Backend Game Developer - Games Studio

hackajob is collaborating with Tombola to connect them with exceptional professionals for this role.

Join the Exciting Journey at tombola!

We are seeking a Backend Game Developer for our backend development team to actively contribute to the design, development and delivery of the game engines that power our bingo products - and to adapting them for our B2B platform.

In this team, you'll be building the core game logic behind our bingo experiences as well as extending and integrating those engines so they can be delivered to external partners through our B2B APIs. Alongside the engines themselves, you'll also work on supporting systems such as chat and game certification, ensuring everything runs smoothly, securely and reliably at scale.

The role involves learning the business use case around our solutions, contributing to the development of new services, and showcasing your technical expertise in delivering backend systems that support both player-facing games and external integrations.

You will be actively involved in team discussions, decision making and contributing to the development processes.

Find your bounce at tombola!

At tombola, we're not just another player in the game; we're the creators of the game. Our approach is revolutionary – we craft every element of our software in-house, from concept to execution.

For our team, this means building the actual game engines — the bingo logic at the heart of our products — as well as the systems that let other companies integrate with and run those games. It's about creating robust, scalable engines and services that power those experiences behind the scenes.

Sounds great! What will I be doing?

You will be involved in all phases of development, from conception all the way to release and beyond. Building game engines and highly available backend services that power both our own products and B2B integrations, using languages and technologies such as C#, T-SQL, DynamoDB, Redis, AWS and more.

You'll be a key part of our game development journey. A typical day might look like this:

• Building new game engines, products and tools from conception to release.

• Adapting game engines for B2B delivery by integrating with our partner-facing APIs.

• Contributing to product design by giving methodical input into game mechanics.

• Calculating game RTP (Return to Player) par sheets and event probabilities.

• Working on supporting systems such as chat and game certification.

• Working with the QA team to fix bugs and improve code quality.

• Reviewing pull requests and giving constructive feedback to your team.

You will actively support the implementation of continuous integration to ensure a solid deployment process, and collaborate closely with colleagues across game, product, platform, infrastructure and QA teams to deliver cohesive solutions.

What will I be doing? (But in bullet points)

• Build and maintain game engines that deliver our bingo products

• Adapt and extend engines for B2B use, integrating with partner-facing APIs

• Work on supporting systems including chat and game certification

• Work on highly available, scalable systems that support high volumes of activity

• Contribute to technical discussions and help shape how we build and evolve our game engines and B2B offering

• Write clean, efficient and well-documented code

• Take part in code reviews, testing and performance improvements

• Work closely with cross-functional teams to ensure smooth delivery

What does "good" look like for us?

• Strong knowledge of C# (or comparable languages such as Java/Python)

• .NET experience

• Experience building backend systems, client/server applications and RESTful APIs

• Understanding of game development and basic game mathematics

• Understanding of databases (SQL / NoSQL), including T-SQL and source control

• Experience with cloud platforms (e.g. AWS)

• Good problem-solving skills and a logical, organised approach to building systems

• Comfortable working on systems that integrate with external platforms

• Willingness to learn and adapt within a growing B2B environment

Nice-to-haves (bonus points!):

• Knowledge of SOLID software design principles

• Experience with CI/CD and cloud computing

• Proficiency with Git and JIRA

Ways of working

This role is based at our Sunderland HQ, with a hybrid approach of 3 days in the office and 2 days working from home. That means plenty of time collaborating with the team, alongside space to focus and get stuck into the detail.

Why tombola

We're a business built on innovation, collaboration and doing things differently. We're always looking to improve how we work and we genuinely welcome new ideas and perspectives.

If you're looking for a role where you can make an impact, grow your career and be part of a team that backs each other, we'd love to hear from you.

At tombola we know that our differences make us stronger and that thinking differently is key to long term success. We work hard to create a culture of inclusivity where everyone can celebrate our Free to be mevalue. We are committed to creating opportunities for everyone here at tombola, we welcome applications from all backgrounds and encourage individuals to apply, even if you don’t meet every requirement.