Jobs
Hiring a Spacecraft Physics Engineer
Feb 11th
This position has been filled. Thank you to everyone who applied.
If this still sounds like an ideal job for you, please reach out. We are always looking for more help from the right candidates.
Universe Sandbox is a space and gravity simulator masquerading as a video game with over 950,000 unit sales and an overwhelmingly positive 95% rating on Steam.
Giant Army is looking for a physics developer to join our team. You will work with our physics developer, team scientists, and other developers to add the necessary physics and simulation code to bring realistic, sandbox-style spacecraft to Universe Sandbox.
This is a full-time, remote position.
Join us. We’re making something incredible that’s unlike anything else.
Your Role
- Develop and extend the rigid body physics simulation within our existing custom physics engine
- Build upon the rigid body simulation and innovate with spacecraft features such as:
- Thrusters
- Data-driven historical simulations (Cassini, Voyager, etc.)
- Modular spacecraft parts
- Destruction of spacecraft from heating, lasers, and collisions (both from other spacecraft and asteroids/planets/moons)
- Integration with our planned megastructures/tethers feature
- Soft-body deformation of objects
Qualifications
- Strong C# & Unity experience (DOTS knowledge a bonus)
- Experience with physics engine development
- Familiar with version control (we use GitHub), task-management systems (we use GitHub+ZenHub), unit tests, code reviews, and so forth
- Self-driven; comfortable working collaboratively and remotely
- Appreciation for, and focus on, realism and detail
- Passion for science, astronomy, spacecraft, and real-time interactive simulations
- Love of fantastical what-if scenarios: what-if.xkcd.com (note citation #6 on 148)
- Enjoys video games; experience with physics games a plus
Benefits
- This is a full-time, remote position working with a 100% remote team
- You will have a great deal of autonomy over your working hours
- Health coverage for all American employees
- We also offer optional 4 day work weeks (8-hour days)
Company Overview
Giant Army is a profitable company wholly owned by Universe Sandbox’s original creator. Our headquarters are in Seattle, Washington, USA, with team members across the United States, Germany, Denmark, and Australia.
Team members enjoy a flexible, collaborative environment that values work-life balance. We are independently published and release updates on our own (relaxed) schedule.
Giant Army provides generous paid time off, new hardware/software reimbursements, and other benefits.
We pursue features that get us excited about science. We strive to create an accessible experience that can’t be found anywhere else.
As a fully remote team since 2011, we rely on Google Workspace (Gmail, Calendar, Docs, Spreadsheets, Meet), Slack, Groove, GitHub, ZenHub, Unity, and WordPress.
We believe science and video games are for everyone, regardless of identity, and we’re committed to making an inclusive workplace. We encourage anyone who shares our passion for space to apply.
Product Overview
Universe Sandbox is a physics-based space simulator that allows you to create, destroy, and interact on an unimaginable scale. Experiment with gravity, climate, and collisions to reveal the beauty of our universe and the fragility of our planet.
It’s more than a game; it’s a way of experiencing and learning about reality in a way that’s never been done before.
Universe Sandbox is available on Windows, Mac, Linux, and VR with mobile in development and future platforms planned. We’ve sold over 950,000 copies and have an “Overwhelming Positive” rating on Steam with 95% positive user reviews.
If we don’t have an active job opening that fits your skill set, but working on Universe Sandbox is your dream job, send us an email telling us why and we’ll at least send you back a reply.
How to Apply
This position has been filled. Thank you to everyone who applied.
If this still sounds like an ideal job for you, please reach out. We are always looking for more help from the right candidates.
Hiring Another UI Engineer & Universe Manipulator
Dec 13th
This position has been filled. Thank you to everyone who applied.
If this still sounds like an ideal job for you, please reach out. We are always looking for more help from the right candidates.
Universe Sandbox is a space and gravity simulator masquerading as a video game with over 750,000 unit sales and an overwhelmingly positive 95% rating on Steam.
Giant Army is looking for another creative and highly technical software engineer/programmer to help us implement and polish the user interface (UI) that controls the universe.
This position will work closely with our creator & designer, our UI team, and with support from the rest of the team, to execute our vision of a clean, minimalistic, accessible interface. Universe Sandbox development is one-half UI and one-half simulation; you should have a passion for both.
We embrace responsive design to use the same UI and codebase across all platforms (currently on Desktop, VR/AR, while working toward mobile and console releases). You should have an eye for interface animations, and take delight in pixel-perfect polish and consistency.
You might be the perfect candidate if you’ve ever agonized over blurry UI elements that are supposed to be crisp, or a UI transition that’s slightly too fast. We take heavy inspiration from Google’s Material Design system.
