Blizzard Entertainment is looking for a talented and enthusiastic lead software engineer to join our Battle.net team in Irvine, California.

The new Battle.net is a full-featured online game service that delivers the ultimate social and competitive experience for Blizzard Entertainment gamers everywhere. Designed specifically around Blizzard Entertainment titles, Battle.net includes a complete set of around-the-game features including a state-of-the-art matchmaking system, achievement system, social networking features, structured competitive play options, a marketplace, and much more. Our vision is to create an environment where gamers can compete online, develop an online persona, and stay connected to friends and the rest of the community while enjoying our games.

This position within the Battle.net team is focused on the development of the Battle.net platform which provides APIs and Technologies that underpin the features being developed for the service.

Responsibilities
Work with other leads and production staff to establish engineering tasks and schedules.
Contribute to setting the technical direction for the team.
Balance time between managing and contributing through programming.
Evaluate and mentor engineers on the team.
Serve as a partner in the team's leadership.
Interface with external teams to gather requirements, assist with integration, and provide visibility into the platform development roadmap.

Requirements
Mastery of C++
Distributed systems experience
Security considerations (encryption, denial of service) experience
Architecture (cloud, client / server) experience
Knowledge of network and server security issues
Leadership potential or previous leadership experience
Bachelor's or Master's Degree in Computer Science, Mathematics, or equivalent experience
A passion for video games

Pluses
Scripting language experience (Python, Lua)
Multiple platform development experience (Linux, Windows, OSX)
Database development experience (MySQL, Oracle)
Excellent verbal and written communications skills
Agile development exposure
UML diagramming experience (class, sequence)
Low-level network knowledge and diagnosis including packet capture (tcpdump, wireshark), routing, firewalls, DHCP, DNS, NAT busting
Familiar with higher-level network protocols such as HTTP, SNMP, SMTP, FTP

Applicants must submit (i) a cover letter, (ii) and a resume. Only resumes with cover letters will be considered.

This job listing originated on Gamasutra.com, the game industry's leader.