I’m Jay Lauffer, a Senior Technical Director with 25+ years of professional software engineering experience focused on AAA game development, Unreal Engine systems, and engineering leadership across multiple projects. I’ve built and led teams to deliver high-quality gameplay, tooling, and engine integrations under production constraints. I thrive on balancing strategic architecture with hands-on problem solving, defining coding standards, risk assessment, and clear communication with internal stakeholders and external partners. I’ve led Lead Programmers and Team Leads, managed delivery risk, and fostered cross-discipline collaboration with Art, Design, Audio, QA, and Production to ship reliable, scalable experiences. I also write songs and play tenor guitar.

Jay Lauffer

I’m Jay Lauffer, a Senior Technical Director with 25+ years of professional software engineering experience focused on AAA game development, Unreal Engine systems, and engineering leadership across multiple projects. I’ve built and led teams to deliver high-quality gameplay, tooling, and engine integrations under production constraints. I thrive on balancing strategic architecture with hands-on problem solving, defining coding standards, risk assessment, and clear communication with internal stakeholders and external partners. I’ve led Lead Programmers and Team Leads, managed delivery risk, and fostered cross-discipline collaboration with Art, Design, Audio, QA, and Production to ship reliable, scalable experiences. I also write songs and play tenor guitar.

Available to hire

I’m Jay Lauffer, a Senior Technical Director with 25+ years of professional software engineering experience focused on AAA game development, Unreal Engine systems, and engineering leadership across multiple projects. I’ve built and led teams to deliver high-quality gameplay, tooling, and engine integrations under production constraints.

I thrive on balancing strategic architecture with hands-on problem solving, defining coding standards, risk assessment, and clear communication with internal stakeholders and external partners. I’ve led Lead Programmers and Team Leads, managed delivery risk, and fostered cross-discipline collaboration with Art, Design, Audio, QA, and Production to ship reliable, scalable experiences.

I also write songs and play tenor guitar.

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Experience Level

Expert
Expert
Expert
Expert
Expert
Intermediate

Language

English
Fluent

Work Experience

Head of Engineering / Technical Director APAC at M - League
August 1, 2023 - December 1, 2025
Senior technical leader overseeing engineering delivery across multiple projects, combining hands-on Unreal Engine expertise with people and project leadership. Led engineering teams across multiple concurrent initiatives, including internal development and external studio support; managed Lead Programmers and senior engineers; set technical direction and ensured delivery quality; established coding standards, workflows, CI pipelines, and review practices; identified technical risks early and mitigated schedule and quality issues; acted as senior technical contact for stakeholders and partners.
Consulting Technical Director APAC at Mayhem Studios (under M - League)
January 1, 2023 - January 1, 2024
Provided technical leadership on an Unreal-based F2P Battle Royale project; directed gameplay systems, tools, and engine upgrades; established Perforce workflows, CI, and code review standards; mentored engineers and improved maintainability and delivery velocity.
Technical Director (Shanghai Studio) at Scopely
January 1, 2022 - August 1, 2023
Technical Director responsible for building and leading Scopely’s first China development team and delivering a major AAA live-service title. Built and managed a multidisciplinary engineering organization (Game Dev + DevOps); defined technical architecture and delivery strategy; coordinated with Art, Design, QA, Production, and external partners; communicated technical progress, risks, and mitigation strategies to senior leadership; provided hands-on problem solving when required.
Senior Software Engineer / Team Lead at Improbable
April 1, 2019 - December 1, 2021
Led small teams delivering Unreal Engine systems across multiple projects; designed and maintained large-scale Unreal test environments for performance profiling; supported porting and optimization of a PC/console shooter to mobile platforms; collaborated with stakeholders across regions to align priorities and execution.
Principal Software Engineer at Snail Games
August 1, 2017 - April 1, 2019
Senior technical contributor on Last Oasis, a large open-world, physics-driven title; introduced CI/CD pipelines and daily playtest discipline; delivered gameplay systems including persistence and simulation-heavy features.
Engineering Manager at Riot Games
January 1, 2017 - August 1, 2017
Managed an engineering team delivering player-facing launcher features; participated in hiring, mentoring, and performance management.
Senior Software Engineer II / Tech Lead at Blizzard Entertainment
January 1, 2008 - June 1, 2016
Led two engineering teams delivering core C++ systems used across Blizzard franchises; owned launch-critical systems supporting millions of players worldwide; extensive experience with performance, reliability, and large-scale live production; worked closely with game teams, engine teams, and production leadership.

Education

Coursework completed - Creative Writing at University of Tampa
January 11, 2030 - April 7, 2026
Coursework completed - Computer Science at Orange Coast College
January 11, 2030 - April 7, 2026

Qualifications

Add your qualifications or awards here.

Industry Experience

Gaming, Software & Internet, Media & Entertainment, Professional Services
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