This is a full-time, remote position working with a 100% remote team.
Join us. We’re making something incredible that’s unlike anything else.
Your Role
- Implement UI that makes our complex simulation accessible, based on our designer’s mockups and style guide
- Make sensible decisions over matters of UX where there are gaps in the provided design
- Maintain and proactively iterate on UI in our Unity project
- Constantly evaluate motion, spacing, and timing to create a smooth experience
- Stay current on Unity UI tech and trends
- Think critically about and help us solve complex UX problems
- Where does a new property go? What is it named? How do you show that it’s related to another property?
Qualifications
- Experience with creating user interfaces in Unity (we use uGUI, but are looking to UI Toolkit for the future)
- Strong C# skills
- Excited about clean design and elegant user experiences
- Strong attention to detail and a love of polish & iteration
- Passion for science, astronomy, and real-time interactive simulations
- Love of fantastical what-if scenarios: what-if.xkcd.com (note citation #6 on 148)
- Ability to see things from our user’s perspective
- Demonstrable experience – professional or personal projects showing your talent
- Enjoys video games; experience with Steam
Benefits
- This is a full-time, remote position working with a 100% remote team
- You will have a great deal of autonomy over your working hours
- Health coverage for all American employees
- We also offer optional 4 day work weeks (8-hour days)
Company Overview
Giant Army is a profitable company wholly owned by Universe Sandbox’s original creator. Our headquarters are in Seattle, Washington, USA, with team members across the United States, Germany, Denmark, and Australia.
Team members enjoy a flexible, collaborative environment that values work-life balance. We are independently published and release updates on our own (relaxed) schedule.
Giant Army provides generous paid time off, new hardware/software reimbursements, and other benefits.
We pursue features that get us excited about science. We strive to create an accessible experience that can’t be found anywhere else.
As a fully remote team since 2011, we rely on Google Workspace (Gmail, Calendar, Docs, Spreadsheets, Meet), Slack, Groove, GitHub, ZenHub, Unity, and WordPress.
We believe science and video games are for everyone, regardless of identity, and we’re committed to making an inclusive workplace. We encourage anyone who shares our passion for space to apply.
Product Overview
Universe Sandbox is a physics-based space simulator that allows you to create, destroy, and interact on an unimaginable scale. Experiment with gravity, climate, and collisions to reveal the beauty of our universe and the fragility of our planet.
It’s more than a game; it’s a way of experiencing and learning about reality in a way that’s never been done before.
Universe Sandbox is available on Windows, Mac, Linux, and VR with mobile in development and future platforms planned. We’ve sold over 750,000 copies and have an “Overwhelming Positive” rating on Steam with 95% positive user reviews.
If we don’t have an active job opening that fits your skillset, but if working on Universe Sandbox is your dream job, send us an email telling us why and we’ll at least send you back a reply.
How to Apply
This position has been filled. Thank you to everyone who applied.
If this still sounds like an ideal job for you, please reach out. We are always looking for more help from the right candidates.
Hiring a Cross-Platform Engineer
Sep 11th
This position has been filled. Thank you to everyone who applied.
If this still sounds like an ideal job for you, please reach out. We are always looking for more help from the right candidates.
Universe Sandbox is a space and gravity simulator masquerading as a video game with over 870,000 unit sales and an Overwhelmingly Positive 95% rating on Steam.
Giant Army is looking for a creative and highly technical cross-platform engineer to help put Universe Sandbox in everyone’s pocket (and, eventually, in the living room).
We are a close-knit multidisciplinary team of astrophysicists, engineers, graphics developers, and designers that highly values individual contributions and collaborative problem-solving. The company name, Giant Army, was inspired by the concept of “standing on the shoulders of giants.”
Our mission is to reveal the awesomeness of the universe and the fragility of our planet through real-time interaction, creation, and destruction of a realistic, science-based simulation.
Cross-Platform Goals
Help us solve the complex challenge of bringing Universe Sandbox to all platforms. We are getting closer to our initial mobile release (iOS & Android) and need some help pushing us over the finish line. We plan to begin console development in 2022.
We embrace responsive design and use the same UI and codebase across all platforms; desktop, AR/VR, and mobile are all built from the same project.
You might be the perfect candidate if you:
- Enjoy solving technical challenges with multi-platform support
- Have shipped titles on desktop, mobile, and console
- Strive to make the user experience feel great on desktop, mobile, and console without compromise
Join us. We’re making something incredible that’s unlike anything else.
Your Role
- Work with our team to bring the best possible experience to mobile, consoles, and future platforms, without losing desktop functionality
- Help solve technical issues with input, performance, and overall usability
- Plan for the future as we dive into gamepad and console support
- Stay current on Unity’s tech and trends. We’re working on a major rewrite to be more closely integrated with Unity’s DOTS Physics.
