HELP US BUILD
SECOND UNIT.
We’re building senior-led U.S. development teams that work alongside a client’s internal team, taking ownership of DLC, live content, and ongoing development. Their core teams can then focus on what comes next.
See below for both open positions and an employment FAQ.
OPEN POSITIONS
ART LEAD
Lead the art team while remaining an active contributor to the work. You’ll establish quality and workflow standards, solve production challenges, and work directly with clients to deliver art that fits their game
ENGINEERING LEAD
Lead engineering on client projects while staying hands-on with the code. You’ll guide the engineering team, solve technical and pipeline problems, and work directly with the clients to keep development and releases moving.
PRODUCTION LEAD
Own the day-to-day execution of client projects from kickoff through release deliveries. You’ll manage the team, schedule and priorities, identify risks early, and serve as the primary point of communication with the client.
WORKING FOR
SECOND UNIT.
PROJECT-BASED TEAMS
Teams are built around the work, typically with approximately 6–15 developers depending on the scope and needs of the project.
REMOTE, U.S.-BASED
Work with experienced game developers across the United States as part of teams that integrate directly with our clients.
W-2 HOURLY
You’re paid for the hours you work, with healthcare and hardware stipends while actively assigned to client work.
QUESTIONS?
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Yes. Second Unit is a new company built by experienced game development leaders. Together we’re creating a studio that values craftsmanship, ownership, transparency, and sustainable careers. As an early team member, you’ll have the opportunity to help shape the company’s culture, processes, and long-term success.
A typical project team may include approximately 6-15 developers across production, engineering, art, design, QA, and other disciplines depending on the scope and type of work. Some projects may be smaller or larger depending on the client’s needs.
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We partner with established game studios to build player-facing content for successful PC and console games. Projects may include DLC, live events, gameplay features, environments, characters, animations, technical art, engineering, and production support. While specific projects/genres vary, our focus is always on helping great games continue to thrive.
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Our goal is to become a trusted extension of the development team, not to replace it. Studios often have important work that their teams need to take on, but are split between priorities. Supporting a successful game while also building what comes next. Second Unit takes ownership of defined areas of development so the client’s team can focus on its higher priority work.
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Yes. We’re a remote-first company built around experienced professionals across the United States. We believe great teams aren’t defined by proximity. They’re defined by communication, trust, shared purpose, and accountability.
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Second Unit’s primary employment model is W-2 Hourly.
You’ll be paid for every hour you work, including overtime (when it is approved and applicable). Because our work is project-based, hours are tied to active client engagements. When a project concludes, there may be periods before your next assignment begins.
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Because our work is project-based, hours are tied to active client engagements. We work hard to maintain a steady pipeline of projects, but there may be unpaid periods between assignments. This is a business reality. Our goal is to keep people working. We believe in being transparent about this from the start so you can make an informed decision about whether our model is the right fit for you.
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Rather than a traditional employer-sponsored health plan, eligible employees receive a monthly healthcare stipend for every month they are actively assigned to client work.
This approach allows employees to choose the health coverage that best fits their needs while still receiving meaningful financial support.
Specific stipend amounts are discussed during the hiring process with the three tiers being single, married, and family.
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Yes. We comply with all applicable federal and state wage and hour laws. If your role is non-exempt and approved overtime is required to support a project, you’ll be compensated accordingly. Our goal is to build a culture where we honor your time. We believe good planning produces better games and healthier teams. Having to pay when we get it wrong strongly motivates us to get it right.
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Team members use their own development workstation. Second Unit provides a dedicated project SSD and works with you to configure a separate, managed development environment for company and client work. The project drive remains Second Unit property and is returned when the assignment ends. No oversight software or anything else will be installed on your computer. Employees receive a monthly hardware stipend while actively assigned to client projects. Specific projects may require additional client-mandated security controls or virtual development environments.
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We work within our clients’ production environments whenever possible. That means you may work with Unreal Engine, Unity, Maya, Photoshop, Perforce, Git, Jira, Confluence, Slack, Teams and other industry-standard tools, as well as proprietary tools developed by the client.
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We believe our clients hire us for human creativity, craftsmanship, and professional judgement. AI-generated content is not a substitute for those qualities. When appropriate, we may use AI-assisted tools to support internal productivity, such as research, brainstorming, documentation, or administrative tasks, while creative ownership and responsibility for the final work remains with our team.
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We’re looking for experienced professionals who take ownership of their work, communicate openly, enjoy collaborating with others, have experience mentoring juniors, and care deeply about delivering great experiences for players.
Technical and artistic skill matters, but professionalism, reliability, accountability, and teamwork matter more.