Joe Schwartz
Senior AI Game Engineer
Gameplay, full stack systems, runtime AI, and production tooling for teams that want Generative AI integrated into both the player experience and the development process.
What I Do
I build full stack game systems: moment-to-moment gameplay, server architecture, runtime content generation, editor tooling, and Generative AI pipelines that turn production bottlenecks into playable workflows.
Best Fit
Senior remote roles or contracts where I can own hard systems independently, collaborate cleanly with teams, and connect engine code, gameplay, AI tools, backend services, and production UI into shipped game features.
Engine + Gameplay
AI + Generation
Full Stack
Experience
Shipping games end to end.
Gameplay, engine work, full stack delivery, runtime AI characters, and Generative AI tooling built for playable releases and production teams.
Senior AI / Gameplay / Full Stack Engineer, Upheaval AI
- Built an Unreal selection-outline shader plugin and Unity runtime download/caching systems that cut FTUE wait time by about 60 seconds.
- Fixed tutorial hard locks, added trial modes, streamlined UI, and shipped two Unity games on Android and iOS.
- Built React and Azure full stack systems while using Codex across Unreal C++, Unity C#, and music production.
Senior AI Game Engineer, Azra Games
- Built a generative social media manager and production-facing Unity tools.
- Ported a Python/HTML clicker into a Discord Activity.
- Improved quest visualization, map tools, editor workflows, and save-data tooling.
Senior AI Game Engineer, Running Bull
- Led a two-engineer MVP XR shooter build in Unity.
- Integrated gameplay with a Next.js/React/TypeScript frontend and Django backend.
- Built an OpenAI-powered real-time voice agent with memory and web chat UI.
Senior AI / Gameplay / Full Stack Engineer, Upheaval AI
- Built Unreal and Unity integrations backed by a custom C# stack.
- Generated game data, images, 3D models, rigged characters, and animation-ready assets.
- Delivered runtime NPC behavior, RAG systems, API layers, and serverless image infrastructure.
Senior Game Engineer (Full Stack), Tempo Storm
- Created AI-assisted playable card pipelines for production content.
- Built deterministic client-side combat simulation and shared C# DLL systems.
- Shipped event-driven gameplay architecture into Early Access.
C++ Game Engineer, Infinite Games
- Developed UE4/UE5 HTTP plugins, backend features, and MySQL support.
- Built C# automation tools, Blazor admin surfaces, logging, and Swagger APIs.
- Supported Azure deployment workflows for game/backend services.
System Engineer, UW Computer Aided Engineering
- Automated Windows deployment, SCCM task sequences, and VMware server builds.
- Packaged App-V software and managed lab-scale software delivery.
- Handled technical troubleshooting across 700+ engineering machines.
Selected Work
Playable AI systems, tools, worlds, and music.
Unreal Engine MMO
Solo MMO prototype work covering C++ motion-matching character systems, efficient server backend architecture, replicated multiplayer, remote user testing, procedural open-world terrain, generated-world preview maps, right-click teleporting, and an LLM chat interface for procedural settings.
Also includes an asset-generation pipeline that creates 2D art from prompts, converts it to 3D, rigs humanoids, imports assets, and spawns them in runtime and editor workflows.
Runtime AI Characters
Generated game data, models, rigs, and behavior so playable agents and NPCs could be created and driven at runtime.
LLM NPC Memory and Control
Built NPCs with generated data, memory, thoughts, conversations, decision loops, and an interpretive layer for creating and controlling other agents.
AI Tools
Built in-game tools for modifying 3D models at runtime by editing generated images and regenerating meshes from the result.
AI-Generated Music
Created and published AI-generated radio-style songs using prompt-driven composition and production workflows.
Choose Your Own Adventure
Built a Unity app using OpenAI text generation to support guided genres, freeform choices, and branching narrative play.
Contact
Remote senior game engineering.
Best conversations for me are remote-only roles or contracts shipping games and prototypes where AI systems meet engine work: gameplay systems, runtime generation, NPCs, agent workflows, backend integrations, full stack tools, and production-ready prototypes.