Principal Software Developer - Full Stack (Unity, C#)

At Zynga, we bring people together through the power of play. As a global leader in interactive entertainment and a proud label of Take-Two Interactive, our games have been downloaded over 6 billion times—connecting players in 175+ countries through fun, strategy, and a little friendly competition. From thrilling casino spins to epic strategy battles, mind-bending puzzles, and social word challenges, our diverse game portfolio has something for everyone.

About the role

Zynga is looking for a Principal Software Engineer in the Austin, Eugene, Toronto, San Mateo, Carlsbad, or Chicago areas. This position will focus on developing and maintaining the core client technology, engine-level systems, and infrastructure for a game with a cozy vibe targeting a casual audience. You should have a passion for engineering excellence and be comfortable diagnosing and solving deep, systemic technical problems, such as improving load times, frame rate, memory footprint, and other cross-cutting performance concerns.

You’ll operate with rigorous engineering discipline while working largely independently to plan and execute complex, multi-week technical initiatives. We have a well-rounded, highly motivated, distributed team with a mission-driven culture working on a new game. We need a self-driven engineer who confronts challenges with optimism, communicates clearly, and takes pride in their work.

Responsibilities

• Define, architect, and develop core systems and client infrastructure in Unity and C#
• Diagnose and resolve complex, game-wide technical issues such as slow load times, low frame rates, memory pressure, and build/runtime stability
• Own the evaluation, upgrade, and maintenance of third-party libraries, SDKs, and engine dependencies
• Design and implement foundational architecture changes that enable future feature roadmaps for feature-focused engineers
• Produce technical design documentation and implementation plans for infrastructure and systemic initiatives
• Scope and cost work accurately from loosely defined requirements, presenting estimates with clear assumptions and identified risks
• Adapt plans and technical approaches when requirements or platform constraints change
• Review code, technical design documentation, and implementation plans for other team members
• Proactively profile, optimize, and refactor code to meet team performance and stability KPI goals
• Explore, develop, and integrate new technologies and tools that benefit the broader engineering team
• Work closely with other engineers to lead multi-week or month-long infrastructure and tooling efforts
• Give team and divisional tech talks on architectures that you’ve built
• Help to improve and evolve team process and engineering standards
• Mentor other engineers

Requirements

• B.Sc. in Computer Science, Engineering, or equivalent education/work experience
• 6+ years of game industry or mobile app experience as a software developer
• Shipped titles and/or live games experience, especially mobile (iOS/Android)
• Expert knowledge in C#
• 3+ years of Unity experience, including engine-level and low-level systems work
• Solid understanding of client/server architecture in modern mobile games
• Understanding, interest, and knowledge of server-side architecture in mobile games
• Solid foundation in data structures, algorithms, and software methodologies
• Demonstrated experience diagnosing and resolving performance issues such as load times, frame rate, and memory usage
• Experience upgrading, integrating, or maintaining third-party libraries, SDKs, or engine versions
• Experience with the AWS ecosystem, Kubernetes, and back-end monitoring technologies such as Datadog
• Excellent communication skills and comfort working in a collaborative environment
• Ability to foresee and proactively resolve blockers, technical risk, and points of failure
• Ability to function in an asynchronous distributed work environment while tuning in to key team meetings
• Experience with git
• Experience with performance profiling and optimization tools

Bonus Points

• Experience with Unity engine source modification or custom engine forks
• Experience with build pipeline, CI/CD, or dev tooling for game teams
• Experience playing and working on games that target a casual audience
• Experience using Claude Code or a similar AI coding tool

Benefits

• Medical, dental, vision, and basic life insurance coverage
• 14 paid holidays per calendar year
• Paid vacation time per calendar year (ranging from 15 to 25 days) or eligibility to participate in the Company’s discretionary time off program
• Up to 10 paid sick days per calendar year
• Paid parental and compassionate leave
• Wellbeing programs for mental health and other wellness support
• Family planning support through Maven
• Commuter benefits
• Reimbursements for fitness-related expenses
• 401(K) plan and Employee Stock Purchase Program
• Bonus and/or equity awards

Pay

The pay range for this position in Toronto at the start of employment is expected to be between $114,300 and $164,300 per year. Base pay offered may vary depending on job-related knowledge, skills, experience, and market location.

The pay range for this position in California at the start of employment is expected to be between $133,900 and $180,000 per year. Base pay offered may vary depending on job-related knowledge, skills, experience, and market location.

The pay range for this position in Illinois at the start of employment is expected to be between $120,600 and $170,000 per year. Base pay offered may vary depending on job-related knowledge, skills, experience, and market location.