Lead Mathematician / Head of Game Design - Slots.
The Lead Game Mathematician/Head of Games Design is responsible for defining and delivering the creative vision of new online slot products from concept through to release, with a core focus on game mechanics, mathematical modelling and simulation. The role combines strong creative design skills with technical expertise, using rapid prototyping and game simulators built in C++ or C# to validate concepts, model volatility and optimise performance.
Working closely with production, art, engineering and stakeholder teams, the role provides the direction, clarity and tools needed for the studio to build high-quality, entertaining and commercially successful games. They define core game loops, specify features, build supporting maths documentation, and iterate designs using playtesting, analytics and commercial insights.
The Head of Games Design ensures every product is both highly engaging and mathematically robust, acting as the champion for quality, consistency and innovation across the development cycle.
Duties & Responsibilities
Game Design Execution
• Create and maintain detailed design documentation including core gameplay, feature specs, UX/UI flows and product requirements.
• Define game mechanisms, product flows, UI layouts, maps, and other user experience elements.
• Work closely with the Product Owner to scope features accurately, define milestones and ensure agreed delivery.
Mathematics & Simulation
• Produce and validate mathematical models, paytables and volatility curves for slot games.
• Build game simulators using C++ or C# to validate performance, RTP, hit frequency, free game behaviour and other key parameters.
• Rapid prototyping of concepts and mechanics is essential, using maths models and simulation to quickly evaluate feasibility and player value.
• Translate maths models into developer-ready documentation for back-end implementation.
• Collaborate with Mathematicians and service developers to ensure accuracy and compliance.
Creative Leadership
• Work with the Product Owner and Head of Art to define and communicate a clear creative vision for each game.
• Design and direct the development of engaging player experiences, core game loops and game mechanics.
• Establish and evolve design pillars, ensuring alignment with commercial goals and regulatory requirements.
• Act as the product evangelist across the development cycle for internal and external stakeholders.
Iteration & Quality Improvement
• Conduct playtests and reviews, identifying creative, mathematical and behavioural improvements.
• Work closely with Mathematicians and data analysts to identify opportunities to improve acquisition, retention, conversion and monetization across the product lifecycle.
• Proactively resolve design issues and recommend feature adjustments to optimise performance.
• Analyse live data with product, analytics and mathematics teams and propose changes to improve results throughout the product lifecycle.
Cross-Functional Communication
• Work closely with all project team members to execute design, review implementation and iterate rapidly.
• Ensure design intent is understood across art, engineering and production teams through documentation, presentations and regular communication.
• Support the Product Owner in managing scope, tracking design dependencies and mitigating delivery risks.
Required Skills & Experience
• Must have 5+ years of experience working in a game design role, with a bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience.
• Proven experience and knowledge of online slot games, including hands-on experience building game simulators and producing the maths documentation needed to support them.
• Strong understanding of game maths, RTP, volatility and probability as applied to modern slot design.
• Demonstrable experience building and supervising simulations and prototypes to validate concepts, mechanics and performance.
• Strong game mechanic skills with an excellent understanding of mathematical game models, supported by a portfolio or examples of released products.
• High standard of written, visual and verbal communication, able to pitch ideas and present documentation clearly to stakeholders.
• Experience managing and documenting design across multiple simultaneous projects.
• Comfortable with a wide variety of game development tools, engines and editors.
• Advanced proficiency with Microsoft Excel, including complex formulas, data analysis and reporting, and strong working knowledge of Project, PowerPoint, Visio and Word.
• Must be experienced in agile development methodologies.
• Self-motivating, with outstanding attention to detail, organisation and follow-through.
• An inspirational, ambitious and demanding personality, able to drive quality, innovation and delivery.
• Excellent programming skills with the ability to rapidly prototype and build simulations to validate concepts and mechanics.
• Ability to develop a strong player perspective, through playtesting, observation and performance data analysis.
Beneficial Experience
• Familiarity with UKGC, MGA, USA and Canadian jurisdictional compliance requirements for RTP, randomness and certification.
• Hands-on knowledge of Unity or Unreal engines for visualising concepts or prototyping features.
• Experience collaborating with remote or distributed teams across multiple time zones.
• Understanding of player psychology, behavioural design and UX optimisation for gambling products.
• Experience using analytics platforms (e.g. Power BI, Tableau, Looker) to evaluate product performance.
• Prior experience in live ops, A/B testing and feature iteration based on player data.
• Experience working with licensed IP or branded content.
• Ability to mentor junior designers and support skills development across the team.
• Experience using AI tools within the game development process to improve productivity, accelerate iteration and support technical or creative workflows.
Steve Kirk
Managing Consultant
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