Senior / Intermediate Software Engineer (Unreal Engine 5 – Online Platforms & Crossplay)
Top Benefits
About the role
Blackbird Interactive is a creative-fueled, future-driven, independent game studio where the best talent in the industry can find long-term careers to help grow their abilities while working on a wide range of projects, which encompass world-class IPs as well as our own creations across multiple genres.
In 2022, we announced that our studio is implementing a four-day work week as well as supporting in-studio, remote within Canada, and hybrid work arrangements as permanent options to our employees.
Renowned for our innovative projects and our pioneering four-day work week, we’re now seeking an experienced engineer to lead our online platform and crossplay efforts on a new survival horror title. Join us to build seamless, cross-platform experiences across PS5, Xbox Series X\u007CS, and Switch 2 using Epic Online Services (EOS). This role is remote-friendly in Canada (Pacific-time overlap required).
What You’ll Tackle
- Design, implement, and maintain core online systems in Unreal Engine 5 to support crossplay across PC, PS5, Xbox Series X\u007CS, and Switch 2.
- Integrate platform services via Epic Online Services (EOS) for login, friends, invites, achievements/trophies, and rich presence.
- Implement and maintain crossplay-related systems such as matchmaking, lobbies, parties, and session management tailored to a survival horror experience.
- Work with Unreal’s Online Subsystem (and related plugins/services) to unify platform functionality behind clean, maintainable interfaces.
- Own the implementation of platform-specific requirements for online features, ensuring compliance with TRC/XR/TCR guidelines across all consoles.
- Collaborate with production and QA to prepare online features for certification, including handling platform edge cases, error states, and resilience.
- Work closely with backend and services teams (internal or third-party) to ensure secure, reliable communication between game clients and services.
- Partner with gameplay, design, and UX teams to shape how online and crossplay features support the game’s survival horror experience (e.g., co-op flows, joining friends, shared progression).
- Mentor junior and intermediate engineers on console platform development, online systems, and best practices for robust cross-platform code.
- Lead or participate in code reviews and technical discussions, helping the team converge on high-quality, maintainable solutions.
- Take ownership of the online platform architecture, ensuring it scales reliably across all supported consoles and regions.
- Establish and maintain technical standards for platform integration, error handling, telemetry, and diagnostics in online features.
- Evaluate and introduce tools, SDKs, and workflows that improve developer efficiency and stability for online systems.
- Profile and optimize online-related code, reducing latency, avoiding stalls, and minimizing platform-specific performance pitfalls.
- Diagnose and fix complex, platform-specific issues in areas like matchmaking, session handling, entitlements, and user state synchronization.
- Build robust logging and diagnostics paths to support QA and live-ops in tracking down online issues across multiple platforms.
- Provide accurate task breakdowns and estimates for online and platform-related features, helping align scope with schedule and risk.
- Communicate clearly with production and stakeholders on technical risk, platform constraints, and trade-offs affecting online and crossplay features.
You’ll Thrive Here If You
- 4+ years of professional game development experience (we’re hiring at both intermediate and senior levels; title/level will match experience).
- Strong experience with Unreal Engine 4 or 5 and modern C++.
- Solid background in online/platform development: integrating console platform services (PSN, Xbox, Nintendo, etc.) and/or cross-platform features.
- Experience shipping at least one console or PC title that includes meaningful online or platform integration (e.g., achievements, matchmaking, invites, crossplay, etc.).
- Comfort working closely with design, production, and QA on features that span gameplay, UX, and platform constraints.
- Demonstrated ability to take ownership of systems, write clean maintainable code, and support others through reviews and mentorship.
Bonus XP
- Hands-on experience shipping on PS5, Xbox Series X\u007CS, or Nintendo hardware, especially with online or crossplay features.
- Familiarity with Unreal’s Online Subsystem, PlayFab, Epic Online Services, or similar backend/platform solutions.
- Experience working with console certification requirements (TRC/XR/TCR) and resolving online/platform issues during submission.
- Understanding of live-ops, telemetry, and error reporting for online systems.
- Interest in survival horror or cooperative horror titles, and how online features can enhance tension and player experience.
About Blackbird Interactive
Blackbird Interactive (BBI) is a creative-fueled, future-driven, independent studio - behind such games as Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak, Hardspace: Shipbreaker, and the upcoming Homeworld 3, Minecraft Legends, and Crossfire: Legion. Founded by Rob Cunningham, Yossarian King, and Aaron Kambeitz in 2010, the award-winning Vancouver studio boast its own internal CG cinematics department, led by the founder of Pixar Canada, and has also been involved in various game-adjacent projects over the years - such as Project Eagle with the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and other initiatives with the eatART Foundation and Sanctuary AI. BBI was listed among the fastest growing Canadian companies by revenue in 2020 and 2021 by The Globe and Mail and Deloitte.
