Wowhead Rendering Engineer

Wowhead was created with one sole intent: providing World of Warcraft players with tools and information to make their gameplay more enjoyable. All staff members are passionate fans of World of Warcraft, which helps us keep abreast of the most important features other players are interested in! We pride ourselves on our comprehensive database with helpful user comments, popular tools like the Dressing Room and Flying Tracker, lightning-fast datamining to uncover the latest test realm updates, and detailed guides written by professional players on all popular WoW topics including classes, collections, secrets, and raids. We’ve branched out to cover the Diablo franchise and are planning our next stage of growth.

We are currently seeking a Rendering Engineer with extensive experience to join our team as an independent contractor. This is not an entry level role and you will be working to build World of Warcraft model viewers to help Wowhead to expand our current tools to aid our community of gamers. This position is a full-time remote as you will collaborate with the entire Wowhead team as we work together to deliver world-class products to our fans.

Key Responsibilities

• Maintain Wowhead’s model tools using the site’s WebGL model viewers. TypeScript-based standard viewer used in most of Wowhead website.
• Experience with Unity 6 (C#) and custom Scriptable Render Pipelines (deferred MRT, HLSL, multi-threaded asset loading). 
• Solid skills with C++ web assembly-based viewer that is faster with accurate lighting, for various World of Warcraft Player Housing pages.
• Ability to use JavaScript-based Three.js model viewer.
• Strong 3D math skills: matrices, quaternions, normals, and UV mapping.
• Collaborate with other engineers and content creators on technical design and feature roll out.
• Comfortable maintaining existing large codebase for multiple platforms.
• Communicate consistently, clearly, and efficiently all assigned task progress, blockers, or any other role-related issues in a prompt and professional manner on a regular basis.

Nice to Have:

• Ability to manage development of the Wowhead Studio Unity application, to facilitate datamined assets of creatures, characters, and other in-game objects
• Extract game data and game assets required to build tools to support our products and services.

Experience and Technical Requirements

• Comprehensive understanding using various programming languages (such as C++, Python, C#, TypeScript and JS) in order to choose the best tool for the job.
• Experience with mainstream shading languages, such as HLSL and GLSL.
• Understanding of various debugging, reverse engineering, and custom made tools to accomplish assigned tasks.
• Ability to read and comprehend x86/x64 assembly language, such as via IDA as this role is not solely a “file format” data mining role.
• Strong communication skills in English, both written and verbal, with the ability to convey information clearly and effectively.
• A collaborative mindset; ability to collaborate remotely and coordinate with stakeholders across different time zones.
• Professionalism, reliability, and a commitment to delivering high quality work utilizing your analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Familiarity with WoW formats (CASC, DB2, BLP, M2, WMO, ADT) and Diablo 4 data extraction is a strong plus.
• Being experienced in Blizzard games will make it easier to understand project requirements and the consumer side.

We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity / Affirmative Action Employer and committed to leveraging the diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and experience of our workforce to create opportunities for our colleagues and our business. We do not discriminate in employment decisions on any protected category.