Qualifications
- Professional or personal programming projects showing your passion
- Experience with C# & Unity (DOTS knowledge a bonus)
- Strong attention to detail and a love of polish & iteration
- Experience shipping titles on mobile or console platforms (ideally)
- Unity native plugin experience (Objective-C, Java) preferred
- Passion for science, astronomy, and real-time interactive simulations
- Love of fantastical what-if scenarios: what-if.xkcd.com (note citation #6 on 148)
- Ability to see things from our user’s perspective
- Appreciation of video games
Benefits
- This is a full-time, remote position working with a 100% remote team
- You will have a great deal of autonomy over your working hours
- Health coverage for all American employees
- We also offer optional 4 day work weeks (8-hour days)
Company Overview
Giant Army is a profitable company wholly owned by Universe Sandbox’s original creator; we have no publishers, marketing department, or external stakeholders to derail our vision. We are a decentralized, remote team founded in Seattle, Washington, USA, with members across the United States, Germany, Denmark, and Australia.
Team members enjoy a flexible, collaborative environment that values work-life balance. We are independently published and release updates on our own (relaxed) schedule.
Giant Army provides generous paid time off, new hardware/software reimbursements, healthcare, and other benefits.
We pursue features that get us excited about science. We strive to create an accessible experience that can’t be found anywhere else.
As a fully remote team since 2011, we rely on Google Workspace (Gmail, Calendar, Docs, Spreadsheets, Meet), Slack, Groove, GitHub, ZenHub, Unity, WordPress, and Notion.
We believe science and video games are for everyone, regardless of identity, and we’re committed to making an inclusive workplace. We encourage anyone who shares our passion for space to apply.
Product Overview
Universe Sandbox is a physics-based space simulator that allows you to create, destroy, and interact on an unimaginable scale. Experiment with gravity, climate, and collisions to reveal the beauty of our universe and the fragility of our planet.
It’s more than a game; it’s a way of experiencing and learning about reality in a way that’s never been done before.
Universe Sandbox is available on Windows, Mac, Linux, and VR with mobile in development and future platforms planned. We’ve sold over 870,000 copies and have an “Overwhelming Positive” rating on Steam with 95% positive user reviews.
If we don’t have an active job opening that fits your skill set, but working on Universe Sandbox is your dream job, send us an email telling us why and we’ll at least send you back a reply.
How to Apply
This position has been filled. Thank you to everyone who applied.
If this still sounds like an ideal job for you, please reach out. We are always looking for more help from the right candidates.
Hiring a Physics Engineer – Planetary Destruction
May 20th
This position has been filled. Thank you to everyone who applied.
If this still sounds like an ideal job for you, please reach out. We are always looking for more help from the right candidates.
Universe Sandbox is a space and gravity simulator masquerading as a video game with over 800,000 unit sales and an overwhelmingly positive 95% rating on Steam.
Giant Army is looking for a creative and highly technical physics engineer to help implement and improve our real-time physics simulation and collision system.
We are a close-knit multidisciplinary team of astrophysicists, engineers, graphics developers, and designers that highly values individual contributions and collaborative problem-solving. The company name, Giant Army, was inspired by the concept of “standing on the shoulders of giants.”
Our mission is to reveal the awesomeness of the universe and the fragility of our planet through real-time interaction, creation, and destruction of a realistic, science-based simulation.
Help us solve the complex challenge of simulating interactions and collisions of objects:
- Across all scales (human-scale, asteroids, moons, planets, and stars)
- At a wide range of user-controllable time speeds (from super slow to super fast)
- While being enjoyable on a wide variety of hardware (from gaming PC to mobile devices)
What would it actually look like if you collided the Moon with the Earth, the Earth with Jupiter, Jupiter with another gas giant, or spawned a black hole inside of the Moon (and also all of those at the same time)?
You might be the perfect candidate if you enjoy physics, programming, and celestial destruction, constrained by consumer hardware and the need for realism.
This is a full-time, remote position working with a 100% remote team.
Join us. We’re making something incredible that’s unlike anything else.
