Game Programmer – Japan & Global Game Development

Company Description ■ About Keywords Studios Keywords Studios is a global provider of creative and technical services to the video games industry, with over 13,000 professionals across 70+ studios in 25+ countries. We support clients across the entire game lifecycle through three core Service Lines: Create — Game development, art production, and audio Globalize — Localization, localization QA, functional testing Engage — Marketing, LiveOps, community, and player support In Japan, Keywords Studios delivers its full range of services across Create, Globalize, and Engage, supporting leading publishers and developers through both local and international production teams.

Our presence includes the Tokyo-based development studio Wizcorp, alongside established localization, QA, player support, and marketing capabilities serving some of the most influential companies in the Japanese games and entertainment industry. Keywords Studios is increasingly trusted by Japanese partners to support productions that span multiple regions—combining Japanese creative leadership with global delivery capacity across Asia-Pacific and beyond.

These engagements require not only strong production execution, but creative sensibility and cultural understanding to align vision and delivery across teams. As one of the world’s most influential and production-intensive markets, Japan represents a strategic growth area for Keywords Studios. This role plays a key part in strengthening client partnerships, driving business opportunities, and ensuring high-quality delivery across projects.

Job Description ■ Position Overview We are seeking a Game Programmer to support technical implementation across game projects of varying scope — from small-scale productions up through AAA titles. This is an individual contributor role focused on hands-on development of gameplay systems, prototyping, and tooling within our prototype-driven environment. Working under the direct supervision from Technical Director and alongside senior engineers, you will implement game mechanics, contribute to reusable libraries, and grow your expertise across multiple engines — primarily Unreal Engine C++, with exposure to additional platforms as projects require.

You will be supported throughout the transition from prototype to co-development or full production, receiving guidance across areas such as CI/CD, gameplay development, tooling, automation, and reusable library development. We are especially interested in curious programmers who enjoy prototyping, experimenting with new approaches (ECS architecture, automation workflows, custom tools), and building systems that make other people's work easier.

Whether you're drawn to gameplay programming, tooling, or the intersection of both — if you're eager to learn and ready to contribute from day one, we'd like to hear from you.   ■ Key Responsibilities Technical Implementation & Prototyping Feature Development: Implement gameplay systems and mechanics under the guidance of senior engineers, translating design concepts into functional code.

Rapid Prototyping: Build iterative prototypes to test new gameplay ideas and support project pitches, focusing on proof of concept, playability, and feel. Library Contribution: Contribute to existing reusable technical libraries and frameworks (networking, simulation, core utilities) following established patterns. Learn to design modular, decoupled systems — such as ECS architectures — that scale cleanly across projects.

Engine Versatility: Work primarily in Unreal Engine C++, while adapting to and supporting other platforms or engines as project requirements evolve. Tooling & Workflow Support Developer Experience: Create and optimize internal tools and editor extensions that empower designers and artists to work more independently and efficiently. Pipeline Support: Assist with the automation of technical workflows and CI/CD pipelines to improve build stability and deployment speed.

Systems Optimi