Expert Systems Designer - Raven - Middleton, WI

Job Title:

Expert Systems Designer - Raven - Middleton, WI

Requisition ID:

R028217

Job Description:

Your Mission

As an Expert Systems Designer, you will design, implement, and evolve the player-facing systems that shape the experience of millions of players in Call of Duty: Warzone. You will own complex features from concept through launch and live operation, collaborating with Design, Product Management, Analytics, UX, Engineering, and partner studios.

You will use player behavior, telemetry, research, market trends, and community feedback to guide design decisions and improve the game. Your work will balance player needs, gameplay quality, and the commercial objectives of a free-to-play live-service game.

Success in this role requires deep multiplayer systems expertise, strategic thinking, and sound judgment. You will navigate changing priorities, evaluate design tradeoffs, and guide complex systems through development and ongoing improvement.

This role is based in our Middleton, WI office and follows an onsite work schedule of four days per week. Work arrangements may change at the company's discretion to meet business needs. 

What you bring to the table 

The video game industry and therefore our business is fast-paced and will continue to evolve. As such, the duties and responsibilities of this role may be changed as directed by the Company at any time to promote and support our business and relationships with industry partners. Therefore, this role includes, but is not limited to, the following responsibilities: 

Systems Design Execution 

• Define the vision, structure, and goals of gameplay and engagement systems, ensuring alignment with the overall player experience, mechanics, and pacing of the game.
• Design and refine game modes, progression, economies, rewards, and other engagement systems from initial design through launch and live operation.
• Implement, tune, and iterate on systems using proprietary scripting and development tools.
• Build and maintain models and simulations to evaluate loot distribution, XP curves, economies, and other system behaviors.
• Evaluate system proposals to identify design risks, tradeoffs, dependencies, and opportunities for improvement.
• Establish design workflows and best practices that support high-quality execution and scalable systems.

Documentation & Communication  

• Create and maintain clear, concise design briefs, specifications, test plans, patch notes, and other materials that support implementation and iteration.
• Communicate design vision, system behavior, rationale, and tradeoffs through presentations, diagrams, and visual references.

Cross-Discipline Leadership

• Collaborate with Design, Engineering, UX, Product Management, Analytics, Art, Production, Marketing, and partner studios to deliver high-quality player experiences.
• Serve as a subject matter expert on the systems you own, advising teams on design decisions and tradeoffs.
• Partner with Design Leadership and Product Management to align systems with creative vision, gameplay goals, product strategy, and quality expectations.
• Mentor fellow designers and contribute to a culture of strong design practices and continuous improvement.
• Partner with studios developing premium Call of Duty titles to support consistency across the franchise where appropriate.

Quality & Player Experience

• Champion a player-first approach across the systems you own.
• Ensure systems meet quality, accessibility, and usability standards while supporting long-term player engagement.
• Collaborate with QA, Engineering, Analytics, and Production to identify and resolve design issues throughout development and live operation.
• Use player data, research, experimentation, and feedback to evaluate system performance and guide post-launch improvements.

 

Minimum Requirements

Experience

• 12+ years of professional game development experience, with a focus on systems design.
• A track record of shipping multiple AAA multiplayer titles, with significant experience supporting live-service games after launch.
• Demonstrated experience designing multiplayer game modes, progression systems, economies, monetization systems, or other player engagement features.
• Experience designing systems for free-to-play games or large-scale live-service products.
• Experience owning complex player-facing features from concept through launch and live operation.
• Hands-on experience implementing and tuning gameplay systems using scripting languages and proprietary development tools.
• Experience partnering closely with Product Management and Analytics teams.

Knowledge & Skills

• Expert understanding of free-to-play and live-service design principles, including seasonal content strategies.
• Deep knowledge of multiplayer mechanics, progression systems, reward design, player motivation, and social game design.
• Strong understanding of behavioral design and retention mechanics.
• Ability to interpret telemetry, A/B test results, and player research to inform design decisions.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to present complex design concepts clearly.
• Ability to create clear design documentation and presentations, and to build system models using tools such as Confluence, PowerPoint, Excel, Word, Visio, or equivalent software.

