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Executive Game Narrative Designer Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Naughty Dog

Senior Game Designer (Combat)

Santa Monica, CA · On-site

$145K - $181K/yr

... narrative, gameplay, and technology. Naughty Dog recently released The Last of Us Part II ... Mentor junior designers and contribute to the overall growth of the design team What skills you ...

Fanatics Collectibles

Game Designer - TCG

Seattle, WA · On-site

$176K/yr

Collaborate with narrative design, creative, and product teams to ensure mechanics are well ... Deep passion for trading card games as both a designer and a player Location All employees of ...

Fanatics Collectibles

Game Designer - TCG

Seattle, WA · On-site

$98K - $123K/yr

Collaborate with narrative design, creative, and product teams to ensure mechanics are well ... Deep passion for trading card games as both a designer and a player Location All employees of ...

Templar Media

Lead Game Designer

Alpharetta, GA · On-site

The Lead Designer should have excellent game design ability in both single and multiplayer and be a ... Maintain communications with all team members, team leads and executive management,internally and ...

Cinnamon

Principal Playable Character Designer

Irvine, CA · On-site

$120 - $170/hr

Our design teams work closely across gameplay, narrative, engineering, and art to create memorable roster-based experiences for a global audience. We're looking for a senior designer to lead the ...

Squanch Games

Design Manager

$140K - $200K/yr

We're Squanch Games! Squanch Games has been around since 2016, and since then we've released ... and narrative designers alike - aligned, unblocked, and shipping great work, while balancing ...

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Executive Game Narrative Designer information

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$156K

How much do executive game narrative designer jobs pay per year?

As of Aug 13, 2026, the average yearly pay for executive game narrative designer in the United States is $149,118.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $155,000.00 and $155,000.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as an executive game narrative designer, and why are they important?

To thrive as an Executive Game Narrative Designer, you need deep expertise in storytelling, narrative structure, and interactive design, often supported by a degree in creative writing, literature, or game design. Familiarity with narrative design tools (such as Twine, Ink, or articy:draft), game engines (like Unity or Unreal), and experience leading narrative teams are highly valuable. Outstanding communication, leadership, and collaborative skills help guide creative vision and foster productive teamwork across disciplines. These skills and qualities are crucial for crafting compelling game narratives that engage players and align with overall game development goals.

How does an executive game narrative designer collaborate with other departments during game development?

An Executive Game Narrative Designer works closely with various teams such as art, design, audio, and programming to ensure that the narrative is seamlessly integrated into the gameplay experience. They frequently participate in cross-departmental meetings to align story elements with visual assets, game mechanics, and audio cues. Effective collaboration is essential, as narrative decisions often impact level design, character development, and player engagement. Building strong relationships and maintaining open communication channels with other department leads is key to successfully translating the narrative vision into a cohesive, immersive game.

What is the difference between Executive Game Narrative Designer vs Game Narrative Designer?

AspectExecutive Game Narrative DesignerGame Narrative Designer
CredentialsTypically requires experience in narrative design, storytelling, and leadership skillsRequires experience in storytelling, scriptwriting, and game narrative development
Work EnvironmentWorks closely with senior management, leads narrative teams, and influences overall game story directionFocuses on creating storylines, character development, and scripting within game projects
Industry UsageCommon in large studios and AAA titles, often in leadership rolesUsed across various studios, from indie to AAA, primarily in creative storytelling roles

The main difference is that the Executive Game Narrative Designer holds a leadership position, overseeing narrative teams and shaping the overall story vision, while the Game Narrative Designer focuses on crafting specific story elements and scripts within the game. The executive role involves strategic planning and management, whereas the standard narrative designer concentrates on creative development.

What does an executive game narrative designer do?

An Executive Game Narrative Designer oversees the storytelling aspects of a video game, ensuring that the plot, characters, dialogue, and world-building all support the game's vision and player experience. They lead the narrative team, collaborate closely with game designers, artists, and developers, and make high-level decisions about how the story integrates with gameplay. Their role involves setting narrative direction, maintaining consistency, and guiding the overall emotional and thematic tone of the game. They also mentor junior writers and represent the narrative department in executive meetings.
More about Executive Game Narrative Designer jobs
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Executive Game Narrative Designer jobs near you
Infographic showing various Executive Game Narrative Designer job openings in the United States as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 1% Internship, 89% Full Time, 6% Part Time, and 4% Contract. Highlights an 84% Physical, 5% Hybrid, and 11% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $149,118 per year, or $71.7 per hour.

Senior Game Designer (Combat)

Naughty Dog

Santa Monica, CA • On-site

$145K - $181K/yr

Full-time

Re-posted 14 days ago

Job description

Ability to work onsite from our Santa Monica, CA based studio is required.
For nearly 40 years, Naughty Dog has been crafting best-selling, critically acclaimed games that constantly push the boundaries of narrative, gameplay, and technology. Naughty Dog recently released The Last of Us Part II Remastered as well as a current generation remake of The Last of Us Part I for the PS5. We're also proud to say that The Last of Us Part I is now available for the first time on PC.
Naughty Dog games have long been lauded for their evocative, character-driven stories and attention to detail. We are committed to innovation within our games and as such have curated some of the top creative and technically innovative minds in the industry. We welcome diverse candidates and believe that a broad range of cultural and life experiences contribute to the overall well-being and success of the studio and the titles we craft together.
What you will do:
  • Pitch, design, implement, and own enemy NPC archetypes
  • Work with AI programmers to develop foundational NPC technology and implementing and tuning enemy AI behaviors
  • Work with animators to develop enemy locomotion and traversal, melee moves, ambient behaviors, and other custom abilities. Make every enemy archetype feel unique and memorable
  • Collaborate with the Design team to conceptualize, prototype, implement, tune, and balance gameplay mechanics and systems
  • Communicate with animation, programming, and art departments to effectively produce the assets and code support required for the enemies you're owning
  • Write and maintain documentation that establishes the core vision of the enemy archetypes
  • Drive communication and collaboration for enemies you design and the levels they are in, ensuring communication across disciplines and meeting deadlines
  • Effective and respectful communicator and collaborator, both with other designers and members of other departments
  • Facilitate playtesting and feedback sessions to iterate on combat systems and fine-tune them based on player experiences
  • Mentor junior designers and contribute to the overall growth of the design team

What skills you will use:
  • 5+ years of industry experience in combat design and/or technical design for games, specifically focused on developing action-adventure or shooter games
  • At least one shipped title as a combat designer or similar role. Experience with behavior trees or similar NPC AI concepts preferred
  • Strong coding ability: Computer Science degree preferred though not required
  • Proficient in using game engines and tools (e.g., Unreal Engine, Unity) for combat implementation and design scripting (C#, Lua, Visual Scripting)
  • Welcomes feedback on their work and embraces the "let's try it" mentality
  • Proficient and effective communication skills, including diagramming and sketching
  • Fluent in modern character action-adventure and shooter combat games. Maintains knowledge of the broader gaming landscape trends
  • Knowledge of narrative structure and how it intersects with gameplay and combat
  • A keen eye for detail in character action games, able to tune gameplay systems to make them feel smooth and impactful
  • Strong leadership and mentoring skills

The estimated USA base pay range for this zone (Los Angeles area) is listed below. This role may be eligible for additional compensation packages that includes annual bonus and other incentive plans.
$145,100-$181,400 USD
Please note, Sony Interactive Entertainment conducts background checks at the offer stage for all new employees (which may include criminal background checks for some roles) and will need to process personal information to support these checks.
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