Principal Graphics Programmer

About the role

We're looking for a Principal Graphics Programmer to join our award winning team in Middlesbrough (UK), home to the beautiful North Yorkshire coastline and countryside. As a Principal Graphics Programmer at Double Eleven, you'll work alongside the Technical Director and other Principals, you will help lead the technical vision, architecture, and execution of cutting‑edge rendering systems for our custom graphics engine for next‑generation projects. Double Eleven is one of the largest independent video games developers and publishers in the UK. Headquartered in Middlesbrough, we employ over 400 people across our UK and Kuala Lumpur studios. We are incredibly proud to partner with some of the world's leading developers and publishers, including Rockstar Games, Obsidian Entertainment, Mojang, Bethesda Game Studios and Facepunch. As a global games company, we've collaborated to create new worlds in The Outer Worlds 2, helped deliver unforgettable experiences for players of Red Dead Redemption, enabled millions to battle in Rust Console Edition and created new adventures in Fallout 76. Double Eleven is more than a place to work, we are deeply values-driven in all that we do and we know that we are at our best when our people feel fulfilled. We offer flexible working hours to allow you to truly enjoy work/life balance and always strive to deliver a workplace experience like no other. We regularly bring our people together to connect and have fun through our many different events, parties and hobby-based clubs. On this occasion, we're unable to sponsor a visa for this role . Remote working option is available for the right candidate. What you'll be doing Architect and implement advanced rendering systems including real‑time global illumination, ray‑traced pipelines, GPU‑driven rendering and novel rendering research prototypes. Drive engine‑level rendering strategy alongside the Technical Director and Principals, set the technical direction for graphics features across multiple platforms. Oversee graphics performance, diagnosing GPU bottlenecks across the rendering pipeline and implementing optimization strategies. Mentor and upskill rendering engineers, promoting best practices in shader development, GPU programming, and graphics debugging. Collaborate with art, technical art, tools, and engine teams to design asset pipelines, material systems, lighting workflows, and performance budgets aligned with rendering goals. Evaluate and integrate emerging technologies (DLSS, XeSS, FSR, frame‑generation, shader compilers, GPU profiling tools, Ray Traced GI and shadows). Lead cross‑team technical reviews, ensuring rendering systems are scalable, future‑proof, and maintainable. Represent the graphics team in discussions with internal stakeholders, external partners, hardware vendors, and engine technology providers. What we're looking for Technical Expertise Extensive multi‑platform rendering experience, with deep understanding of transitioning techniques between console and PC APIs (e.g., PS5/XSX → DX12/Vulkan/Metal). Expert‑level competence in C++ and GPU programming, including Shader Model 6, HLSL/GLSL, bindless rendering and GPU compute pipelines. Strong background in diagnosing and resolving CPU/GPU bottlenecks, using PIX, RenderDoc, NVIDIA NSight, AMD Radeon GPU Profiler, GPUView, VTune, etc. Ability to design and explain modern rendering techniques - PBR workflows, ray tracing structures (BVH), real‑time GI, SSGI/SSAO, TAA/Upsampling to engineers, artists, and non‑technical stakeholders. Proven integration of modern graphics technologies, such as advanced upscaling (DLSS/FSR/XeSS), denoisers, RTGI, temporal reconstruction, or vendor‑specific SDKs. Collaboration & Leadership Experience collaborating with content creators using common DCCs, ensuring assets meet performance and technical requirements. Strong mentorship skills, capable of lifting the capabilities of a rendering team and guiding architectural decisions. Clear communication, capable of driving technical decisions and presenting graphics strategies to directors, producers, clients, and external partners. Qualifications All relevant qualifications considered What to expect Working life at Double Eleven Start your day any time between 8:00am and 10:00am 35 working hours per week with a 1 hour lunch break (with the opportunity to flex down to 30 minutes or up to 2 hours) Opportunity to apply for hybrid working (up to 2 days working from home per week) 28 days annual leave (20 days annual leave + 8 days bank holiday) 1 day leave for your birthday and 1 day leave if you're moving house Up to 10 days discretionary annual leave during our end of year break A brand new, state-of-the-art studio facilities that includes a market hall serving nutritious, subsidised meals, round-the-clock gym access, an auditorium and more Subsidised market hall with food, freshly prepared daily by our in-house hospitality team Free breakfast options, juice, hot drinks and fruit. Emplo

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