[This position is now closed. The original job ad remains below.]
Summary
Pykrete Games is a small (currently one person) video game studio in Halifax, Nova Scotia, looking for an artist for Championship Wrestling Promoter, a sports simulation game where players get to manage their own fictional professional wrestling promotion.
This is a contract position for this project only.
It is a paid position.
Pykrete Games does not have an office, so this is a remote position. However, we are currently only looking for candidates who live in Canada.
Previous industry experience is not a requirement as long as you’re talented and reliable.
The game currently only has placeholder programmer art, so we’re looking for someone to help bring the quality of the art up to the same level as the design.
What We’re looking for
There are two different kinds of art we’re looking to add to the game: customisable 2D sprites for various elements of the game such as the wrestlers, as well as some background illustrations to help spruce up the overall look of the different game modes and menus. While hiring one artist who can fill both roles would be ideal, if you feel you’re better for one role than the other, feel free to apply, indicating which role you’re interested in as part of your application.
Here’s some more detail about the art that we’re looking for:
Sprite art
Players will be able to customise the look of many aspects of the game. All of these elements will need to be created in greyscale so that they can be tinted in the game.
All art will be static. No animations are required.
Pixel art or vector art are both acceptable, so apply with whichever one you think you’re better at.
Specific elements of character art that will be needed include:
male and female heads, torsos, and lower bodies
a number of clothing options for shirts, pants, and elbow/knee pads
various hair and facial hair styles
A few designs for championship belts (belt shapes and face plates).
Ring art broken down into the constituent parts: a canvas, ropes, steel posts, turnbuckles, and ring apron.
Illustrations
We need a small number of illustrations for the backgrounds of various screens. For example, an illustration of an office to serve as the background for some of the financial screens in the game.
The largest size of illustration will be 1280x720 pixels, although most are likely to be smaller.
There will be about 4-6 illustrations required.
Who We’re Looking For
An artist who can create some great customisable 2D art and/or illustrations.
This is a freelance, contract position for this game only.
Previous industry experience is not required, so feel free to apply if you’re a recent graduate or otherwise looking for an entry level role. Of course, if you do have previous shipped titles, that’s great!
Pykrete Games supports a diverse industry, so diverse candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.
You must be at least 18 years old, and at this time we are only looking for candidates who reside in Canada.
In addition to the technical skills, we’re looking for someone who’s reliable and professional. You must be open to receiving constructive criticism and making modifications as required. You will be paid for all of the work you do, including any changes that need to be made.
HOW TO APPLY
[This position is now closed and it is no longer possible to apply.]
Please read this section carefully, as any applications that do not follow this format will be rejected.
Applications should be sent to pykretegames@gmail.com. Please send an e-mail to that address with the subject line “CWP Art Application”, along with the following information:
Your name and the city you currently live in.
Whether you’d like to work in both roles (sprites and illustrations) or only one.
A link to your portfolio. Any place that you think shows off the relevant skills in the best light is fine, so feel free to send a link to your Art Station, Instagram, personal site, or whatever you think shows your best work.
Please do not create any new or unique art for this application. Your time is valuable and I do not want to waste it. If you get far enough along in the process that I’d like to see a specific example for this project I will request it and pay you for your time.
If you’re applying to create sprite art, please list an hourly rate and roughly how long you expect it to take to create one sprite (ex. one belt design, one head shape, etc.). The time estimate doesn’t have to be exact, but it will help us budget and scope accordingly.
If you’re applying to do illustrations, please list your rate per illustration.
When you’re available. If you’re not available immediately that’s OK, but I would like to have all art complete and in the game in the next 5-6 months.
Please don’t write a cover letter. It’s not a good use of your time or mine.
Thanks to everyone who applies, and good luck!