At a Glance
- Tasks: Design and optimise engaging metagame features for Candy Crush Saga.
- Company: Join King, a leader in mobile gaming with iconic titles.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, flexible work options, and opportunities for growth.
- Other info: Collaborative environment with mentorship opportunities and a focus on innovation.
- Why this job: Shape player experiences and make a real impact in a beloved game.
- Qualifications: Experience in live F2P game design and a passion for player engagement.
The predicted salary is between 54000 - 66000 £ per year.
Are you a systems thinker and creative architect? Do you dream of crafting features that connect everything together: where player progress feels meaningful, social interactions spark joy, and every reward motivates another level?
We’re looking for a talented and collaborative Senior Game Designer to join the Gameplay team in Candy Crush Saga, shaping the future of our metagame features and systems in one of the most successful live games in the world.
Your role within the Kingdom:
- As a Senior Game Designer, you’ll design and optimize metagame features and systems, such as progression, competitive events, and social loops, that bring structure, meaning, and delight to the player journey and support the team’s key strategic bets.
- You’ll own these features and systems end to end, from strategic framing and prototyping through implementation, live release, and iteration, and you’ll be able to explain not just what a feature does but why its specific values, pacing, and reward structure are the right solution.
- You’ll collaborate closely with product managers, UX designers, engineers, and other game designers to define, prototype, and deliver features and systems that are easy to use, deeply satisfying, and seamlessly connected to the core game.
Responsibilities:
- Own metagame features, systems, and strategic bets end-to-end, from concept and specification through implementation, live release, and iteration.
- Use quantitative and qualitative data and player insights to inform, balance, and tune features and systems against key metrics.
- Translate strategic goals, KPIs, and player insights into clear, structured, and actionable design documentation, explaining why specific values, triggers, and pacing are the right solution.
- Partner with live ops teams to design and optimize features that maximize live events’ impact and player retention.
- Collaborate deeply with cross-functional teams (product, UX, engineering, data) to deliver high-quality, fun, and impactful experiences.
- Work with fellow designers to ensure metagame features and systems integrate cohesively with core gameplay and the wider game ecosystem.
- Bring fresh thinking and genre-leading ideas to the Candy Crush metagame, staying ahead of trends in casual F2P design.
Skills:
- Proven Experience in Live F2P Metagame Design (Required): You have hands-on experience designing and running live metagame features and systems, such as progression, achievements, or social mechanics, for casual mobile free-to-play games. You understand the rhythms of live content, player motivation, and what keeps players coming back day after day.
- Feature Ownership & Strategic Delivery: You’ve owned or significantly contributed to metagame features or systems that drove long-term engagement in live casual games, from strategic framing through live release and iteration.
- Systems & Economy Thinking: You understand how to design and balance interconnected features and systems, progression, rewards, pacing, and player motivation, and can reason about how a change in one system ripples through the wider economy and player behavior.
- Data-Driven & Insight-Led: You’re comfortable diving into quantitative and qualitative player data, identifying patterns, and turning insights into meaningful design improvements.
- Player-Centric Mindset: You design for joy and motivation, and you’re excited to test, learn, and iterate with real player feedback.
- Collaborative & Structured Communicator: You’re a clear communicator who builds alignment across disciplines and helps teams rally behind great ideas.
- Craft Leadership & Mentorship: You share learnings with other designers, mentor less experienced colleagues, and help raise the bar for metagame design across the team.
Bonus points:
- Experience working on match-3, merge, or social mobile games with large, active live playerbases.
- Experience designing progression systems, achievements, seasonal structures, or social gameplay loops at scale.
- Familiarity with economy balancing, live ops systems, or content pipelines.
About King:
With a mission of Making the World Playful, King is a leading interactive entertainment company for the mobile world with more than 20 years of history of delivering some of the world’s most iconic games in the mobile gaming industry, including the world-famous Candy Crush franchise, as well as other mobile titles such as Farm Heroes Saga. Around 200 million people play a King game every month.
