---
title: 'Principal Game AI Engineer at Ghost Story Games'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/principal-game-ai-engineer-ghost-story-games-massachusetts-rnkfhct6gx0e'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-10-30'
---

# Principal Game AI Engineer at Ghost Story Games

- **Company:** Ghost Story Games
- **Location:** Massachusetts, United States
- **Work type:** remote
- **Posted:** 2026-10-20
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-10-30
- **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/gsgcareers/jobs/8302468

## Job description

Who We Are:

Ghost Story Games is a self-publishing game development studio founded by Ken Levine (Creative Director of System Shock 2, Bioshock, and Bioshock Infinite) and former Irrational Games developers.  The studio’s mission is to create narrative-driven experiences rooted in immersive world building and gameplay.

The Challenge

Ghost Story Games is seeking a talented remote Principal Game AI Engineer to join us on Judas, the highly anticipated game led by Ken Levine (System Shock 2, BioShock series). Unique in its bold, creative vision, Judas is also built upon novel technology by which the visual world, gameplay, and story unfolds in meaningful, dynamic ways. The result is a significant and personal journey adapted to each player’s experience and offers a new approach to the art and storytelling of video games.

We are seeking a Principal Game AI Engineer to focus on the finalization and polish of our AI behaviors and systems. In this critical role, you will take ownership of bringing our AI systems to a "shipping-ready" state, ensuring the enemies within Judas react and behave in believable, compelling ways. Beyond technical implementation, you are expected to work closely with our design and animation teams to tune these systems and guarantee the best possible player experience.

The ideal candidate brings a proven track record of shipping games as an AI Game Engineer, pairing strong technical abilities with a deep passion for player experience.

What You’ll Take On:

- You will own the implementation, hardening, and polish of AI behaviors and systems to shipping quality.
- You will collaborate closely with design, animation, and other disciplines to iterate on AI features, ensuring they support the creative vision and deliver an exceptional player experience.
- You will ensure the quality and stability of critical AI systems, taking responsibility for delivering highly reliable behaviors.

What You Bring:

- Extensive Unreal Engine 4 and/or Unreal Engine 5 experience.
- Deep experience with modern game AI architecture (Behavior Trees, pathfinding, perception systems)
- Experience with modern animation techniques like root motion, distance matching, motion warping, blend spaces, and state machines
- Strong knowledge of C++
- At least one shipped title working primarily on game AI, preferably a AAA title in the action and/or FPS genre
- Ability to quickly understand existing code and enhance/extend an existing architecture

Great to Have:

- Experience with closing down heavily dynamic and/or procedural systems.
- Support build automation processes as needed.
- C#/Python/Blueprint experience.

The pay range for this position in Massachusetts at the start of employment is expected to be between $180,000 and $210,000 per Year. However, base pay offered is based on market location, and may vary further depending on individualized factors for job candidates, such as job-related knowledge, skills, experience, and other objective business considerations. Subject to those same considerations, the total compensation package for employees in regular roles may also include other elements, including a bonus and/or equity awards, in addition to a full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, provided that temporary or intern roles will not be eligible for many of these payments or benefits. Details of participation in compensation and benefit plans (if applicable) will be provided if an employee receives an offer of employment. If hired, employee will be in an ~at-will position~ and the company reserves the right to modify base salary (as well as any other discretionary payment or compensation or benefit program) at any time, including for reasons related to individual performance, company or individual department/team performance, and market factors. When Applying For This Position:

Please watch the following GDC talk given by Ken Levine: http://www.gdcvault.com/play/1020434/Narrative

Please be aware that Ghost Story does not conduct job interviews or make job offers over third-party messaging apps such as Telegram, WhatsApp, or others. Ghost Story also does not engage in any financial exchanges during the recruitment or onboarding process, and the Ghost Story will never ask a candidate for their personal or financial information over an app or other unofficial chat channel. Any attempt to do so may be the result of a scam or phishing exercise. Ghost Story’s in-house recruitment team will only contact individuals through their official Ghost Story email addresses (i.e., via a ghoststorygames.com email domain). If you need to report an issue or otherwise have questions, please contact Careers@ghoststorygames.com

As an equal opportunity employer, Ghost Story Games, LLC (“Ghost Story”) is committed to fostering and celebrating the diverse thoughts, cultures, and backgrounds of its talent, partners, and communities throughout its organization. Consistent with this commitment, Ghost Story does not discriminate or retaliate against any employee or job applicant because of their race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, and gender identity), national origin, age, disability, and genetic information (including family medical history), or on the basis of any other trait protected by applicable law. If you need to report a concern or have questions regarding Ghost Story’s equal opportunity commitment, please contact Careers@ghoststorygames.com.

