Staff Software Engineer, Tools - Unpublished R&D Product

Company: Riot Games
Location: Mercer Island
Posted on: January 7, 2026

Job Description:

As a Staff Software Engineer, Tools on an unpublished R&D product, you will architect the foundational elements of the tools ecosystem for one of Riot’s most exciting new games. You will work closely with designers, artists, producers, and other engineers to gather requirements and set the long-term vision for the team’s developer tooling. In this role you will be hands-on in conceptualizing, planning, implementing, and maintaining the tools that power content creation workflows and make developers more efficient. You will work with state-of-the-art technology, and explore new solutions to surprise and delight our players as we bring this new game to life. Riot engineers bring deep knowledge of specific technical areas but also value the opportunity to work in a variety of broader domains. As a Staff Software Engineer, you’ll drive important features and provide other engineers with a clear illustration of extraordinary engineering. We work with both new and current technology, creating innovative solutions to overcome high-volume obstacles and to deliver player value. You will report to a Senior Engineering Manager supporting the Tech Foundations team within an R&D game project. Responsibilities : • Collaborate with leadership on planning and long-term vision for developer tooling and workflows • Architect and help implement the foundational elements of the game’s tools ecosystem • Champion the technical vision, architecture, and execution for the tools engineering team with production and management • Establish the team’s technical direction and best practices for tools architecture and implementation • Mentor engineers across multiple levels as the team scales, and provide feedback that supports their technical growth • Collaborate effectively with production, design, art, and other engineering teams to deliver tools that are purpose-driven, robust, and scalable • Champion tooling best practices across multiple teams including design, tech art, UX, and gameplay engineering • Review and identify new and shared developer tooling technologies, both internal and external, as possible opportunities for the team • Provide documentation and trainings on new tools and workflows to internal customers Required Qualifications: • 8 years of professional experience in software engineering, including experience delivering live or shipped products at scale • 3 years working on game development tools • Experience in Unreal Engine and awareness of upcoming tools in game development • B.S. in computer science or equivalent experience • Proven ability to navigate ambiguity and influence cross-functional stakeholders • Strong communication skills across technical and non-technical audiences • Proficiency in C++ Desired Qualifications: • Experience developing tools that integrate with both client and backend systems • Experience developing tools that integrate with art pipelines (e.g. Maya, Blender, etc.) • Deep knowledge of tooling solutions utilized in AAA games around the industry • Experience developing AI- or ML-driven content tools • Experience mentoring technical leaders and contributing to engineering culture • Experience working on distributed teams • Experience in C#

Keywords: Riot Games, Bellevue , Staff Software Engineer, Tools - Unpublished R&D Product, IT / Software / Systems , Mercer Island, Washington