Key Attributes

• Committed to building player-first experiences while balancing gameplay quality and commercial objectives.
• Creative and strategic in solving complex systems design challenges.
• Collaborative, receptive to feedback, and focused on the best outcome for the game.
• Accountable for results and comfortable navigating ambiguity and changing priorities.
• Passionate about Call of Duty, multiplayer games, and free-to-play design.

Extra Points

• Experience leading the design of progression, battle pass, monetization, or other player engagement systems for a shipped AAA title.
• Experience shipping and operating a large-scale free-to-play game.
• Experience designing experiments or partnering with player research teams to evaluate live features.
• Experience presenting complex systems and product strategies to executive stakeholders.
• Familiarity with SQL, telemetry platforms, experimentation frameworks, or data visualization tools.

  

Your Platform

Here at Raven, we pride ourselves on our unique vision for the industry that continues to inspire us after more than 30 years.  We developed a team that cares about one another, our games, and our players.  We treat each other with respect.  We bring no egos. We focus on what is best for the game. We hire spectacular peers.  We own our mistakes.  As we enter the next exciting chapter of our story, we are looking for people to grow with us. If you want to work with a world-class team, on exciting new projects, then apply today! We look forward to hearing from you.

Our World

At Activision, we strive to create the most iconic brands in gaming and entertainment. We’re driven by our mission to deliver unrivaled gaming experiences for the world to enjoy, together. We are home to some of the most beloved entertainment franchises including Call of Duty®, Crash Bandicoot™, Tony Hawk’s™ Pro Skater™, and Guitar Hero®. As a leading worldwide developer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and products, our “press start” is simple: delight hundreds of millions of players around the world with innovative, fun, thrilling, and engaging entertainment experiences.

We’re not just looking back at our decades-long legacy; we’re forging ahead to keep advancing gameplay with some of the most popular titles and sophisticated technology in the world. We have bold ambitions to create the most inclusive company as we know our success comes from the passionate, creative, and diverse teams within our organization.

We’re in the business of delivering fun and unforgettable entertainment for our player community to enjoy. And our future opportunities have never been greater — this could be your opportunity to level up.

Ready to Activate Your Future?

We love hearing from anyone who is enthusiastic about changing the games industry. Not sure you meet all qualifications? Let us decide! Research shows that women and members of other under-represented groups tend to not apply to jobs when they think they may not meet every qualification, when, in fact, they often do! We are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment and strongly encourage you to apply.

We are committed to working with and providing reasonable assistance to individuals with physical and mental disabilities. If you are a disabled individual requiring an accommodation to apply for an open position, please email your request to accommodationrequests@activisionblizzard.com. General employment questions cannot be accepted or processed here. Thank you for your interest.

The videogame industry and therefore our business is fast-paced and will continue to evolve. As such, the duties and responsibilities of this role may be changed as directed by the Company at any time to promote and support our business and relationships with industry partners.

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status, among other characteristics.

Rewards

We provide a suite of benefits that promote physical, emotional and financial well-being for ‘Every World’ - we’ve got our employees covered!  Subject to eligibility requirements, the Company offers comprehensive benefits including:

• Medical, dental, vision, health savings account or health reimbursement account, healthcare spending accounts, dependent care spending accounts, life and AD&D insurance, disability insurance;
• 401(k) with Company match, tuition reimbursement, charitable donation matching;
• Paid holidays and vacation, paid sick time, floating holidays, compassion and bereavement leaves, parental leave;
• Mental health & wellbeing programs, fitness programs, free and discounted games, and a variety of other voluntary benefit programs like supplemental life & disability, legal service, ID protection, rental insurance, and others;
• If the Company requires that you move geographic locations for the job, then you may also be eligible for relocation assistance.

Eligibility to participate in these benefits may vary for part time and temporary full-time employees and interns with the Company.  You can learn more by visiting https://www.benefitsforeveryworld.com/.

In the U.S., the standard base pay range for this role is $99,200.00 - $183,520.00 Annual. These values reflect the expected base pay range of new hires across all U.S. locations. Ultimately, your specific range and offer will be based on several factors, including relevant experience, performance, and work location. Your Talent Professional can share this role’s range details for your local geography during the hiring process. In addition to a competitive base pay, employees in this role may be eligible for incentive compensation. Incentive compensation is not guaranteed. While we strive to provide competitive offers to successful candidates, new hire compensation is negotiable.