NPC Designer

About the Company:
Founded in 2017 by Anthony and Joe Russo, AGBO is an artist-led independent studio shaping the future of film and television. The Russo Brothers and AGBO have generated more than $7 billion at the global box office, including Avengers: Endgame. The studio's projects include Academy Award–winning Everything Everywhere All at Once, Netflix hits The Gray Man and Extraction, and Prime Video's visceral thriller The Bluff and the global Citadel franchise. Citadel Season 2 premieres in May 2026.

AGBO is currently in production with Netflix on Tygo and Mercenary, both part of the Extraction universe, as well as with Lionsgate on John Rambo, a prequel to the iconic franchise. The studio is in post-production on The Whisper Man, starring Robert De Niro, and Avengers: Doomsday, which will be released December 18, 2026. AGBO will begin shooting Avengers: Secret Wars later this year. Both upcoming Avengers films are directed by Anthony and Joe Russo and co-produced by AGBO and Marvel Studios.

In 2023, AGBO welcomed Donald Mustard—former Chief Creative Officer at Epic Games and co-creator of Fortnite—as a partner. Mustard brings a bold creative vision to AGBO: to expand what storytelling can be through immersive, interconnected worlds that span across media. We're building the future of storytelling—and we're looking for bold, creative minds to help shape it. If you're ready to help define what comes next, we'd love to meet you.

Position Summary:
As a NPC Designer, you'll be hands-on in designing and implementing the moment-to-moment gameplay that NPCs exhibit in-game. You're a system-savvy, technical designer who understands how skilled players are defined by their opponents' challenge – and you know how to make sure the challenge always feels rewarding to play. Working closely with programmers, animators, and other designers, you'll implement and refine combat with our NPCs – from prototyping new ideas to tuning the final experience.  This is a hands-on, high-impact role on an ambitious team creating something special and exciting.

This role is based in Raleigh, NC, and we're primarily seeking candidates who are currently located in the area or are open to relocating. In-person collaboration with our technical and creative teams is essential to the success of this position.

Key Responsibilities:  

• Design, prototype, and iterate on NPC Design and implementation – including abilities, enemy behaviors, weapons, and feedback loops.
• Contribute to the development and optimization of gameplay to support performant, intelligent, strong NPC Combat.
• Contribute to a collaborative and highly iterative design culture.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Qualifications & Skills:

• 3+ years of experience in gameplay or combat design with at least one shipped action or combat-focused title, bonus if you helped grow and maintain a live service game.
• 3+ years experience in UE4 and/or UE5.
• Demonstrated expertise in designing and tuning player-centric combat systems.
• Leverage UE5 Blueprints and the Gameplay Ability System to prototype and build NPC abilities, weapons, and combat mechanics.
• Strong grasp of Behavior Trees and Blackboards in UE5.
• Collaborative mindset and excellent communication skills.
• Experience working closely with animation systems and/or designing melee or ranged combat systems.
• A passion for tuning, iteration, gameplay, design, and crafting joyful player experiences.
• Bonus: Previous experience at a startup or on early-phase projects.
• Bonus: An interest in film, cross-medium storytelling, or experimental gameplay.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Additional Information:

• This role is based in Raleigh, NC, and we're primarily seeking candidates who are currently located in the area or are open to relocating. 
• Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the U.S.

AGBO Labs LLC is committed to operating fair and unbiased recruitment procedures allowing all applicants an equal opportunity for employment, free from discrimination on the basis of religion, race, sex, age, sexual orientation, disability, color, ethnic or national origin or any other classification as may be protected by applicable law. We aim to recruit the right people for the jobs we have to offer, and to assess applications on the basis of relevant skills, education and experience.

AGBO participates in E-Verify - English | Spanish

The job description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by the employee(s) incumbent to this position.