The Lead Generalist Programmer will lead and mentor engineering teams in game development, working hands-on with Unity and Unreal, and ensuring best practices in coding and optimization.
Lead Generalist Programmer
RequirementsWhat we’re looking for
Benefits
North America
Side is a global game development partner helping studios bring games to life across co-development, art, audio, QA, player support, and more. We work alongside developers and publishers to solve production challenges at every stage, from active development through live operations.
We’re looking for a Lead Generalist Programmer to help drive technical delivery across a range of game development engagements. This role is for a senior engineer who is equally comfortable leading people, collaborating with clients, and getting hands-on in code. You should bring strong technical depth in both Unity and Unreal, experience guiding teams through production, and the judgment to move between gameplay systems, tools, optimization, and platform-specific problem solving as projects demand.
What you’ll do- Lead and mentor engineers across active co-development and game development projects
- Act as a senior technical partner to production, design, art, and client stakeholders
- Contribute hands-on to implementation in Unity and Unreal, depending on project needs
- Architect and review systems across gameplay, tools, UI, integration, optimization, and platform support
- Establish engineering best practices for code quality, performance, maintainability, and delivery
- Help scope work, identify technical risk early, and provide realistic production recommendations
- Support hiring, onboarding, and growth of engineering talent within the team
- Communicate technical tradeoffs clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences
- Partner with internal leadership and external clients to align technical execution with project goals
RequirementsWhat we’re looking for
- 5+ years of professional game programming experience
- Experience leading or mentoring engineers in a production environment
- Strong hands-on development experience in both Unity and Unreal Engine
- Strong coding skills in C# and C++
- Experience shipping games or major features on at least one of the following: PC, console, or mobile
- Deep understanding of game architecture, pipelines, debugging, profiling, and optimization
- Ability to work across multiple gameplay-adjacent domains such as gameplay systems, UI, animation systems, tooling, or integration
- Strong understanding of technical risk, production tradeoffs, and scalable engineering practices
- Excellent communication skills with the ability to work directly with clients, partners, and cross-functional teams
- Experience in a co-development, outsourcing, or service-based studio environment
- Experience with console development and certification constraints
- Familiarity with backend or online systems integration
- Experience building internal tools and workflows for designers, artists, or production teams
- Exposure to AWS, CI/CD pipelines, or live-service workflows
- Experience helping scope projects, write technical proposals, or support business development conversations
Benefits
This will be a contract role to start with the intent to convert to perm.
Top Skills
C#
C++
Unity
Unreal
Side San Francisco, California, USA Office
580 4th Street, San Francisco, CA, United States, 94107
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