Senior Software Engineer, Infra/Server - VALORANT, Performance

Riot Engineers bring deep knowledge of specific technical areas but also value the chance to work in many broader domains. As a Senior Software Engineer, you’ll also dive into projects that focus on team cohesiveness and cross-team objectives. You’ll lead without authority and provide other engineers with a clear illustration of extraordinary engineering.

VALORANT is Riot’s take on a character-based tactical shooter (for more info on VALORANT click here!). As a Senior Software Engineer on the VALORANT team you are responsible for helping Riot build and continue to deliver great player experiences. You will work to help optimize the experience of VALORANT to ensure smooth server performance and to push the limits of new and future hardware. You will report to the Engineering Manager of the Performance and Compatibility Team.

• Collaborate with Engineering and Infrastructure to realize VALORANT’s performance goals
• Lead performance analysis and optimization efforts across server-side systems and services.
• Profile applications, analyze system resource usage, and identify performance bottlenecks.
• Develop and maintain automated performance benchmarks, tooling, and monitoring systems.
• Define performance metrics, KPIs, and best practices for server optimization.
• Optimize VALORANT servers and services for compute, memory usage, and latency
• Mentor and coach junior members to build talent over the long term

• 5+ years of professional experience as a Software Engineer, Systems Engineer, or Solutions Architect
• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science or a related field, or relevant professional experience
• Strong expertise with C++, C, or Rust
• Strong background in systems performance, including CPU, memory, I/O, and networking
• Expertise with profiling tools, benchmarking frameworks, and performance analysis.

• Direct experience as a performance engineer
• Experience in profiling and optimizing large-scale, real-time or multiplayer server systems.
• Experience running, scaling, and debugging live production systems at global scale.
• Experience with Linux, AWS, and Tencent Cloud

For this role, you'll find success through craft expertise, a collaborative spirit, and decision-making that prioritizes the delight of players. We will be looking at your past studies, experience, and your personal relationship with games. If you embody player empathy and care about players' experiences, this could be your role!

Riot focuses on work/life balance, shown by our open paid time off policy and other perks such as flexible work schedules. We offer medical, dental, and life insurance, parental leave for you, your spouse/domestic partner, and children, and a 401k with company match. Check out our benefits pages for more information.

At Riot Games, we put players first. That mission drives every decision in our quest to create games and experiences that make it better to be a player. Whether you’re working directly on a new player-facing experience or you’re supporting the company as a whole, everyone at Riot is part of our mission. And just like in our games, we’re better when we work together. Our goal is to create collaborative teams where you are empowered to bring your unique perspective everyday. If that sounds like the kind of place you want to work, we’re looking forward to your application.

It’s our policy to provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and members of Riot Games, Inc. Riot Games makes reasonable accommodations for handicapped and disabled Rioters and does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, handicap, veteran status, marital status, criminal history, or any other category protected by applicable federal and state law. We consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with applicable federal, state and local law, including the California Fair Chance Act, the City of Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance, the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers, the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, and the Washington Fair Chance Act.

Per the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance, the following core duties may create a basis for disqualifying candidates with relevant criminal histories:

• Safeguarding confidential and sensitive Company data
• Communication with others, including Rioters and third parties such as vendors, and/or players, including minors
• Accessing Company assets, secure digital systems, and networks
• Ensuring a safe interactive environment for players and other Rioters

These duties are directly related to essential operations, safety, trust, and compliance obligations within our organization. Please note that job duties may evolve based on business needs and additional responsibilities may be assigned as necessary to maintain operational efficiency and security.