Your Role
- Develop improvements and innovations to our custom physics engine
- Focus on realism and scientific accuracy while delivering creative solutions to allow for high performance on consumer hardware
- Proactively observe the simulation, notice issues and areas for improvement, propose solutions, and take ownership to see the implementation through to release
- Build upon, innovate, and improve our existing simulations of:
- Similar-sized planetary collisions (like Earth colliding with Earth)
- Ultra-high-speed collisions (objects colliding at fractions of the speed of light)
- Objects breaking apart from high rotational speeds
- Deformation of objects from tidal forces
- Exploding objects
- And other physics simulation features you’re excited by
- Stay current on Unity’s tech and trends. We’re working on a major rewrite to be more closely integrated with Unity’s DOTS Physics
Qualifications
- Professional or personal programming projects showing your talent and love of physics
- Experience with C# & Unity DOTS (although these specifics could be learned if you’re a great coder and love physics)
- Ability to write and maintain your own physics code (not just implement an existing physics engine)
- Strong attention to detail and a love of polish & iteration
- Passion for science, astronomy, and real-time interactive simulations
- Love of fantastical what-if scenarios: what-if.xkcd.com (note citation #6 on 148)
- Ability to see things from our user’s perspective
- Appreciation of video games
Company Overview
Giant Army is a profitable company wholly owned by Universe Sandbox’s original creator; we have no publishers, marketing department, or external stakeholders to derail our vision. We are a decentralized, remote team founded in Seattle, Washington, USA, with members across the United States, Germany, Denmark, and Australia.
Team members enjoy a flexible, collaborative environment that values work-life balance. We are independently published and release updates on our own (relaxed) schedule.
Giant Army provides generous paid time off, new hardware/software reimbursements, healthcare, and other benefits.
We pursue features that get us excited about science. We strive to create an accessible experience that can’t be found anywhere else.
As a fully remote team since 2011, we rely on Google Workspace (Gmail, Calendar, Docs, Spreadsheets, Meet), Slack, Groove, GitHub, ZenHub, Unity, WordPress, and Notion.
We believe science and video games are for everyone, regardless of identity, and we’re committed to making an inclusive workplace. We encourage anyone who shares our passion for space to apply.
Product Overview
Universe Sandbox is a physics-based space simulator that allows you to create, destroy, and interact on an unimaginable scale. Experiment with gravity, climate, and collisions to reveal the beauty of our universe and the fragility of our planet.
It’s more than a game; it’s a way of experiencing and learning about reality in a way that’s never been done before.
Universe Sandbox is available on Windows, Mac, Linux, and VR with mobile in development and future platforms planned. We’ve sold over 800,000 copies and have an “Overwhelming Positive” rating on Steam with 95% positive user reviews.
If we don’t have an active job opening that fits your skill set, but working on Universe Sandbox is your dream job, send us an email telling us why and we’ll at least send you back a reply.
How to Apply
This position has been filled. Thank you to everyone who applied.
If this still sounds like an ideal job for you, please reach out. We are always looking for more help from the right candidates.
Hiring a UI Engineer & Universe Manipulator
Feb 17th
This position has been filled. Thank you to everyone who applied.
If this still sounds like an ideal job for you, please reach out. We are always looking for more help from the right candidates.
Universe Sandbox is a space and gravity simulator masquerading as a video game with over 800,000 unit sales and an overwhelmingly positive 95% rating on Steam.
Giant Army is looking for a creative and highly technical software engineer/programmer to help implement and polish the user interface that controls the universe.
This position will work closely with our creator & designer, and with support from the rest of the team, to execute our vision of a clean, minimalistic, accessible interface. Universe Sandbox development is one-half UI and one-half simulation; you should have a passion for both.
We embrace responsive design to use the same UI and codebase across all platforms (currently on Desktop, VR/AR, while working toward mobile and console releases). You should have an eye for interface animations, and take delight in pixel-perfect polish and consistency.
You might be the perfect candidate if you’ve ever agonized over blurry UI elements that are supposed to be crisp, or a UI transition that’s slightly too fast. We take heavy inspiration from Google’s Material Design system.
This is a full-time, remote position working with a 100% remote team.
Join us. We’re making something incredible that’s unlike anything else.
Your Role
- Implement UI that makes our complex simulation accessible, based on our designer’s mockups and style guide
- Make sensible decisions over matters of UX where there are gaps in the provided design
- Maintain and proactively iterate on UI in our Unity project
- Constantly evaluate motion, spacing, and timing to create a smooth experience
- Stay current on Unity UI tech and trends
- Think critically about and help us solve complex UX problems
- Where does a new property go? What is it named? How do you show that it’s related to another property?
Qualifications
- Strong C# skills
- Experience with creating user interfaces in Unity (we use uGUI, but are looking to UI Toolkit for the future)
- Excited about clean design and elegant user experiences
- Strong attention to detail and a love of polish & iteration
- Passion for science, astronomy, and real-time interactive simulations
- Love of fantastical what-if scenarios: what-if.xkcd.com (note citation #6 on 148)
- Ability to see things from our user’s perspective
- Demonstrable experience – professional or personal projects showing your talent
- Enjoys video games; experience with Steam
Company Overview
Giant Army is a profitable company wholly owned by Universe Sandbox’s original creator. Our headquarters are in Seattle, Washington, USA, with team members across the United States, Germany, Denmark, and Australia.
