Independent Game Designer Jobs (NOW HIRING)

TapBlaze is looking for a Senior Narrative Designer to shape the stories, characters, and worlds players return to every day in Good Pizza, Great Pizza, Good Coffee, Great Coffee, and future cozy simulation titles. Reporting to the Game Director, you will own narrative across chapters, seasonal events, and live ops content. You will write the dialogue, character arcs, and world building that make our games feel alive, partnering closely with game designers, artists, and community support team so that story beats are something players experience through playing the game, not something that just happens in the background.

Here at TapBlaze, our mission is to make great games for players that will be remembered for decades. As a small team, we have created games such as "Good Pizza, Great Pizza" that have been downloaded more than 300 million times across the globe, giving a fun, innovative experience to millions of players every day. Our core values are the reason we have found success as an independent studio and guide our hiring process: we are ambitious, disciplined, ownership-minded, results oriented, and extraordinary. We operate internationally and we are growing day by day.

We are seeking individuals that have the same core values and are looking to level up themselves, the games they work on and the company they work for. Only with great attention to details can this be achieved — please mention "beauty is in the details" in your cover letter.

• Own narrative for chapters, seasonal events, and live ops content across Good Pizza, Great Pizza, Good Coffee, Great Coffee, and future cozy simulation titles

• Write and iterate on dialogue, character moments, branching player choices, and event storylines that stay true to each game's tone and charm

• Design story beats alongside game designers so the player drives the narrative rather than witnessing it (for example, a rival cornering the topping supply forces the player to grow ingredients in their garden or run ads for unaffected recipes)

• Build and maintain narrative documentation such as story outlines, character bios, world building notes, and style guides that keep the team and localization partners aligned

• Research subject matter and culture relevant to each title, including pizza, coffee, matcha, and the everyday details that make our worlds feel lived in

• Strong command of cozy and casual sim storytelling, with the ability to land warmth, humor, and genuine conflict through small daily customer level beats rather than screenplay style set pieces

• Ability to write short, punchy dialogue under tight constraints (line length, character limits, branching choices) while keeping each character's voice unmistakable

• Skilled at world building and character design that fits within an existing IP, with the ability to match the tone of an established universe and extend it without breaking it

• Possesses strong instincts for plot structure across short form (event) and long form (chapter) arcs, treating the player as protagonist and binding storytelling to gameplay

• Ability to maintain a sense of urgency while remaining detail oriented; please mention "beauty is in the details," you must love working on the details

• 2+ years of experience as a Narrative Designer on a shipped game; mobile game experience strongly preferred

• Bachelor's degree in Creative Writing, English, Screenwriting, Game Design, Interactive Media, or a related field; equivalent professional experience also considered

• Pluses: hands on experience with Yarn Spinner; experience writing for live ops or seasonal event content; familiarity with the Good Pizza, Great Pizza and Good Coffee, Great Coffee universes; localization aware writing experience

• Los Angeles, CA: Reliably commute or planning to relocate before starting work

• Prolonged period of time sitting at a desk and computer

The salary range for this role is $65,000 to $100,000 per year depending on experience.

As an equal opportunity employer committed to meeting the needs of a multigenerational and multicultural workforce TAPBLAZE recognizes that a diverse staff, reflective of our community, is an integral and welcome part of a successful and ethical business. We hire local talent at all levels regardless of race, color, religion, age, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, or disability, and actively foster inclusion in all forms both within our company and across interactions with vendors and partners.

If this position caught your eye, send us your resume! For best consideration, include a cover letter in your application explaining why you would be a great fit.

Should you have any questions or encounter any fraudulent requests/emails/websites, please immediately contact careers@tapblaze.com. Our job applicant privacy policies are available here: California Privacy Notice