Art Director – AA Open World Game

Location: Preferably In-house

Type: Full-Time

Department: Art

Reports To: Art Manager / Head of Art

Your departments: Concept, Environment, Characters, Animations, General Art (Props, Vehicles...etc), Lighting, VFX, Art Ops and Tech Art

About the Role:

We’re looking for a passionate Art Director to lead the visual identity of our upcoming AA simulator open-world game. You will be responsible for defining and executing the artistic vision across concept art, environments, characters, props, UI, animations, Lighting and VFX, ensuring a cohesive and immersive experience that pushes the boundaries of realistic art direction within our technical and production scope.

As Art Director, you’ll collaborate closely with other directors, producers, design, narrative, and tech teams to ensure the visual storytelling enhances gameplay, player immersion, and world-building. You’ll also manage your department leads and mentor a team of talented artists while fostering a creative and supportive work environment.

Key Responsibilities:

• Define and own the overall visual direction of the game, in alignment with the project’s creative and game direction.
• Oversee all visual aspects of the project across the following art departments: Animation, Characters, Props, Environments, Lighting, VFX, Concept Art, Art Operations, and Tech-Art.
• Create and maintain visual style guides, mood boards, and reference materials that clearly communicate the artistic goals across teams.
• Review and approve work from department leads (environment, character, concept, etc.) to ensure consistency, quality, and alignment with the visual direction.
• Collaborate closely with other directors across Design, Tech, Animation, Production, Creative, and Game Direction to ensure the visual direction supports gameplay mechanics, narrative, technical constraints, and production schedules.
• Ensure that visual design is not only compelling, but also feasible, timely, and integrated with the broader game experience.
• Drive the visual identity of the project toward memorable, high-quality moments, with a focus on open-world storytelling and clarity.
• Provide clear, actionable feedback and mentorship to the art team; support department leads in team growth, collaboration, and delivery.
• Work with production to scope, prioritize, and schedule art-related tasks to align with project milestones and ensure on-time delivery.

Qualifications:

• 5+ years of experience in game development, with at least 1 shipped title in a senior or lead art role (preferably in open-world or large-scale environments).
• Strong portfolio demonstrating a clear artistic vision, with experience in realistic styles being a plus.
• Solid understanding of 3D pipelines, lighting, composition, color theory, and environmental storytelling.
• Has a strong eye for animation quality, timing, and clarity of motion.
• Experience leading and mentoring multi-disciplinary art teams.
• Familiarity with open-world development challenges: streaming, LODs, biomes, modular workflows, etc.
• A passion for world-building, storytelling, and immersive player experiences.
• Excellent communication, leadership, and organizational skills.
• Collaboration experience with outsourcing/external teams.

Bonus Points:

• Proficient in industry-standard tools (Maya/Max, Blender, Substance, Photoshop, Unreal).
• Experience working on AA projects or with limited budgets and teams.
• Background in concept art or illustration.
• Knowledge of procedural generation tools or workflows.