Lead Game Developer (Unreal Engine / Unity)
Possible
Sponsorship likelihood
This employer issued few or no visas recently
£50,000 – £60,000 / year
Salary
Within the market range
£54,700
Going rate
Offer is 0.9× the going rate
This role likely qualifies for a Skilled Worker visa
SOC 2134 (100% match) is an eligible occupation, with a going rate of £54,700, and BFB Labs is a licensed sponsor. That is our reading of the rules. Whether they issue a Certificate of Sponsorship is still their call.
New graduate or PhD holder? Pick one of the lower rates.
What each route needs for this job
| Occupation code | New entrant 70% of going rate | STEM PhD 80% of going rate | Relevant PhD 90% of going rate | Standard rate 100% of going rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
2134 Programmers and software development professionals Most likely code | £38,300 Clears | £43,700 Clears | £49,200 Clears | £54,700 Clears |
We use the lowest threshold across the plausible codes. Likelihood is Possible at most when the pay clears only a lower rate, or only under a less likely code. A mark is for the top of the advertised pay. How the Home Office picks the code
About the role
Location: Hybrid/Remote, London
Employment Type: Full-time, Permanent
Company: BFB Labs
At BFB Labs, we build pioneering digital health products and evidence-based games that transform youth mental health. Our flagship app, Lumi Nova, along with our wider portfolio, blends engaging gameplay with clinical efficacy to empower children and young people to self manage their mental health. We are looking for an experienced Lead Game Developer to shape our technical architecture, drive continuous delivery across app stores, and keep our apps stable and performant—balancing new feature development with bug fixes to continuously improve stability, player engagement, and clinical outcomes.
As our Lead Game Developer, you will sit at the heart of our technical execution. You will drive front-end and back-end game development, lead app store release pipelines across multiple platforms, and partner closely with our Full-Stack developer to integrate secure analytics and cloud architecture.
Beyond hands-on development, you will serve as a technical mentor for our mid-level developer, establishing robust coding standards, conducting peer reviews, and ensuring our therapeutic mobile apps are optimised, maintainable, and technically robust.
- Core Game Development: Lead end-to-end client and server-side game feature development across iOS, Android, and tablet platforms.
- Architecture & Mentorship: Own codebase architecture, enforce high-quality coding standards, conduct constructive PR reviews, and actively mentor mid-level game developers.
- Senior Leadership: 3+ years of experience in a Senior or Lead Game Developer role, with a proven track record of managing and mentoring other engineers.
- Primary Engine Expertise (Unreal Engine): Advanced proficiency in Unreal Engine, including deep hands-on expertise with both C++ and Blueprints (vital for our flagship project, Lumi Nova).
- Secondary Engine Flexibility: Familiarity with Unity (C#) and a strong willingness and ability to jump between both engines as project needs evolve.
- Mobile & Tablet Deployment: Extensive experience building, profiling, optimising, and releasing commercial games on iOS, Android, and Amazon mobile environments.
- Experience designing accessible UI/UX systems (e.g., screen reader compatibility, colorblind accessibility, customisable UI scales).
- Experience with automated unit testing frameworks within Unreal Engine or Unity.
- Salary: £50,000 – £60,000 per annum (Dependent on experience)
- Purpose-Driven Work: The code you write and oversee will directly support young people going through clinical mental health pathways.
- Great Perks:
- 28 days of annual leave (plus bank holidays) which we usually top off with a discretionary extra 3 days off over the Christmas period so you can fully recharge.
- 1 extra day annual leave for every year you're with us (up to 5 additional days).
- Access to the company pension scheme
- Flexibility to work remotely for up to one week twice a year (taken as separate sessions)
- Hybrid Flexibility: Work from our fantastic co-working space in Farringdon (Central London) 3 days a week, with the remainder remote. We value flexibility and are open to discussing individual productive arrangements.
We are looking for the right person to start ASAP. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.
To apply, please send your CV along with a Cover Letter explaining why you are suited to this role to [email protected].
- Screening: An initial call via Google Meet to ensure a mutual fit.
- Technical Task: A practical exercise designed to let your engineering logic shine.
- In-Person Interview: A final interview held at our Farringdon office space.
We maintain a strict and high level of confidentiality for all applicants.
This description is the source posting as it read when we added it. We are not affiliated with BFB Labs, so check their own site for the current details.
Where this offer sits in the market
Programmers and software development professionals (SOC 2134) · UK · ONS ASHE 2025 · basic pay · ~399k in sample- Offer £50,000–60,000
- Middle half £42,536–76,752
- Median £56,784
- Going rate £54,700
- Threshold £41,700
- New entrant £38,300–49,200
The range sits inside the market's middle half (£42,536–76,752), so this is typical pay for the occupation.
Similar sponsored roles
See all UK visa jobsNo close matches live right now.
Browse more sponsored jobs at BFB LabsAbout sponsorship for this role
Does this job guarantee visa sponsorship?
Not necessarily. BFB Labs holds a sponsor licence, but sponsorship for a specific hire is always the employer's decision. Be upfront in your application that you'll require it.
What salary is needed for this role to be eligible?
The offer must clear both the general threshold and the SOC 2134 going rate of £54,700. New-entrant and shortage discounts can lower it.