Senior Game UX Designer in London employer: King Digital Entertainment
At King, we pride ourselves on fostering a vibrant and inclusive work culture that empowers our employees to innovate and excel. As a Senior Principal AI/ML Engineer, you will not only lead cutting-edge projects that impact millions of players but also benefit from extensive growth opportunities, mentorship, and collaboration across diverse teams in dynamic locations like Stockholm, Barcelona, and London. Join us in our mission to make the world playful while enjoying a supportive environment that values creativity and technical excellence.
Contact Details:
King Digital Entertainment Recruitment Team
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Senior Game UX Designer in London
✨Show Off Your Portfolio
In the world of UX/UI design, your portfolio speaks volumes! Make sure it's packed with your best work and showcases your process, not just the final product. We want to see how you tackle design challenges, so consider adding case studies that reflect your thought process and user-centric approach.
✨Get Involved in Design Communities
Jump into local or online design meetups and workshops! Places like UXPA or local design events can be goldmines for networking and learning. Plus, mingling with fellow designers can introduce you to potential job openings that might not be listed elsewhere.
✨Tailor Your Applications
When you find a role that excites you, like the one at King Digital Entertainment for a Senior Game UX Designer, make your application count! Highlight specific projects and skills that directly relate to the job description. Hiring managers are looking for candidates who fit into their specific team, so show them you’re the one!
✨Leverage Social Media
Don't underestimate the power of social media in finding a UX/UI design job! Follow design leaders on platforms like Twitter or Instagram, share your work, and engage in conversations. It’s a great way to get noticed by recruiters and even catch wind of openings at companies like King Digital Entertainment before they go live!
We think you need these skills to ace Senior Game UX Designer in London
Some tips for your application 🫡
Showcase Your Design Process:When you're applying for a UX/UI Design role like Senior Game UX Designer at King Digital Entertainment, make sure to include examples that clearly highlight your design process. We want to see not just the final product but also the journey that led you there—wireframes, user personas, and iterations demonstrate your thought process and user-centric approach!
Tailor Your Portfolio:A tailor-made portfolio is crucial for a full-time design role! Curate your best projects that align with the kind of work King Digital Entertainment does. We suggest including 3-5 case studies that showcase a variety of skills such as wireframing, prototyping, and user testing to really make your application pop.
Craft a Compelling Cover Letter:Your cover letter should not just be a summary of your CV. Use it to express why you’re excited about UX/UI Design and what draws you specifically to King Digital Entertainment. Mention any relevant experience, tools you’re proficient in (like Sketch or Figma), and how you can contribute to their projects.
Highlight Collaboration Skills:In the world of UX/UI Design, teamwork is crucial. Make sure to highlight any past experiences where you worked in cross-functional teams. Illustrate how you communicated design decisions and listened to feedback, as this will resonate well with the culture at King Digital Entertainment.
How to prepare for a job interview at King Digital Entertainment
✨Show Off Your Portfolio
When you're gunning for a full-time UX/UI design role, your portfolio is your best friend! Make sure you've got a solid selection of your work, showcasing not just the final designs, but the process behind them—think wireframes, user flows, and any user research you've conducted. During the interview with King Digital Entertainment, be prepared to discuss your design decisions and how they solve specific user problems.
✨Prepare for Design Challenges
Expect to face some practical design tasks during your interview. King Digital Entertainment might ask you to tackle a quick design challenge or critique an existing interface. Brush up on your problem-solving skills and try to articulate your thought process as you work through these scenarios. Showing how you approach a design problem is just as important as the final output!
✨Know the Tools of the Trade
Familiarise yourself with the tools commonly used in the industry—figma, Adobe XD, or Sketch should be second nature to you. Be ready to discuss your preferred tools during the interview and how they've shaped your design process at previous positions. This knowledge could give you an edge at King Digital Entertainment!
✨Show Passion for User Experience
In a full-time UX/UI design role, having a genuine passion for improving user interactions can set you apart. Be prepared to share instances when you went above and beyond to ensure a great user experience in your previous projects. This will demonstrate that you’re not just a designer, but a user advocate, which is exactly what King Digital Entertainment is looking for.
