Riot Games

We work in a collaborative, fast-paced and learning-rich environment with a veteran development team anchored by accomplished leaders in engineering, design, art, publishing and more. We're always looking for talented and driven people to join us as we strive to create player-focused games. 

Riot's a global company – in addition to the Santa Monica headquarters (located just minutes from the beach), we've got outposts in St. Louis, Dublin, Seoul, São Paulo, Istanbul, Moscow and Sydney.

Our goal is to become the most player-focused company in the world. With this mission in mind, we develop high-quality games and services enjoyed by tens of millions of players around the world.

We also take play seriously. For us, it’s never "just a game." We play lots of games, especially our own. Everyone’s first day at Riot begins with a playtest. We try to make it a daily habit. Although we’re serious professionals, we don’t take ourselves too seriously. Whether it’s memes in presentations, squirt guns at Show & Tell, or the PC Bangs built into the heart of new offices, we make time for play and fun.

At our core, we're a group of passionate people who embrace new challenges, thrive in finding smart, out-of-the-box solutions, sometimes lose things , and love League of Legends and this industry. If this sounds like a team you'd like to be a part of, check out our job openings in Santa Monica, St. Louis, Dublin, Seoul, São Paulo, Istanbul, Moscow, and Sydney

As we focus on creating the best player experiences, we also strive to create a place where Rioters will thrive. Here are a few of the benefits for Rioters in Santa Monica:

THE BASICS

• Highly competitive salary
• Choice between four subsidized HMO and PPO medical insurance plans
• Subsidized vision insurance plan
• PPO dental insurance plan
• Benefits coverage for domestic partners
• Matching 401k
• Short term and long term disability insurance
• Life insurance (free basic life insurance, plus voluntary life insurance)
• Subsidized on-campus gym

PERKS BEYOND THE NORM

• Open PTO
• Flexible hours
• Subsidized dinners
• All-company “Show and Tells”, "Taste the Riot" fairs and "Thunderdome" hackathons (infused with adult beverages)
• Annual all-company outings (past trips included Las Vegas and a cruise to Mexico)
• Fully-loaded League of Legends account
• On-site PC Bang
• Annual Riot Play Fund
• Optional daily League of Legends playtests
• Free cereal, fresh fruit, snacks, tea and fresh ground coffee; sodas and ice cream novelties for a quarter
• Ongoing education and training through Riot U
• Top-of-the-line computers and peripherals
• Weekly visits from certified masseuses
• Company events like early screenings of The Dark Knight Rises and The Avengers
• Submit your champion ideas directly to the dudes and dudettes who make 'em real
• Riot Games and League of Legends apparel and promotional items
• Aeron chairs

It's Riot Games, Inc., policy to provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and members of the Riot team. Riot doesn't unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, handicap, veteran status, marital status, or any other category protected by applicable federal and state law. Riot also makes reasonable accommodations for handicapped and disabled Rioters.

Students, are you ready to talk internship? First, a checklist:

·         You're enrolled in some form of accredited, higher education program and are on your way to obtaining an undergraduate or graduate degree

·         You love League of Legends and have hundreds of wins under your belt (and/or a respectable Elo in ranked play) to prove it

·         You've done something extraordinary in or outside of school

What's extraordinary, you ask?

To give you a sense of the types of students we hire for internships, here are a few examples of things previous interns have done prior to interning at Riot:

·         led eSports teams to victory in major LoL tournaments

·         engineered tools we now leverage internally every day

·         demonstrated mastery of critical technologies in use at Riot (Hadoop, for example)

·         created jaw-droppingly awesome art that rivals the stuff that's already in the game

·         designed champions and/or submitted suggestions to improve champions that inspire us

Check. Check. Check. You're a veritable bad ass. How to apply?

If your accomplishments to date stack up well and you're ready to apply for an internship, shoot us a note. In your note, tell us what you're interested in tackling as a Riot intern and what sort of exceptionally awesome stuff you've been up to. If you're an artist, for example, slay us with your killer portfolio.  If you're an engineer, point to code or gadgets you've shipped.  Candidates for game design internships may want to send us a tight and well-argued analysis of a current Legends design challenge.

