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Technical Artist
at DICE
Stockholm, Sweden
DICE is the award-winning developer of the Battlefield franchise and games like Mirror’s Edge. The company with 270 employees is situated in one of the world’s most picturesque cities - Stockholm, Sweden. The studio houses a riot of youth, hunger and passion for creating games. Innovation is part of the DICE DNA, whether it is creating new games or trying out innovative business models. People come to DICE to change our industry and to make unique, addictive and innovative entertainment.
Creating visually stunning, immersive games is an art that takes a tremendous amount of skill and talent. DICE artists are responsible for creating the visual elements of a game, such as characters, scenery, objects, vehicles, surface textures, clothing, and even user interface components. Other Artists bring the game to life with Animation, Lighting and Visual effects and draw the gamer into an immersive experience where they can suspend disbelief and emotionally connect with the game and enjoy the ride. Some games go for a look that’s as realistic as possible, while others aim for a more stylized or fantastical look. In the end, the look of a game is one of the most significant factors contributing to the overall success of the game.
Role Overview
The Technical Artist (TA) acts as a bridge between the artists and programmers working on a game. They ensure art assets can be easily integrated into a game without sacrificing the overall artistic vision or exceeding the technical limits of the chosen platform. The role is a relatively new one for the games industry, but it is becoming increasingly important as game systems become more complex. The Technical Artist works part of the art team, and coordinates closely with the lead artists and the art director, as well as with the lead programmers.
The main areas of responsibility for Technical Artists include setting up and maintaining the art production workflow and making decisions about which art packages and tools a studio should use. Technical Artists are also charged with investigating new techniques and implementing them within the team. The job often includes an instructional element, with the Technical Artist sharing their knowledge with other artists via training and mentoring sessions.
The Technical Artist typically works one step removed from the direct creation of game art assets. Instead, they act in more of an advisory position, setting up the systems of production as well as solving problems as they arise. It’s crucial for the Technical Artist to keep up-to-date in changes in technology, both in terms of console hardware, art packages, and new techniques. The Technical Artist is expected to be able to create custom tools to improve the efficiency of their team. This is usually carried out using the scripting languages included in the main modeling and animation packages.
Technical Artists will play a key role in providing feedback or debugging complex assets such as character skeleton rigs and skinning systems. They will also research and oversee the implementation of rendering techniques such as normal and specular maps, particle systems, and pixel shaders as well.
Specific Technical Artist Roles
TA – Shader Writer
They are responsible for the creation of efficient real-time (HLSL) and multi-level shaders. They must have strong technical skills, including experience in software design and implementation and knowledge of math and physics theories. They must also have strong artistic skills with a proven ability to create cinematic color and lighting in digital media.
TA – Animation
They are responsible for character setup and technical support for character animation throughout production. They work with the game team to determine animation setup and support solutions.
TA – Effects
They are responsible for the design and implementation of the technical aspects in-game effects. They create and maintain tools, systems, and setups used to create particle effects, cloth, hair, procedural effects, lighting, and compositing.
TA – Pipeline
They are responsible for development of software tools in all areas of the production pipeline. They coordinate with the game team on tool and process integration and optimization.
What skills does DICE look for?
Technical Artists are generally required to have between two to five years experience. Involving both art and programming experience, a Technical Artist can come from either background, though most tend to have been artists who have specialized in a particular area of art production.
They should have a detailed knowledge of at least one industry-standard art package. The use of scripting languages is required, as is an understanding of the limitations of console hardware. Some Technical Artists come to games after holding a similar position in the film or special effects industries, where experience of high-end rendering techniques or complex animation are useful skills.
The role of Technical Artist is a specialized one. Candidates must be able to show technical proficiency in areas such as lighting and rendering, texturing, and graphics-related programming languages such as shaders. They should also have extensive knowledge of art packages ranging from modeling to texturing and special effects, and be able to customize them to be as streamlined as possible for specific projects.
Most Technical Artists will have a degree in a relevant visual art or technical subject; however, the most important prerequisite for the role is experience working with art tools and game hardware on wide range of projects.
Creating visually stunning, immersive games is an art that takes a tremendous amount of skill and talent. DICE artists are responsible for creating the visual elements of a game, such as characters, scenery, objects, vehicles, surface textures, clothing, and even user interface components. Other Artists bring the game to life with Animation, Lighting and Visual effects and draw the gamer into an immersive experience where they can suspend disbelief and emotionally connect with the game and enjoy the ride. Some games go for a look that’s as realistic as possible, while others aim for a more stylized or fantastical look. In the end, the look of a game is one of the most significant factors contributing to the overall success of the game.
Role Overview
The Technical Artist (TA) acts as a bridge between the artists and programmers working on a game. They ensure art assets can be easily integrated into a game without sacrificing the overall artistic vision or exceeding the technical limits of the chosen platform. The role is a relatively new one for the games industry, but it is becoming increasingly important as game systems become more complex. The Technical Artist works part of the art team, and coordinates closely with the lead artists and the art director, as well as with the lead programmers.
The main areas of responsibility for Technical Artists include setting up and maintaining the art production workflow and making decisions about which art packages and tools a studio should use. Technical Artists are also charged with investigating new techniques and implementing them within the team. The job often includes an instructional element, with the Technical Artist sharing their knowledge with other artists via training and mentoring sessions.
The Technical Artist typically works one step removed from the direct creation of game art assets. Instead, they act in more of an advisory position, setting up the systems of production as well as solving problems as they arise. It’s crucial for the Technical Artist to keep up-to-date in changes in technology, both in terms of console hardware, art packages, and new techniques. The Technical Artist is expected to be able to create custom tools to improve the efficiency of their team. This is usually carried out using the scripting languages included in the main modeling and animation packages.
Technical Artists will play a key role in providing feedback or debugging complex assets such as character skeleton rigs and skinning systems. They will also research and oversee the implementation of rendering techniques such as normal and specular maps, particle systems, and pixel shaders as well.
Specific Technical Artist Roles
TA – Shader Writer
They are responsible for the creation of efficient real-time (HLSL) and multi-level shaders. They must have strong technical skills, including experience in software design and implementation and knowledge of math and physics theories. They must also have strong artistic skills with a proven ability to create cinematic color and lighting in digital media.
TA – Animation
They are responsible for character setup and technical support for character animation throughout production. They work with the game team to determine animation setup and support solutions.
TA – Effects
They are responsible for the design and implementation of the technical aspects in-game effects. They create and maintain tools, systems, and setups used to create particle effects, cloth, hair, procedural effects, lighting, and compositing.
TA – Pipeline
They are responsible for development of software tools in all areas of the production pipeline. They coordinate with the game team on tool and process integration and optimization.
What skills does DICE look for?
Technical Artists are generally required to have between two to five years experience. Involving both art and programming experience, a Technical Artist can come from either background, though most tend to have been artists who have specialized in a particular area of art production.
They should have a detailed knowledge of at least one industry-standard art package. The use of scripting languages is required, as is an understanding of the limitations of console hardware. Some Technical Artists come to games after holding a similar position in the film or special effects industries, where experience of high-end rendering techniques or complex animation are useful skills.
The role of Technical Artist is a specialized one. Candidates must be able to show technical proficiency in areas such as lighting and rendering, texturing, and graphics-related programming languages such as shaders. They should also have extensive knowledge of art packages ranging from modeling to texturing and special effects, and be able to customize them to be as streamlined as possible for specific projects.
Most Technical Artists will have a degree in a relevant visual art or technical subject; however, the most important prerequisite for the role is experience working with art tools and game hardware on wide range of projects.