Senior Server Engineer, Unreal Engine at Rushdown Studios

<p><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Founded by games industry veterans, Rushdown was created with a simple philosophy in mind: We believe that when talented developers are consistently challenged and given clear ownership of their work, extraordinary things will happen. As a co-dev game studio, we now focus on solving some of the most difficult problems that face multiplayer games — and we bring our experience working on games like PUBG, League of Legends, and Rocket League with us. We truly love the work we do and we want to funnel our passion and expertise into features and games that billions of players will enjoy worldwide.</span></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>Our Role</strong></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Rushdown Studios is looking for an experienced Game Server Engineer to join us in support of our partner studio! In this role, you'll work alongside our team to build, port, and optimize the dedicated game server for a large-scale multiplayer Unreal Engine title, including a near-term focus on bringing an existing Windows Server Target to Linux.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Our ideal candidate is a self-motivated and demonstrated team player who is equally comfortable digging into platform-specific bugs, owning a port end-to-end, and collaborating across studios. Game development experience is preferred due to the nature of this project, but it's not mandatory; we encourage you to apply even if you don't meet all of the requirements listed below!</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>Work Location:</strong> Rushdown Studios is based in Saratoga Springs, NY and we have a strong preference for local candidates willing to work from our office on a hybrid basis (i.e., Tuesday-Thursday). However, we also support fully remote work for candidates living across New York State or one of the other states in which we're currently registered to conduct business (e.g., CT, DE, GA, KS, MA, MD, NC, ND, OH, PA, TX, WI).</span></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>Responsibilities</strong></span></p> <ul> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Port the Windows Server Target for a large Unreal Engine title to Linux, maintaining feature parity, stability, and performance.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Build, maintain, and extend the dedicated game server to ensure it runs reliably on both Windows and Linux.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Profile and optimize server performance, memory usage, and tick stability for production deployments.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Diagnose and resolve platform-specific bugs, crashes, and behavioral differences between Windows and Linux builds.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Work with build systems, toolchains, and CI to keep cross-platform builds healthy and reproducible.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Collaborate with engineers at our partner studio to deliver server-side features and integrations.</span></li> </ul> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>Requirements</strong></span></p> <ul> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Three (3) years of professional experience with C++.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Cross-platform development experience targeting both Windows and Linux, including a familiarity with navigating compiler, toolchain, and platform API differences.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Strong Linux fundamentals and comfort building, debugging, and operating C++ applications on Linux.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Ability to write clear, maintainable, and portable code that holds up in a large shared codebase.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Willingness to selflessly put player experiences first — before even your own code and ego.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Proactive approach to communication, particularly when it comes to unblocking yourself and navigating obstacles as part of a team.</span></li> </ul> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>Nice-to-Haves</strong></span></p> <ul> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Experience developing and shipping commercial games.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Experience porting large C++ codebases between operating systems.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Unreal Engine experience, particularly with dedicated servers, replication, networking, or Unreal Build Tool.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Familiarity with server-side game systems (e.g., matchmaking, session management, anti-cheat, telemetry).</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Experience with Linux deployment tooling like containers (e.g., Docker), orchestration, and observability stacks.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Experience profiling and optimizing server performance under load.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Experience working with BaaS providers (e.g., PlayFab, Edgegap).</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Experience with the Horde build system for Unreal Engine titles.</span></li> </ul> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>Benefits:</strong></span></p> <ul> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Compensation: $105,000-140,000/year. Please note that final base pay will ultimately depend upon a combination of factors, including your prior experience, general qualifications, and broader skill set.</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">9 Paid Holidays plus Flexible PTO and Annual Winter Break Closure</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Annual Video Game Budget</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">401(k) Retirement Plan</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Paid Parental Leave</span></li> </ul> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>EEO Statement</strong></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;">At Rushdown Studios, we believe that we're made better by each of the different perspectives that our team members bring to the table. We said it above, and we'll say it again: We want to hear from you, even if you don't meet all of the requirements for a specific role.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;">We're also an equal opportunity employer and we do not discriminate on the basis of race; color; ancestry or national origin; religion; physical or mental disability; age; sex, including pregnancy; sexual orientation; gender, gender identity, or gender expression; medical condition; genetic information; or marital, military, or veteran status.</span></p> <p>&nbsp;</p>