Team members enjoy a flexible, collaborative environment that values work-life balance. We are independently published and release updates on our own (relaxed) schedule.
Giant Army provides generous paid time off, new hardware/software reimbursements, and other benefits.
We pursue features that get us excited about science. We strive to create an accessible experience that can’t be found anywhere else.
As a fully remote team since 2011, we rely on Google Workspace (Gmail, Calendar, Docs, Spreadsheets, Meet), Slack, Groove, GitHub, ZenHub, Unity, and WordPress.
We believe science and video games are for everyone, regardless of identity, and we’re committed to making an inclusive workplace. We encourage anyone who shares our passion for space to apply.
Product Overview
Universe Sandbox is a physics-based space simulator that allows you to create, destroy, and interact on an unimaginable scale. Experiment with gravity, climate, and collisions to reveal the beauty of our universe and the fragility of our planet.
It’s more than a game; it’s a way of experiencing and learning about reality in a way that’s never been done before.
Universe Sandbox is available on Windows, Mac, Linux, and VR with mobile in development and future platforms planned. We’ve sold over 750,000 copies and have an “Overwhelming Positive” rating on Steam with 95% positive user reviews.
If we don’t have an active job opening that fits your skillset, but if working on Universe Sandbox is your dream job, send us an email telling us why and we’ll at least send you back a reply.
How to Apply
This position has been filled. Thank you to everyone who applied.
If this still sounds like an ideal job for you, please reach out. We are always looking for more help from the right candidates.
Hiring a Science Writer & Community Advocate
Nov 17th
This position has been filled. Thank you to everyone who applied.
If this still sounds like an ideal job for you, please reach out. We are always looking for more help from the right candidates.
Universe Sandbox is an educational space and gravity simulator masquerading as a video game with over 750,000 unit sales and an overwhelmingly positive 95% rating on Steam.
Giant Army is looking for a talented writer with a strong foundation in science, physics, and technology to help describe the awesomeness of the universe and the challenges of its simulation. As our Science Writer & Community Advocate, you will write engaging scientific content describing concepts and physical phenomena using Universe Sandbox, both for our blog and user support. You will be tasked with responding to community questions, providing customer support, and identifying and relaying user-reported issues to the team.
You might be the perfect candidate if you’re some combination of a writer/journalist, a science enthusiast, and a techie/geek/gamer.
This is a full-time, remote position working with a 100% remote team.
Join us. We’re making something incredible that’s unlike anything else.
Your Role
- Create content that excites people to learn about Universe Sandbox and science for our blog, in-game text and guides, and in responses to users
- Distill complex concepts about physics, astronomy, simulation, and game development into easily understandable writing
- Monitor and respond to all incoming communications (email, forum, discord, social media, and support inquiries)
- Act as a liaison between the community and Universe Sandbox team, highlighting community issues to the team as needed
- Take meaningful screenshots and video for use in release materials, blog posts, and social media
- Maintain familiarity with the Universe Sandbox experience
- Assist with administrative tasks as they come up (such as interactions with media and business partners)
- Help us improve our processes to optimize everyone’s time
Qualifications
- Most importantly, a talented and creative science writer
- Passion for science, astronomy, and education (and Oxford commas)
- Highly technical problem solver (perhaps a history of pirating software in your youth)
- Ability to see things from our user’s perspective
- Core availability Monday-Friday from 11 am – 3 pm PST
- Enjoys video games; experience with Steam
Company Overview
Giant Army is a profitable company wholly owned by Universe Sandbox’s original creator. Our headquarters are in Seattle, Washington, USA, with team members across the United States, Germany, Denmark, and Australia.
Team members enjoy a flexible, collaborative environment that values work-life balance. We are independently published and release updates on our own (relaxed) schedule.
We pursue features that get us excited about science. We strive to create an accessible experience that can’t be found anywhere else.
As a fully remote team since 2011, we rely on Google Workspace (Gmail, Calendar, Docs, Spreadsheets, Meet), Slack, Groove, GitHub, ZenHub, Unity, and WordPress.
We believe science and video games are for everyone, regardless of identity, and we’re committed to making an inclusive workplace. We encourage anyone who shares our passion for space to apply.
Product Overview
Universe Sandbox is a physics-based space simulator that allows you to create, destroy, and interact on an unimaginable scale. Experiment with gravity, climate, and collisions to reveal the beauty of our universe and the fragility of our planet.