Note: We do actually read all applications, even though the quantity of inquiries we receive from intern hopefuls makes that a pretty big job. We only host a few interns at a time to ensure that all interns we host have an excellent experience.  We'll do our best to reply to your inquiries, but won't be able to answer them all.

You still have some questions? Ok. We've got answers…

Q: Where are internships located?

A: Most internships are in Santa Monica, but we may rarely create internships in one of the other Riot offices (St. Louis, Istanbul, Dublin, Sao Paulo, Seoul, Moscow). There's no working from home. You gotta get in here and mix it up with us.

Q: How old do I need to be?

A: Old enough to legally work in Santa Monica (or whichever office you want to work in). We don't wanna mess with child labor laws, so 18+ for Santa Monica. Generally, interns at Riot have completed one to three years of their undergraduate or graduate education. Age requirements vary by country, state, and sometimes even by job type. Please check with the relevant government body responsible for labor laws in the region where you'd intern for all the details.

Q: I'm in high school. What should I do now to secure an internship once I'm in college?

A: Way to plan ahead! Find stuff you're good at and make a mark. There are numerous teens and tweens who're shipping games for the web and mobile devices, including a 14-year-old who shipped an iPhone game that reached number one in the App Store. Some people contribute (in a major way) to open source software development projects. Some people create mods or custom maps for games they love. Some wow us with their amazing machinima creations, blogging prowess, or with the popularity of their Fansites. There are 99 ways to impress us, but being lazy ain't one.

Q: I applied four weeks ago and haven't heard back… what gives?

A: We can't respond to every applicant directly. Well, technically, we *could*, but that'd leave very little time for doing other important stuff, like launching the next League of Legends champion or keeping the servers humming smoothly.

Q: Ok, so maybe I don't yet qualify for a fancy paid internship. Can I volunteer instead?

A: We don’t have any sort of official volunteer program. But we do have ways for members of the community to be involved. Being helpful on our forums is a great way to help fellow players. There are forums where you can submit champion feedback, submit bug reports, provide audio feedback, and theorycraft play strategies. You can also refer your friends to League of Legends and earn rewards for doing so.

Q: What departments/disciplines are looking for interns?

A: It really depends. Literally any team at Riot might decide to take on an intern. We do make sure that teams that want to host an intern are going to be great hosts for an intern, providing him/her with meaty projects, plentiful mentorship, and lots of opportunity to connect more broadly and deeply with other parts of Riot Games.

Q: Do we provide/subsidize housing?

A: No, but we pay interns enough so that they can afford reasonable housing nearby and something beyond instant ramen noodles for the duration of their internships.

Q: What is the length of an internship?

A: Again, no hard rules here, but people tend to internship during summer breaks, so most internships last between 8 and 12 weeks. Longer internships are possible, but it's hard to imagine getting up to speed and contributing in a major way to Riot in anything significantly shorter than 8 weeks.

1. Player experience first

We obsess over every aspect of the total experience. From a newb's first game to a veteran's thousandth, from installation to matchmaking to support to televised esports. It all matters. We list to what players say and do. We analyze deeply. Then we act to make their experience better.

2. Challenge convention

Impossible's our favorite kind of possible. Doing the right thing often requires disregarding the rules and upending the status quo.

3. Focus on talent and team

We attract, develop and cultivate. We foster entrepreneurial teams who prefer action (kicking ass) over process and bureaucracy (taking names). As a meritocracy, we hold Rioters accountable for exercising judgment and delivering value.

4. Take play seriously

It's never just a game. We play lots of games, especially our own. Every Rioter's first day begins with a play test. Thought we're seriously professionals, we don't take ourselves too seriously. We make time for daily play and fun. Memes litter presentations, squirt guns keep the peace at Show & Tell, and PC bang are built into new offices.

5. Stay hungry, stay humble

We're humbitious — ambitious but humble. Ambition cures diseases of corporate complacency. Plus, little plans just have no magic in them. Humility's a must, too. Rioters welcome feedback and always remember the families, teammates, partners, and (especially) players who make it all possible.