Game Designer
Subject · Los Angeles, CA
- On site
- Full-time
- $160,000 / year
- Los Angeles, CA
Job highlights
- Design engaging learning systems for students.
- Own core loops, rewards, and progression.
- Create moment-to-moment game mechanics.
- Integrate learning with AI and data.
- Build and ship impactful educational games.
About the role
About Subject
At Subject, we're building the Netflix of Education. Personalized. Localized. Accredited. Backed by Owl Ventures, Kleiner Perkins, and industry leaders, and serving 100K+ students, we're building the world's most advanced Learning Intelligence System: studio-quality, standards-aligned learning that is delivered personally and proves outcomes.The Impact
As a Game Designer at Subject, you own how learning actually feels for students. You design the systems that turn standards-aligned content into experiences students choose to come back to: the loops, the rewards, the progression, the moment-to-moment feel. Subject is not adding gamification on top of a worksheet. We are building learning experiences that hold their own against the best games students play outside school. Your work is the difference between a student opening Subject because they have to and opening it because they want to. You report into the Design Director and partner directly with product, engineering, and content.What You'll Own
Core Loop and Systems Design
- Design the core student loops across Subject: how a learning session starts, escalates, rewards, and ends
- Build the progression systems, mastery feedback, and meta-game that keep students engaged across days, weeks, and units
- Tune difficulty, pacing, and challenge curves so students feel the right amount of stretch at every level
- Define the economy of points, streaks, unlocks, and achievements with intent. No empty extrinsic loops
Mechanics and Moment-to-Moment Feel
- Design the moment-to-moment interactions: how a question feels to answer, how a wrong answer is handled, how a win is celebrated
- Specify motion, sound, haptics, and feedback in enough detail that engineers and designers ship exactly what you intended
- Prototype mechanics quickly with paper, Figma, code, or off-the-shelf engines and put them in front of real students
- Hold the bar on feel: if it does not feel good in a student's hand, it does not ship
Learning and Engagement Integration
- Partner with Product and Curriculum to translate learning objectives into game systems without compromising rigour
- Work with the AI team on personalized difficulty, adaptive challenges, and AI-driven narrative or character moments
- Define the metrics that prove a system is working: retention, session length, mastery, time-on-task with intent, return rate
- Run playtests with real students in partner schools and feed insights back into design
Cross-functional Build
- Write tight design docs that product builders and engineers can execute against without ambiguity
- Work and ship alongside engineers, designers, and content specialists
- Brief support, GTM, and educator success on the why behind each system so the field can speak to it
- Track outcomes after launch and iterate
Requirements
- 5+ years of game design experience on shipped consumer products. Mobile, web, or console
- A portfolio with at least one title that demonstrates strong systems design, progression, and player retention
- Deep understanding of core loops, meta-game, economy design, and player psychology
- Hands-on prototyping skills: Figma, Unity, Godot, web, or whatever lets you put a working mechanic in someone's hand fast
- Comfortable with data: you can define what success looks like, read a dashboard, and change course based on what you find
- Clear writer: your design docs are readable, your rationale is tight, your stakeholder updates don't require translation
- Bonus: experience in AI-native products
The Mindset We Need
- Studio-quality bar: you hold craft and outcomes together. Fun systems that don't teach are not enough, and effective systems that aren't fun are not enough either
- Full ownership: you feel the weight of the systems you ship. You don't hand off, you ship
- Speed with taste: you prototype fast, iterate in the open, and don't let perfect be the enemy of shipped-and-learning
- Student obsession: you watch students play, you know what makes them lean in and what makes them quit
- AI-native operator: you already use Claude Code, Cursor, or equivalent daily. AI is in your workflow, not on your wishlist
The Commitment We're Looking For
This role requires exceptional dedication because students deserve our absolute best. We need someone who:- Lives the mission and treats student and district outcomes as real stakes
- Thrives in intensity and takes pride in building something from nothing
- Takes end-to-end ownership: design, definition, delivery, results
- Works with presence: Los Angeles office, 5 days/week
- Can commit to 60 hours/week: this is a high-output, high-ownership role and the pace reflects the ambition
Compensation
$150,000 to $160,000Benefits
Premium health coverage, gym membership, daily meals, top hardwareJoin Us
If you want to design the learning systems students actually choose to come back to, Subject is where you do that work.Key skills/competency
- Game Design
- Systems Design
- Progression Systems
- Player Psychology
- Prototyping
- Data Analysis
- Product Development
- UX Design
- Engagement Design
- Learning Systems
Skills & topics
- Game Designer
- Systems Design
- Progression Design
- Player Psychology
- Prototyping
- Figma
- Unity
- Educational Technology
- Learning Design
- Engagement Design
- Mobile Games
- Web Games
- Console Games
- AI
- Data Analysis
- Product Development
- Curriculum Design
- UX Design
How to get hired
- Tailor your resume: Highlight systems design, progression, and retention experience. Quantify achievements.
- Showcase your portfolio: Include projects demonstrating core loops and player psychology.
- Prepare for technical questions: Be ready to discuss prototyping, mechanics, and systems.
- Demonstrate passion: Show your commitment to student outcomes and educational impact.
- Research Subject: Understand their mission and the 'Netflix of Education' vision.
Technical preparation
Master game loops and progression systems.,Practice prototyping with Figma or Unity.,Analyze game data and player behavior.,Develop clear, concise design documentation.
Behavioral questions
Describe a challenging design system you built.,How do you balance fun with learning?,Tell me about a time you used data to iterate.,How do you handle ambiguity in design?
Frequently asked questions
- What is the daily work like for a Game Designer at Subject?
- As a Game Designer at Subject, you'll focus on creating engaging learning experiences. This involves designing core loops, progression systems, and moment-to-moment mechanics. You'll partner with product, engineering, and curriculum teams, and run playtests with students. Expect to write design docs, analyze data, and iterate on systems to ensure both fun and effective learning.
- What kind of portfolio should I prepare for the Game Designer role at Subject?
- Your portfolio for the Game Designer position at Subject should prominently feature at least one shipped consumer product. It needs to demonstrate a strong grasp of systems design, progression mechanics, and strategies for player retention. Showcase your ability to create engaging core loops and your understanding of player psychology.
- How does Subject integrate learning objectives with game design principles?
- Subject integrates learning objectives by translating them into game systems without sacrificing rigor. The Game Designer partners with Product and Curriculum teams to ensure educational content is delivered through engaging game mechanics. This includes using AI for personalized challenges and defining metrics that prove the system's effectiveness in learning and engagement.
- What is the expected commitment level for the Game Designer role at Subject?
- The Game Designer role at Subject requires exceptional dedication. The company is looking for individuals committed to the mission and student outcomes, willing to thrive in an intense environment. This role involves end-to-end ownership and requires working from the Los Angeles office 5 days a week, with an expectation of a 60-hour work week to meet ambitious goals.
- What are the key technical skills required for the Game Designer position at Subject?
- Key technical skills for the Game Designer role include 5+ years of experience on shipped consumer products (mobile, web, or console). You'll need hands-on prototyping skills using tools like Figma, Unity, Godot, or web technologies. A deep understanding of core loops, meta-game, economy design, and player psychology is essential. Comfort with data analysis to define and track success metrics is also crucial.
- Does Subject have an office, and what is the work arrangement for this Game Designer role?
- Yes, Subject has an office located in Los Angeles. The Game Designer role requires working on-site in the Los Angeles office five days a week. This is an on-site position with a strong emphasis on in-person collaboration and presence.