## About Ghost Story Games

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Ghost Story Games is a self-publishing game development studio, founded by the creative director of BioShock, that is building a narrative first-person shooter called *Judas*.
- **Entity Type**: Private (subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive, a publicly traded company)
- **Headquarters**: Boston, Massachusetts, United States
- **Founded**: 2014 (following the closure of Irrational Games)
- **Founders**: Ken Levine (President, Creative Director)

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: Video game development (AAA / narrative-driven first-person shooters)
- **Target customers**: B2C – PC and console gamers
- **Mission**: “Create narrative-driven experiences rooted in immersive world building and gameplay.”

## Products & Services
- **Judas** (in development): A single-player, narrative first-person shooter built on a proprietary “Narrative Lego” engine that dynamically alters the visual world, gameplay, and story based on player choices. The game is set on a colony ship where the protagonist, Judas, must ally with former enemies to complete the Mission.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not publicly available (studio is a wholly owned subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive)
- **Key Metric**: Headcount of 67 employees (as of mid‑2025), growing 29.3% year‑over‑year (+17 people)
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Take-Two Interactive (parent company); the studio is self‑publishing
- **Growth Signals**: Active hiring (multiple open roles listed on Greenhouse, including Lead Artist, Senior Technical Producer, Cinematic Engineer, Design Manager); strong talent pipeline from studios like Irrational Games, Arkane, Bungie, and Respawn Entertainment; LinkedIn followers grew 55.1% in the past year

## Competitive Advantages
- **Pedigree**: Led by Ken Levine, the visionary behind the award‑winning BioShock series, System Shock 2, and BioShock Infinite.
- **Proprietary technology**: The “Narrative Lego” engine allows for highly reactive storytelling that adapts to the player’s actions, setting the game apart from linear narrative experiences.
- **Well‑funded**: Backed by Take‑Two Interactive, providing financial stability without the need to seek external funding.
- **Remote‑first culture**: The entire studio is fully remote, enabling access to top talent across the globe.

## Strategic Focus
- **Deliver *Judas***: The studio’s primary focus is shipping its debut title, *Judas*, which was first revealed at The Game Awards 2022 and is still in deep development.
- **Re‑define narrative gaming**: The company aims to push the boundaries of interactive storytelling, making each player’s journey unique and personal.
- **Sustainable growth**: Gradually expanding the team while maintaining a tight, creative culture; hiring is concentrated on roles that directly support the game’s production (design, engineering, art, narrative).

## Why Work Here
- **Culture**: A fully remote, well‑funded studio where creativity and collaboration are paramount. The team is described as “a new team, working on a new game” with a strong sense of community.
- **Work environment**: 100% remote – all open positions are listed as “Massachusetts – Remote” or fully remote. The studio supports work‑life balance and invests in outreach programs (e.g., Greenwood Food Rescue, New England Sci‑Tech).
- **Notable perks**: Opportunity to work directly with Ken Levine and a team of experienced developers from top‑tier studios; involvement in a high‑profile, innovative project from the ground up.
- **Engineering culture**: Heavy emphasis on narrative technology, procedural storytelling, and custom engine work. The engineering team includes roles like Cinematic Engineer, AI Tech Lead, and Narrative Technical Designer.

## Sources
1. [Ghost Story Games Official Site](https://www.ghoststorygames.com/)
2. [Ghost Story Games Careers (Greenhouse)](https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/gsgcareers)
3. [Ghost Story Games – Studio Page](https://www.ghoststorygames.com/studio)
4. [Ghost Story Games – FAQs](https://www.ghoststorygames.com/faqs)
5. [Ghost Story Games – LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/company/ghost-story-games)

## Other roles at Ghost Story Games

- [Senior Technical Level Artist](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-technical-level-artist-ghost-story-games-massachusetts-jk8n2cc5h970) — Massachusetts, United States
- [Principal Lighting Artist](https://feeny.ai/job/principal-lighting-artist-ghost-story-games-massachusetts-qpfbbcjsbhqs) — Massachusetts, United States
- [Senior Level Artist](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-level-artist-ghost-story-games-massachusetts-p6mkjb1dhcse) — Massachusetts, United States
- [Cinematic Technical Animator](https://feeny.ai/job/cinematic-technical-animator-ghost-story-games-massachusetts-jyd7y4n8jra0) — Massachusetts, United States
- [Engineering Manager](https://feeny.ai/job/engineering-manager-ghost-story-games-massachusetts-4r7dve9fxwf4) — Massachusetts, United States
- [Principal Game AI Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/principal-game-ai-engineer-take-two-interactive-software-inc-massachusetts-565xxc0ep53w) — Massachusetts, United States