Lead Generalist Programmer

About this role

Side is a global game development partner helping studios bring games to life across co-development, art, audio, QA, player support, and more. We work alongside developers and publishers to solve production challenges at every stage, from active development through live operations. We’re looking for a Lead Generalist Programmer to help drive technical delivery across a range of game development engagements. This role is for a senior engineer who is equally comfortable leading people, collaborating with clients, and getting hands-on in code. You should bring strong technical depth in both Unity and Unreal, experience guiding teams through production, and the judgment to move between gameplay systems, tools, optimization, and platform-specific problem solving as projects demand. WHAT YOU’LL DO * Lead and mentor engineers across active co-development and game development projects * Act as a senior technical partner to production, design, art, and client stakeholders * Contribute hands-on to implementation in Unity and Unreal, depending on project needs * Architect and review systems across gameplay, tools, UI, integration, optimization, and platform support * Establish engineering best practices for code quality, performance, maintainability, and delivery * Help scope work, identify technical risk early, and provide realistic production recommendations * Support hiring, onboarding, and growth of engineering talent within the team * Communicate technical tradeoffs clearly to both technical and non-technical audiences * Partner with internal leadership and external clients to align technical execution with project goals WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR * 5+ years of professional game programming experience * Experience leading or mentoring engineers in a production environment * Strong hands-on development experience in both Unity and Unreal Engine * Strong coding skills in C# and C++ * Experience shipping games or major features on at least one of the following: PC, console, or mobile * Deep understanding of game architecture, pipelines, debugging, profiling, and optimization * Ability to work across multiple gameplay-adjacent domains such as gameplay systems, UI, animation systems, tooling, or integration * Strong understanding of technical risk, production tradeoffs, and scalable engineering practices * Excellent communication skills with the ability to work directly with clients, partners, and cross-functional teams NICE TO HAVE * Experience in a co-development, outsourcing, or service-based studio environment * Experience with console development and certification constraints * Familiarity with backend or online systems integration * Experience building internal tools and workflows for designers, artists, or production teams * Exposure to AWS, CI/CD pipelines, or live-service workflows * Experience helping scope projects, write technical proposals, or support business development conversations Local Benefits to be discussed