Senior / Intermediate Software Engineer (Unreal Engine 5 – Online Platforms & Crossplay)
Top Benefits
About the role
Blackbird Interactive is a creative-fueled, future-driven, independent game studio where the best talent in the industry can find long-term careers to help grow their abilities while working on a wide range of projects, which encompass world-class IPs as well as our own creations across multiple genres.
In 2022, we announced that our studio is implementing a four-day work week as well as supporting in-studio, remote within Canada, and hybrid work arrangements as permanent options to our employees.
Renowned for our innovative projects and our pioneering four-day work week, we’re now seeking an experienced engineer to lead our online platform and crossplay efforts on a new survival horror title. Join us to build seamless, cross-platform experiences across PS5, Xbox Series X\u007CS, and Switch 2 using Epic Online Services (EOS). This role is remote-friendly in Canada (Pacific-time overlap required).
What You’ll Tackle
- Design, implement, and maintain core online systems in Unreal Engine 5 to support crossplay across PC, PS5, Xbox Series X\u007CS, and Switch 2.
- Integrate platform services via Epic Online Services (EOS) for login, friends, invites, achievements/trophies, and rich presence.
- Implement and maintain crossplay-related systems such as matchmaking, lobbies, parties, and session management tailored to a survival horror experience.
- Work with Unreal’s Online Subsystem (and related plugins/services) to unify platform functionality behind clean, maintainable interfaces.
- Own the implementation of platform-specific requirements for online features, ensuring compliance with TRC/XR/TCR guidelines across all consoles.
- Collaborate with production and QA to prepare online features for certification, including handling platform edge cases, error states, and resilience.
- Work closely with backend and services teams (internal or third-party) to ensure secure, reliable communication between game clients and services.
- Partner with gameplay, design, and UX teams to shape how online and crossplay features support the game’s survival horror experience (e.g., co-op flows, joining friends, shared progression).
- Mentor junior and intermediate engineers on console platform development, online systems, and best practices for robust cross-platform code.
- Lead or participate in code reviews and technical discussions, helping the team converge on high-quality, maintainable solutions.
- Take ownership of the online platform architecture, ensuring it scales reliably across all supported consoles and regions.
- Establish and maintain technical standards for platform integration, error handling, telemetry, and diagnostics in online features.
- Evaluate and introduce tools, SDKs, and workflows that improve developer efficiency and stability for online systems.
- Profile and optimize online-related code, reducing latency, avoiding stalls, and minimizing platform-specific performance pitfalls.
- Diagnose and fix complex, platform-specific issues in areas like matchmaking, session handling, entitlements, and user state synchronization.
- Build robust logging and diagnostics paths to support QA and live-ops in tracking down online issues across multiple platforms.
- Provide accurate task breakdowns and estimates for online and platform-related features, helping align scope with schedule and risk.
- Communicate clearly with production and stakeholders on technical risk, platform constraints, and trade-offs affecting online and crossplay features.
You’ll Thrive Here If You
- 4+ years of professional game development experience (we’re hiring at both intermediate and senior levels; title/level will match experience).
- Strong experience with Unreal Engine 4 or 5 and modern C++.
- Solid background in online/platform development: integrating console platform services (PSN, Xbox, Nintendo, etc.) and/or cross-platform features.
- Experience shipping at least one console or PC title that includes meaningful online or platform integration (e.g., achievements, matchmaking, invites, crossplay, etc.).
- Comfort working closely with design, production, and QA on features that span gameplay, UX, and platform constraints.
- Demonstrated ability to take ownership of systems, write clean maintainable code, and support others through reviews and mentorship.
Bonus XP
- Hands-on experience shipping on PS5, Xbox Series X\u007CS, or Nintendo hardware, especially with online or crossplay features.
- Familiarity with Unreal’s Online Subsystem, PlayFab, Epic Online Services, or similar backend/platform solutions.
- Experience working with console certification requirements (TRC/XR/TCR) and resolving online/platform issues during submission.
- Understanding of live-ops, telemetry, and error reporting for online systems.
- Interest in survival horror or cooperative horror titles, and how online features can enhance tension and player experience.
About Blackbird Interactive
Blackbird Interactive (BBI) is a creative-fueled, future-driven, independent studio - behind such games as Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak, Hardspace: Shipbreaker, and the upcoming Homeworld 3, Minecraft Legends, and Crossfire: Legion. Founded by Rob Cunningham, Yossarian King, and Aaron Kambeitz in 2010, the award-winning Vancouver studio boast its own internal CG cinematics department, led by the founder of Pixar Canada, and has also been involved in various game-adjacent projects over the years - such as Project Eagle with the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and other initiatives with the eatART Foundation and Sanctuary AI. BBI was listed among the fastest growing Canadian companies by revenue in 2020 and 2021 by The Globe and Mail and Deloitte.