Game Systems Director $400,000 USD/year Pay is set based on global value, not the local market.
Most roles = hourly rate x 40 hrs x 50 weeks
Description
Founders School is launching a new high school in New York City with an unprecedented guarantee: students will earn $1 million in profit by graduation, or their tuition will be refunded. Yet our vision reaches well beyond one location. We are developing the first business simulation game in which every significant progression is unlocked by mastering authentic entrepreneurial competencies—pricing, marketing, hiring, operations, and more.
This is the founding leadership position that will drive that vision forward. You will control the game's creative direction, product strategy, and development operations while collaborating directly with the school's leadership team. Your responsibility is to evaluate the concept we have created, recognize what falls short, and help refine a superior vision before assembling and directing the team that executes it.
The challenge differs from anything in games or education. You must design a simulation that players are compelled to engage with for ten consecutive hours while simultaneously making them demonstrably more capable at operating an actual business. Most games achieve entertainment. Most educational platforms fail to sustain engagement. We are confident both outcomes are achievable, and we are seeking the individual who can deliver that proof.
You will also influence how contemporary games are developed. AI must be integrated into every phase of your creative workflow—from design exploration and systems balancing to prototyping, asset generation, playtest evaluation, and production execution.
If you have long aspired to create the game that will define your career, this is that moment. If this opportunity resonates with you, we want to connect.
What you will be doing
• Establish and control the creative vision, gameplay architecture, and product strategy for a business simulation game that imparts genuine entrepreneurial expertise through deeply engaging play.
• Assemble and manage a senior game development team, recruiting elite talent and fostering a culture oriented toward rapid iteration and continuous refinement.
• Collaborate with Founders School leadership, educators, and business practitioners to transform authentic business concepts into captivating gameplay systems.
• Integrate AI across the entire development cycle to expedite design iteration, balance tuning, rapid prototyping, content production, and operational efficiency.
• Achieve defined milestones, including delivery of a playable vertical slice within 12 months, successful playtesting with teenage audiences, and establishment of a scalable infrastructure for subsequent simulation titles.
What you will NOT be doing
• Producing yet another formulaic simulation game with conventional mechanics and minimal real-world relevance.
• Investing months drafting exhaustive design documentation rather than delivering interactive prototypes.
• Operating within a large studio environment where creative autonomy is constrained by bureaucratic approval processes.
• Viewing AI as a supplementary productivity enhancement rather than a foundational element of your creative methodology.
• Developing educational content that players endure rather than experiences they actively seek out.
Key responsibilities
Direct the development of the world's most compelling business simulation game by recruiting the team, establishing the vision, and shipping a product that transforms players into more capable entrepreneurs through gameplay.
Success in Your First Year
• Within 6 months, you have shipped a playable vertical slice in which players advance through authentic business competencies by overcoming substantive gameplay objectives.
• Initial playtests reveal that teenagers reliably characterize the experience as enjoyable before they consciously realize the depth of learning taking place.
• You have recruited and integrated the core game development team, establishing a rhythm of consistent, high-caliber releases.
• Within 12 months, you have deployed a closed beta with over 1,000 active players, attained 40%+ retention at 30 days, and implemented a development velocity capable of delivering new simulation content at a sustainable pace.
Candidate requirements
• Proven track record shipping at least one commercially successful game that earned genuine player affection, preferably within a team of 10 people or fewer.
• Confirmed experience directing multidisciplinary game development efforts from initial concept through public launch.
• Extensive expertise in designing simulation, sandbox, systems-driven, strategy, or management game genres.
• Regular, practical application of generative AI tools to enhance game design and development processes, with concrete recent examples demonstrating how you have embedded AI into your workflow.
• Authentic enthusiasm for entrepreneurship and sincere conviction in the importance of building profitable ventures.
• Proven leadership, communication, and talent acquisition capabilities.
• Commitment to on-site work in New York City.
• Authorization to work in the United States without requiring sponsorship.
Nice to have
• Track record shipping sandbox, tycoon, builder, management, or simulation game titles.
• Experience designing interactive products targeted at audiences under 18 years of age.
• Background integrating educational outcomes or skill acquisition into entertainment experiences.
• Experience collaborating with prominent brands, creators, or licensed properties.
• Demonstrated success scaling a game development team from early-stage concept through a successful commercial launch.
Applying for a role? Here’s what to expect.
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