About the role
Company Overview
Zynga, a global leader in interactive entertainment and a label of Take-Two Interactive, connects players in 175+ countries through games. Founded in 2007 and headquartered in California, the company operates across North America, Europe, and Asia. Portfolio titles include FarmVille, Words With Friends, Zynga Poker, Game of Thrones Slots Casino, Wizard of Oz Slots, Hit it Rich! Slots, Wonka Slots, Top Eleven, Toon Blast, Empires & Puzzles, Merge Dragons, CSR Racing, Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells, Match Factory, and Color Block Jam.
Position Overview
Zynga is seeking a server-side engineer for a distributed team in Austin, TX or San Mateo, CA. The role requires a self-driven, motivated engineer who is a strong communicator, works well as a team player, and performs effectively under the pressure of tight deadlines. The focus is on high-performance, large-scale applications, systems architecture, and solving challenging problems for high-profile titles.
Responsibilities
- Develop features and gameplay functionality in Go.
- Develop and integrate new technologies, tools, and SDKs.
- Dive into the internals of core systems to extend them as needed.
- Participate in multi-week or months-long efforts with other engineers.
- Identify and improve team and process inefficiencies.
- Demonstrate strong coding skills, including critical review and improvements to code developed by others.
- Ensure features follow secure coding practices, protect user data, and mitigate security risks.
- Monitor industry trends to identify future technical risks, scalability concerns, and strategic opportunities.
- Collaborate with cross-functional teams and stakeholders to align technical solutions with product and design goals.
Qualifications
- Education: B.Sc. in Computer Science, Engineering, or equivalent education/work experience.
- Experience: 2+ years of game industry or mobile app experience as a software developer.
- Game Development: Prior experience on shipped titles or live games.
- Technical Skills:
- Proficiency in Golang, C#, and HTML.
- Strong working experience in implementing APIs and services (gRPC and REST).
- Solid foundation in data structures, algorithms, and software methodologies.
- Comprehensive knowledge of the full software development life cycle (coding standards, code reviews, source control management, build processes, testing, and operations).
- Communication: Excellent skills and comfort working in a collaborative environment.
Bonus Points
- Experience with Unity.
- Experience with versioning and build systems (Git and Jenkins).
- Experience with performance profiling and optimization.
- Knowledge of Docker, databases (PostgreSQL, MySQL), Kafka, Redis, AWS, gRPC, and Protobuf.
- Experience with monitoring tools: Bugsnag, Splunk/ELK, and Datadog.
- Experience with multiplayer or real-time systems.
Compensation and Benefits
- Pay Range: $85,700 to $126,860 per year (California). Base pay varies based on market location, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.
- Total Compensation: May include bonuses and/or equity awards.
- Retirement: Eligibility to participate in the 401(k) plan and Employee Stock Purchase Program.
- Health and Wellness: Medical, dental, vision, and basic life insurance.
- Time Off: 14 paid holidays per year; paid vacation (15 to 25 days) or participation in a discretionary time off program; up to 10 paid sick days per year.
- Leave: Paid parental and compassionate leave.
- Support: Wellbeing programs for mental health, family planning support through Maven, commuter benefits, and fitness-related expense reimbursements.