It’s more than a game; it’s a way of experiencing and learning about reality in a way that’s never been done before.
Universe Sandbox is available on Windows, Mac, Linux, and VR with mobile in development and future platforms planned. We’ve sold over 750,000 copies and have an “Overwhelming Positive” rating on Steam with 95% positive user reviews.
If we don’t have an active job opening that fits your skillset, but if working on Universe Sandbox is your dream job, send us an email telling us why and we’ll at least send you back a reply.
How to Apply
This position has been filled. Thank you to everyone who applied.
If this still sounds like an ideal job for you, please reach out. We are always looking for more help from the right candidates.
Hiring a Community Manager & Administrative Assistant
May 29th
This position has been filled. Thank you to everyone who applied.
If this still sounds like an ideal job for you, please reach out. We are always looking for more help from the right candidates.
Giant Army is looking for a Community Manager & Administrative Assistant to help with our continued work on Universe Sandbox, a space and gravity simulator with a 93% positive rating on Steam.
As a representative of Universe Sandbox, you will engage with the community in various channels and respond to comments, feedback, and issues. You will also post on social media, create blog posts, and handle support as well as general emails. You will be expected to maintain familiarity with Universe Sandbox and help with other community, administrative, and non-development tasks as they come up.
This is an hourly position with a potential of 25 to 40 hours per week.
Join us. We’re making something incredible that’s unlike anything else.
Your Role
- Communicate thoughtfully with community, customers, business partners, media, etc. as a representative of Universe Sandbox
- Manage community and social media
- Engage with fans (and potential fans) of Universe Sandbox on forums, Discord, social media, etc.
- Craft messages and post on social media (Facebook and Twitter)
- Act as a liaison between the community and Universe Sandbox team
- Respond to comments, feedback, and issues, and synthesize for team
- Create and maintain text/documents like blog posts, website content, and release notes
- Provide customer support and respond to emails
- Maintain familiarity with the Universe Sandbox experience
- Help with other administrative/non-development tasks as they come up
Qualifications
- Enjoys and is skilled in writing
- Organized and self-motivated; comfortable working collaboratively and remotely
- Strong verbal and interpersonal communication skills
- Experience with customer support
- Understanding of online communities, social media, and marketing
- Personable and energized by working with a wide variety of personalities
- Experience with G Suite (Gmail, Google Calendar, Docs, Spreadsheets, etc.)
- Core availability Monday-Friday from 11am-3pm PST to interact with the team
- Enjoys video games; experience with Steam
- Passion for science, astronomy, and education (and Oxford commas)
- Familiarity with game or software development is a plus
Company Overview
Giant Army is the company behind Universe Sandbox. Our headquarters are in Seattle, Washington, USA, with team members across the United States, Germany, Denmark, and Australia.
Team members enjoy a flexible, collaborative environment that values work-life balance. We pursue the features that get us excited about science, and we do the work so we can share it with others. We strive to create an accessible experience that can’t be found elsewhere.
We believe science and video games are for everyone, regardless of identity, and we’re committed to making an inclusive workplace. We encourage anyone who shares our passion for space to apply.
Product Overview
Universe Sandbox is a powerful space simulator that lets you create and destroy on an unimaginable scale. Experiment with gravity, climate, and collisions to reveal the beauty of our universe and the fragility of our planet. It’s more than a game; it’s a way of experiencing and learning about reality in a way that’s never been done before.
Universe Sandbox is available on Windows, Mac, Linux, and VR with mobile and future platforms planned. We’ve sold over half a million copies and have a “Very Positive” rating on Steam with 93% positive user reviews.
How to Apply
This position has been filled. Thank you to everyone who applied.
If this still sounds like an ideal job for you, please reach out. We are always looking for more help from the right candidates.
Advice for Aspiring Game Developers
Sep 6th
Whenever we put up a job posting, we get a handful of applications from younger fans who are aspiring game developers. They usually admit they’re not qualified, but they nonetheless write in because working on Universe Sandbox is their dream job.
While they may not have the experience we’re looking for (and some aren’t even old enough to meet the minimum employment age in the United States!), we definitely appreciate the enthusiasm. And for many of us on the team, we relate on a very personal level: we also dreamt of being video game developers when we were growing up. And it was only through some form and combination of self-teaching, mentorship, and lots of experimentation that we ended up as professional game developers working on a very cool project.
Recently, our graphics developer, Georg, put together some advice and suggestions in response to a younger applicant. But we realized there may be some nuggets of wisdom in here that others would like to see, too. So why not share it with everyone? So here they are, slightly modified to be relevant for any kind of video game programming role. If you’re more interested in game design, animation, music, production, quality assurance (QA), or any other aspect of game development, check out these suggestions anyway. The ideas can be applied to most things in life!
