable law.
As an equal opportunity employer, we are committed to providing the necessary support and accommodation to qualified individuals with disabilities, health conditions, or impairments (subject to any local qualifying requirements) to ensure their full participation in the job application or interview process.
Please contact us at jobs@gram. gs to request any accommodations or for support related to your application for an open position.
Please be aware that Zynga does not conduct job interviews or make job offers over third-party messaging apps such as Telegram, Whats App, or others.
Zynga also does not engage in any financial exchanges during the recruitment or onboarding process, and will never ask a candidate for their personal or financial information over an app or other unofficial chat channel.
Any attempt to do so may be the result of a scamp or phishing attack, and you should not engage.
Zynga’s in-house recruitment team will only contact individuals through their official Company email addresses (i. e., via a zynga. com, take2games. com, naturalmotion. com, smallgiantgames. com, themavens. com, gram. gs email domain).
Senior VFX Artist & Animation Generalist in London employer: Gram Games
At Gram Games, we pride ourselves on fostering a dynamic and innovative work culture that empowers our employees to thrive. As a Senior Game Architect, you will not only lead the architectural vision of exciting projects like Merge Dragons but also benefit from a competitive salary, private medical care, and ample opportunities for professional growth in the vibrant UK tech scene. Join us to be part of a collaborative team that values creativity and technical excellence.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Senior VFX Artist & Animation Generalist in London
✨Join Local Tech Meetups
Get out there and mingle with fellow developers by joining local tech meetups. It’s a fantastic way to meet people who might be working at Gram Games or know someone who does. Plus, you can pick up some trendy tech skills and trends while you're at it!
✨Contribute to Open Source Projects
Show off your coding chops by jumping into open-source projects. Not only does this give you practical experience, but it also gets you noticed in the dev community. You'll create a killer portfolio that speaks volumes about your skills to Gram Games.
✨Tap into Online Developer Communities
Don’t underestimate the power of online developer communities like GitHub, Stack Overflow, and even Reddit. Participate in discussions, share your projects, and build your visibility. We can often find opportunities through these channels that can lead to a full-time gig at companies like Gram Games.
✨Explore Job Boards Specifically for Tech Roles
Keep your eyes peeled on job boards that focus on tech roles. Sites like TechCareers or Stack Overflow Jobs can often have listings for companies like Gram Games that might not show up on broader job sites. Make it a habit to check these regularly, and don’t hesitate to apply directly through our website!
We think you need these skills to ace Senior VFX Artist & Animation Generalist in London
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show off your coding skills:When applying for a software engineering role, it's super important to showcase your coding skills. Make sure your CV includes your tech stack, any relevant programming languages you’re comfortable with, and examples of projects you've worked on. If you have a GitHub profile, link it up! We love to see code in action.
Tailor your portfolio:For a full-time role, we’d expect to see some solid examples of your work in your portfolio. Make sure to include at least two or three projects that highlight your problem-solving skills and your ability to work with different technologies. Focus on the projects that are most relevant to the position at Gram Games.
Craft a killer cover letter:Your cover letter is your chance to stand out—make it personal! Explain why you want to work at Gram Games and how your skills align with the role. Show us your passion for software development. We dig enthusiastic candidates who understand the value of collaboration and continuous learning!
Be clear and concise:When it comes to writing your CV and cover letter, clarity is key. Avoid jargon that could confuse us and stick to simple, direct language. Highlight your achievements with quantifiable results where possible, and keep everything easy to read. A well-organised application goes a long way!
How to prepare for a job interview at Gram Games
✨Brush Up on Your Coding Skills
For a full-time software engineering role, it's crucial that we stay sharp with our coding abilities. Expect technical questions that might involve solving problems on the spot or discussing algorithms. Practise on platforms like LeetCode or HackerRank to get comfortable with the types of questions that often come up.
✨Know Your Tools and Frameworks
Make sure we’re well-acquainted with the tools and technologies listed in the job description. Familiarise ourselves with any specific frameworks or programming languages mentioned. If Gram Games uses React or Node.js, for instance, be ready to discuss how we’ve used them in previous projects or coursework.
✨Showcase Your Projects
Bring along a portfolio that highlights our best work. This could be code samples, GitHub repositories, or any side projects we’ve built. Make sure we can talk through our thought process for each project, especially the challenges we faced and how we solved them—this shows our problem-solving skills in action.
✨Prepare for Behavioural Questions
While technical skills are key, full-time positions also require cultural fit. Be ready to discuss our previous experiences and how we handle teamwork, conflict, and deadlines. Brush up on the STAR method—Situation, Task, Action, Result—to clearly articulate our past experiences when discussing how we've contributed to a team.