Lead Environmental Artist

Xsolla

Serbia

Remote

Who this role is best for

A natural match if you have senior-level experience in environment art and a track record of optimizing real-time game environments.

Best fit for

Candidates with senior-level environment art experience and a history of optimizing real-time game environments for performance
— “creating visually impressive environments — we need someone who understands how to build high-quality, optimized, production-ready environments”
Individuals who can translate artistic vision into scalable, technically achievable environments
— “Collaborate with Art Direction to translate the artistic vision into scalable and technically achievable environments”
Candidates who have led teams and mentored junior artists in a game development context
— “Leadership and mentoring experience, with the ability to provide clear and constructive artistic and technical feedback”

Things to consider

The role demands consistent collaboration with technical teams and a focus on optimization throughout production
— “Participate in profiling and optimization throughout production rather than treating optimization as a final-stage task”
Candidates must be familiar with both Unreal Engine and Unity, as the JD explicitly names both
— “Strong proficiency with industry-standard 3D tools and experience working in Unreal Engine and/or Unity”

How to stand out

Highlight specific examples of optimizing asset complexity and memory usage in your portfolio
— “Identify and resolve performance issues related to geometry, materials, textures, lighting, draw calls, memory usage, LODs, and asset complexity”
Emphasize your experience with modular workflows and environment production pipelines
— “Advanced knowledge of environment production pipelines, modular workflows, LODs, materials, shaders, texture optimization, and asset budgets”
Showcase your ability to provide constructive feedback and mentor junior artists
— “Review and provide feedback on the work of Environment Artists and support their professional development”
Demonstrate your ability to balance artistic vision with technical constraints
— “Establish and maintain the visual quality bar for environments while ensuring technical and performance requirements are met”
Include projects where you collaborated with level designers and lighting artists to achieve cohesive environments
— “Work closely with Technical Artists, Level Designers, Lighting Artists, and Engineers to balance visual quality with performance”

Pace · SteadyCollaboration · HighAutonomy · MediumDecision Impact · TeamLevel · Lead

Derived from job-description analysis by Serendipath's career intelligence engine.

What success looks like

High-Quality Environment Creation
Optimized Production-Ready Assets
Balanced Visual Quality and Performance
Scalable and Achievable Environments
Collaborative Art Direction

Typical background

Professional Experience as Senior or Lead Environment ArtistStrong Portfolio of Production-Ready Environments

Skills & requirements

Required

Environmental ArtReal-time Game EngineUnreal EngineUnityOptimizationTechnical StandardsPipeline WorkflowsModular KitsArchitectureTerrainPropsMaterialsSet DressingLightingCompositionScaleColorEnvironmental StorytellingPerformance MetricsAsset Budgets

Stack & domain

Environmental ArtReal-time OptimizationUnreal EngineUnityModular WorkflowsLodsMaterialsShadersTexture OptimizationAsset BudgetsLeadershipCommunicationProblem-solvingTeamworkGame Development

About the role

Original posting from Xsolla via Lever

ABOUT YOU
We are looking for a Lead Environmental Artist who combines a strong artistic eye with solid technical expertise. This role is not only about creating visually impressive environments — we need someone who understands how to build high-quality, optimized, production-ready environments that perform efficiently in a real-time game engine.
ABOUT US
Xsolla is a global commerce company with robust tools and services to help developers solve the inherent challenges of the video game industry. From indie to AAA, companies partner with Xsolla to help them fund, distribute, market, and monetize their games. Grounded in the belief in the future of video games, Xsolla is resolute in the mission to bring opportunities together, and continually make new resources available to creators. Headquartered and incorporated in Los Angeles, California, Xsolla operates as the merchant of record and has helped over 1,500+ game developers to reach more players and grow their businesses around the world. With more paths to profits and ways to win, developers have all the things needed to enjoy the game.
For more information, visit xsolla.com.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
Lead the creation of high-quality environments from concept through final implementation.
Establish and maintain the visual quality bar for environments while ensuring technical and performance requirements are met.
Create optimized environment assets, including modular kits, architecture, terrain, props, materials, and set dressing.
Work closely with Technical Artists, Level Designers, Lighting Artists, and Engineers to balance visual quality with performance.
Define and maintain environment art pipelines, workflows, and technical standards.
Identify and resolve performance issues related to geometry, materials, textures, lighting, draw calls, memory usage, LODs, and asset complexity.
Review and provide feedback on the work of Environment Artists and support their professional development.
Collaborate with Art Direction to translate the artistic vision into scalable and technically achievable environments.
Participate in profiling and optimization throughout production rather than treating optimization as a final-stage task.
REQUIREMENTS:
Strong professional experience as a Senior or Lead Environment Artist in game development.
Excellent portfolio demonstrating visually compelling, production-ready environments.
Strong understanding of real-time optimization and the ability to make informed trade-offs between visual fidelity and performance.
Advanced knowledge of environment production pipelines, modular workflows, LODs, materials, shaders, texture optimization, and asset budgets.
Strong proficiency with industry-standard 3D tools and experience working in Unreal Engine and/or Unity.
Good understanding of lighting, composition, scale, color, and environmental storytelling.
Ability to profile environments, identify technical bottlenecks, and collaborate with technical teams to resolve them.
Leadership and mentoring experience, with the ability to provide clear and constructive artistic and technical feedback.
Strong communication and cross-functional collaboration skills.
Benefits
We are passionate about fostering a supportive environment for our team, so we prioritize the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of our employees through a comprehensive Benefits Program. This includes unlimited Flexible Time Off and a personalized career roadmap for each employee. By investing in professional development through training and educational opportunities, we ensure that our team thrives both personally and professionally. Together, we’re not just building a business; we’re cultivating a community that values creativity, collaboration, and the transformative power of play.
The duties and responsibilities of this position may evolve over time to support the organization’s goals and individual growth. This job description is intended to outline the general nature and level of work being performed and is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities, and qualifications required.
By submitting your application, you consent to Xsolla conducting background checks, where permitted by law, after the final interview stage. All checks will comply with local regulations, and your information will be handled confidentially.
Xsolla takes your privacy seriously and will not sell or externally distribute any personal data received during the hiring process. In accordance with applicable data protection laws, Xsolla is committed to protecting your personal information and respecting your privacy.
For any inquiries related to data privacy, please contact: careers@xsolla.com
Explore more opportunities at: https://xsolla.com/careers

Source: Xsolla careers (Lever)