1. Download Unity and start working through programming tutorials. Don’t worry if you don’t understand it yet, you’ll get there.
Or choose any other game engine out there. We like Unity because it’s free for casual users but it’s still very powerful — it’s what we use for Universe Sandbox! Unity also has a bunch of really great, free tutorials on their site and elsewhere across the web, plus a big and helpful community at all skill levels.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed when you first start programming, don’t worry, that’s normal. You’re learning a whole new language!
2. Don’t give up if your code doesn’t want to cooperate all the time – nothing does, that’s part of the fun.
You’ll run into bugs, your game won’t start, you’ll bang your head on your desk, and you’ll begin explaining things to rubber ducks. Sometimes you’ll need to shave a yak. Don’t worry, all of this is also normal (…relatively). One of the best ways to learn how something works is to dive in, break it, then figure out how to fix it. And maybe go a little off the rails in the process.
3. Get inspired by your favorite games and apps. See something in a game you like? Find out if someone has written about how to develop it and see if you can recreate it.
Inspiration is a tremendously powerful motivator and driving force, and copying and recreating something is another great way to learn how something works. The best part? A lot of game developers (especially indie developers) love to share their knowledge in detailed blog posts and video devlogs. These devlogs dive into the technical weeds of projects the developers are working on, and they’re a great way to get inspired by developers you admire.
Just remember: when you’re first starting off, keep your aim narrow. Don’t set your sights on recreating a massive, AAA-style game. Instead, find one particular aspect you think is done very well or seems unique or interesting and begin researching it. Or see if your favorite indie developer or studio keeps a devlog of the projects they’ve worked on (we’ve got our own devlogs which lately have been talking about our work on the next big Universe Sandbox feature, Surface Grids, though they’re not quite as technical as others out there).
4. The community is helpful. There are no bad questions. Be kind and share your results with other students and teachers.
There are lots of people out there learning how to program and become video game developers, and everyone was once a beginner just like you. Don’t be afraid to ask for help or ask a question about how something works, even if it seems like something simple. Sometimes you’ll get an answer that explains a lot more about what’s going on than you’d realize if you had just brushed past it and continued on. As with all internet interactions, things will go more smoothly if you’re kind, you’re patient, you attempt to write clearly, and you provide context and details.
And while those who have been programming for a long time are definitely more qualified to give solid advice than someone who just wrote their first “Hello, World!” program, there doesn’t have to be a huge divide between the roles of teacher and student. Once you get your footing, it’s likely you’ll be able to help out the beginners with the very basics, even if it’s just pointing them to the resources you found helpful.
5. At some point, someone will call you a programmer. Much later, someone will pay you for that. And much later still, you’ll be working on something you love. Be patient, you’ll get there.
Hold on tight, it’s a long rollercoaster. With a little bit of patience, the excitement of seeing your skills grow and grow and using them in more and more projects will be plenty to keep you going.
6. Find others like you and do things together. Everything is better with someone to relate to. You’ll get further, faster.
Take a class, start a club, join a Discord server (and join ours while you’re at it), recruit your friends to your brand new indie game studio — do whatever it takes to find a community of people who are on the same path as you. The support and help of others who are interested in your wellbeing and success may be the exact thing you need at some point along the way to avoid giving up. Make sure to return the favor!
7. Never give up!
It’ll seem impossible at first, and then it’ll be hard later on, and then just when you think you’re progressing smoothly, you’ll run into another frustrating obstacle that makes you want to bang your head on the desk and start talking to the rubber duck again. Refer back to #5: Be patient, you’ll get there. If you’re stuck, take a break. Clear your head by doing something that’s not staring at your screen. Whether you step away from programming for an hour or a few days, it’ll help immensely.
Of course, it’s not all misery — far from it. We wouldn’t be doing it if that was the case. There are huge rewards in learning to program, like the joys of finally cracking a complex problem or creating a game with your name on it and seeing others love it as much as you do.
And if you want to take a more career-oriented stance, you can rest easy. Demand for software developers is already high and is expected to grow 21% from 2018 to 2028 in the United States, a rate much higher than in other fields. Learning to program is a safe bet on a path toward a stable, well-paying career.
We hope this helps! And maybe one day you’ll see one of our job listings and say, “I’m a perfect fit for that position.”
Hiring a Spaceship Physics Developer
Jan 25th
Giant Army is looking for a physics developer to join our team. You will work with our senior physics developer, team scientists, and other developers to add the necessary physics and simulation code to bring realistic, sandbox-style spaceships to Universe Sandbox.
This is a full-time, remote position.
