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Hi, I’m James Jacobus, an Unreal Engine technical lead and gameplay engineer with 7+ years of experience delivering real-time interactive projects, gameplay systems, tools, and production pipelines. I own technical execution across cross-functional teams, improve workflow efficiency through tooling and documentation, and partner with creative leadership to deliver milestone-based work under tight deadlines. My background covers Unreal networking fundamentals, replication, backend integration, and AWS-supported systems.…Hi, I’m James Jacobus, an Unreal Engine technical lead and gameplay engineer with 7+ years of experience delivering real-time interactive projects, gameplay systems, tools, and production pipelines. I own technical execution across cross-functional teams, improve workflow efficiency through tooling and documentation, and partner with creative leadership to deliver milestone-based work under tight deadlines. My background covers Unreal networking fundamentals, replication, backend integration, and AWS-supported systems.

James Jacobus

Game Developer, Programmer, Developer, +5

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Hi, I’m James Jacobus, an Unreal Engine technical lead and gameplay engineer with 7+ years of experience delivering real-time interactive projects, gameplay systems, tools, and production pipelines. I own technical execution across cross-functional teams, improve workflow efficiency through tooling and documentation, and partner with creative leadership to deliver milestone-based work under tight deadlines. My background covers Unreal networking fundamentals, replication, backend integration, and AWS-supported systems.…Hi, I’m James Jacobus, an Unreal Engine technical lead and gameplay engineer with 7+ years of experience delivering real-time interactive projects, gameplay systems, tools, and production pipelines. I own technical execution across cross-functional teams, improve workflow efficiency through tooling and documentation, and partner with creative leadership to deliver milestone-based work under tight deadlines. My background covers Unreal networking fundamentals, replication, backend integration, and AWS-supported systems.

Available to hire

Hi, I’m James Jacobus, an Unreal Engine technical lead and gameplay engineer with 7+ years of experience delivering real-time interactive projects, gameplay systems, tools, and production pipelines.

I own technical execution across cross-functional teams, improve workflow efficiency through tooling and documentation, and partner with creative leadership to deliver milestone-based work under tight deadlines. My background covers Unreal networking fundamentals, replication, backend integration, and AWS-supported systems.

Skills

Experience Level

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Intermediate

Intermediate

Intermediate

Intermediate

DaVinci Resolve Studio

Intermediate

Intermediate

Intermediate

Intermediate

Intermediate

Language

English

Fluent

Work Experience

Unreal Technical Lead / Producer at Akimbo

October 1, 2023 - January 1, 2026

Sole Unreal Engine technical owner supporting a ~12-person creative team delivering broadcast/esports event content. Led Unreal pipeline development for live event deliverables for Fortnite and Rocket League. Defined scope, execution plans, and milestone delivery schedules with leadership. Onboarded and trained designers into UE5 workflows, increasing productivity by an estimated 30–50%. Built internal tooling and automation to speed iteration for Unreal Motion Toolkit Beta. Owned debugging, optimization, and stability for live production Unreal deliverables.

Gameplay Engineer / Systems Designer / UX Designer at U.A. Fabrica

April 1, 2022 - October 1, 2023

Developed VR gameplay systems in Unreal Engine 5 in collaboration with design and production. Built VR-friendly UI/UX systems optimized for comfort and usability. Created Unreal plugins and internal tools to improve development speed and consistency. Implemented physics-driven gameplay systems and tuned stability/performance. Worked with Unreal replication concepts, API integration, and AWS-supported backend workflows.

Gameplay Programmer / Technical Animator / Level Designer at Frostware

June 1, 2021 - April 1, 2022

Developed gameplay systems and animation logic supporting interactive sequences and cinematics. Built a Sequencer/Cutscene Manager plugin enabling branching QuickTime events. Collaborated cross-discipline to integrate gameplay scripting, animation state logic, and level flow. Improved maintainability through debugging practices, reusable tools, and documentation.

Unreal Developer (Interactive Systems / Networking) at Panduit

October 1, 2019 - June 1, 2021

Built interactive real-time Unreal applications including UI-driven control systems and scripted workflows. Integrated AWS-connected systems and API-driven functionality for networked experiences. Delivered stable client-facing experiences while balancing technical constraints and stakeholder goals.

Game Director / Producer / Lead Programmer at Shepherd of Light

November 1, 2018 - September 1, 2019

Directed and shipped an Unreal Engine game, owning execution from prototype through release. Coordinated a small team through task planning, milestone tracking, and iterative reviews.

Programmer, Producer at Akimbo

October 1, 2023 - Present

Onboarded motion designers to use Unreal 5, created tools to support Avalanche Beta, and built full-stack project-management tools to improve cross-team collaboration.

Programmer, Systems Designer at UA Fabrica

April 1, 2022 - October 1, 2023

Developed VR game play mechanics in Unreal 5; created VR-friendly UI interfaces; built custom Unreal plugins and tools; iterated on realistic space-flight physics.

Programmer, Technical Animator, Level Designer at Frostware

June 1, 2021 - April 1, 2022

Developed game-play systems, in-depth animation logic, and created an advanced sequence/cuts manager plugin for branching Quick Time events.

Programmer, Level Designer at Panduit

October 1, 2019 - June 1, 2021

Built and iterated on game interfaces and level design tools, delivering playable prototypes and robust internal tooling to support rapid iteration.

Producer, Programmer, Game/Level Designer at Shepherd of Light

November 1, 2018 - September 1, 2019

Coordinated a development team, designed level layouts, and programmed game systems in Unreal; contributed to Steam presence and overall project direction.

Producer, Programmer, Game/ Level Designer at Shepherd of Light

November 1, 2018 - September 1, 2019

Coordinated development team, designed level tops and programmed game systems in Unreal.

Programmer, System Designer, UX Designer at UA Fabrica

April 1, 2022 - October 1, 2023

Developed VR game play mechanics in Unreal 5, created VR-friendly UI interfaces, created custom Unreal plugins and tools, and iterated on realistic space flight physics.

Programmer at Akimbo

October 1, 2023 - Present

Onboarded motion designers to use Unreal 5, created tools to support Avalanche Beta, and created Full-Stack project management tools.