Game Economy Designer

1. About the Company

Puzzle Studio is a fast-growing mobile game studio with a mission to create fun, creative, and high-quality puzzle games for players around the world.

We are guided by our core values of Determination, Dedication, Continuous Learning, Proactivity, and Collaboration, which shape how we work and grow together. At Puzzle Studio, we aim to deliver gaming experiences that bring joy and relaxation to our players.

If you are passionate about gaming, eager to learn, and excited to turn creative ideas into reality, we’d love to have you on our team.

2. Overview

As a Game Economy Designer, you will be responsible for designing, balancing, and continuously optimizing the game's economy, progression, and core gameplay systems.

Working closely with Product Managers, Game Designers, Data Analysts, Monetization, LiveOps, and Developers, you will build sustainable game economies that deliver an enjoyable player experience while supporting long-term product growth and business performance.

This role requires strong analytical thinking, a passion for game systems, and the ability to make design decisions based on data rather than intuition.

3.Key Responsibilities

Game Economy Design

• Design and balance soft currency, hard currency, energy systems, boosters, rewards, and other in-game resources.
• Define and optimize economy sources and sinks to maintain a healthy and sustainable in-game economy.
• Design progression economies that support player motivation and long-term engagement.
• Build and maintain economy simulation spreadsheets and balancing models.
• Continuously monitor and optimize game economy based on player behavior and live game data.

Game Balance & Progression

• Design and balance level difficulty, progression pacing, and player progression.
• Optimize FTUE (First-Time User Experience), early-game, and mid-game progression.
• Balance upgrade costs, unlock systems, resource consumption, and progression milestones.
• Ensure progression remains challenging, rewarding, and engaging throughout the player lifecycle.

LiveOps & Event Economy

• Design and balance economies for LiveOps events and seasonal content.
• Define event rewards, progression systems, and economy impacts.
• Monitor event performance and recommend improvements.
• Support the design of long-term LiveOps strategies.

Data-Driven Optimization

• Analyze player behavior and monitor key product metrics, including:
• Retention
• Progression Funnels
• Session Length
• Resource Flow
• Economy Health
• Conversion Rate
• ARPDAU
• LTV
• Work closely with Data Analysts to identify opportunities for improvement.
• Develop hypotheses, evaluate A/B testing results, and continuously optimize game systems.
• Make balancing decisions based on data and player insights.

Cross-functional Collaboration

• Partner with Product Managers to align economy and progression systems with product goals.
• Collaborate with Monetization teams to ensure game economy supports healthy monetization while maintaining a positive player experience.
• Work closely with Game Designers to ensure gameplay systems and economy remain balanced.
• Coordinate with Developers and QA throughout implementation and testing.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Game Design, Computer Science, Mathematics, Economics, Data Science, or a related field.
• 3+ years of experience as a Game Designer, System Designer, Balance Designer, or Game Economy Designer.
• Experience designing and balancing economies in Free-to-Play games, preferably Casual or Puzzle titles.
• Strong understanding of game economy, progression systems, reward design, resource flow, and player motivation.
• Excellent logical thinking and analytical skills.
• Passion for working with numbers, balancing systems, and solving complex design problems.
• Ability to analyze and interpret player data to support design decisions.
• Experience building hypotheses, validating ideas, and improving systems through data analysis.
• Advanced Excel or Google Sheets skills for economy simulation and balancing.
• Strong system thinking with a deep understanding of the relationship between gameplay, economy, progression, retention, and monetization.
• Familiarity with key product metrics such as Retention, Session Length, Funnels, ARPDAU, Conversion Rate, and LTV.
• Strong communication and collaboration skills, with experience working closely with Product, Monetization, Data Analytics, LiveOps, and Development teams.

Nice to Have

• Experience developing Casual or Puzzle mobile games.
• Experience designing and operating LiveOps systems.
• Experience with A/B testing and experiment analysis.
• Knowledge of SQL or BI tools such as Tableau, Power BI, or Looker.
• Understanding of IAP, Rewarded Ads, and how game economy impacts monetization.
• Experience creating economy simulations before implementation.

5. What We Offer

• Competitive salary package with performance and salary reviews twice per year
• Quarterly performance bonuses
• A flexible, open, and collaborative working environment where ownership and initiative are valued
• Opportunity to work directly on global mobile game products with strong growth potential
• A team culture that encourages learning, experimentation, and continuous improvement
• Comfortable pantry with coffee, tea, snacks, and occasional afternoon treats
• Fun and friendly office activities including board games, weekly football, and badminton sessions
• Clear long-term growth opportunities with a transparent vision and development roadmap
• Direct collaboration with passionate teammates who love games and enjoy building products together