Join us. We’re making something incredible that’s unlike anything else.
Your Role
- Develop rigid body simulation within our existing custom physics engine (we do not and cannot use Unity’s built-in physics)
- Build upon the rigid body simulation and innovate with spaceship features such as:
- Thrusters
- Data-driven historical simulations (Cassini, Voyager, etc.)
- Modular spaceship parts
- Destruction of spacecraft from heating, lasers, and collisions (both from other spacecraft and asteroids/planets/moons)
- Integration with our planned megastructures/tethers feature
Qualifications
- (Strong C# && Unity Engine experience) || (Experience with an entity component model && object-oriented programing)
- Experience with physics engine development
- Familiar with version control (we use GitHub), task-management systems (we use GitHub+ZenHub), unit tests, code reviews, and so forth
- Self-driven; comfortable working collaboratively and remotely
- Appreciation for, and focus on, realism and detail
- Passion for science, astronomy, spaceships, and real-time interactive simulations
- Love of fantastical what-if scenarios: what-if.xkcd.com (note citation #6 on 148)
Company Overview
Giant Army is the company behind Universe Sandbox. Our headquarters are in Seattle, Washington, USA, with team members across the United States, Germany, and Denmark.
Team members enjoy a flexible, collaborative environment. We strive for work-life balance, and we pursue the features that get us excited about science. We do the work so we can share it with others. We’re committed to creating an accessible experience that can’t be found elsewhere.
Science is for everyone, and we welcome all qualified applicants.
Product Overview
Universe Sandbox is a space simulator that merges real-time gravity, climate, collision, and physical interactions to reveal the beauty of our universe and the fragility of our planet. It’s more than a game; it’s a way of experiencing and learning about reality in a way that’s never been done before.
Universe Sandbox is available on Windows, Mac, Linux, and VR with mobile and future platforms planned. We’ve sold nearly half a million copies and have a “Very Positive” rating on Steam with 93% positive user reviews.
How to Apply
Resume and code sample required. Please either upload or include links.
Hiring a Graphics Developer
Jan 25th
This position has been filled. Thank you to everyone who applied.
If this still sounds like an ideal job for you, please reach out. We are always looking for more help from the right candidates.
Giant Army is looking for a graphics developer to join our team and help improve Universe Sandbox. You will be working closely with our team’s senior graphics developer to help develop, improve, and maintain assets and visual effects. As your skills and experience with the position grow, you will begin to research and develop entire visual subsystems of Universe Sandbox.
This is a full-time, remote position.
Join us. We’re making something incredible that’s unlike anything else.
Your Role
- Maintain focus on interactive, realistic, and scientifically-accurate visual representations
- Work independently with guidance from our senior graphics developer, team scientists, and director
- Maintain source assets by integrating new data, such as updated elevation maps
- Prepare assets for use in the engine, such as importing and error checking models and textures, and creating and assigning materials
- Procedurally or manually generate textures for shader effects and surfaces
- Develop and maintain code used to connect visual and simulation systems
Qualifications
- (Strong C# & Unity Engine experience) || (Experience with an entity component model & object-oriented programming)
- Strong understanding of graphics pipelines, rendering techniques, and graphics-related math
- Experience writing and optimizing shaders (HLSL, GLSL, Cg)
- Appreciation for, and focus on, realism and detail
- Familiar with version control (we use GitHub), task-management systems (we use GitHub+ZenHub), code reviews, and so forth
- Self-driven; comfortable working collaboratively and remotely
- Passion for science, astronomy, and real-time interactive simulations
- Love of fantastical what-if scenarios: what-if.xkcd.com (note citation #6 on 148)
Company Overview
Giant Army is the company behind Universe Sandbox. Our headquarters are in Seattle, Washington, USA, with team members across the United States, Germany, and Denmark.
Team members enjoy a flexible, collaborative environment. We strive for work-life balance, and we pursue the features that get us excited about science. We do the work so we can share it with others. We’re committed to creating an accessible experience that can’t be found elsewhere.
Science is for everyone, and we welcome all qualified applicants.
Product Overview
Universe Sandbox is a space simulator that merges real-time gravity, climate, collision, and physical interactions to reveal the beauty of our universe and the fragility of our planet. It’s more than a game; it’s a way of experiencing and learning about reality in a way that’s never been done before.
Universe Sandbox is available on Windows, Mac, Linux, and VR with mobile and future platforms planned. We’ve sold nearly half a million copies and have a “Very Positive” rating on Steam with 93% positive user reviews.
How to Apply
This position has been filled. Thank you to everyone who applied.
If this still sounds like an ideal job for you, please reach out. We are always looking for more help from the right candidates.