Principal Software Engineer, Engine

Principal Software Engineer, Engine

Blizzard Entertainment

We are looking for a Principal Software Engineer to join the World of Warcraft Engine team and help shape the future of Azeroth.

Blizzard Entertainment is a global company committed to growing our employees along with the business. We offer competitive benefits and strive for a healthy work/life balance. We foster a deeply collaborative and creative environment, a diverse and inclusive employee culture, and training and opportunity for professional growth.

Irvine, CA

This role is expected to work in‑office 3 days a week and work from home the other 2 days. The home studio for this role is Irvine, CA.

World of Warcraft

• Design and implementation of new graphics and engine functionality.
• Maintain the rendering engine for performance, stability, and error‑free operation.
• Act as primary technical point within the engine domain on large‑scale projects, with the capacity to stretch past that domain when necessary.
• Work closely with the art department to help them achieve their artistic vision.
• Mentor and guide engineers at all levels.
• Participate in and contribute to a diverse and inclusive culture.

• An understanding of scene management and the rendering pipeline.
• Experience shipping game titles with significant contributions to the engine.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, with experience working across all game development disciplines effectively.
• Strong mathematics skills, including proficiency with trigonometry and linear algebra.
• Strong fluency writing modern C++ while also understanding historical language patterns.

• Experience with code and data optimization.
• Experience with multi‑threaded programming.
• Experience debugging across a variety of hardware configurations.
• Experience working within legacy codebases.

Competitive base pay of $146,000–$270,004 annually. Employees may be eligible for incentive compensation. Additional comprehensive benefits are available (medical, dental, vision, 401(k) with company match, paid time off, etc.).

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.