QA Manager (Relocation to Malta)

QA Manager (Relocation to Malta)

A fully funded, European-based game studio is building a large-scale, social-first Unreal Engine project and is seeking a QA Manager to establish and scale Quality across development, release, and LiveOps.

The studio combines AAA development practices with live-service and platform thinking, operating with a lean, hands-on startup culture. Rather than building a large internal QA organisation, this role is focused on designing a modern, scalable Quality model built around embedded QA, external partners, automation, and smart tooling.

This is a highly autonomous, hands-on leadership role suited to someone who enjoys building Quality foundations from scratch, solving real problems quickly, and setting studios up to scale without unnecessary headcount.

This role is based in Malta, and relocation is required.

THE ROLE

The QA Manager will be responsible for defining and owning the Quality strategy across the project, from in-development features through release and into LiveOps.

Reporting directly to the CEO, this role will establish QA as a proactive partner to development rather than a downstream function. You will work closely with engineering, product, and production teams while owning external QA relationships and defining how manual, automated, and AI-assisted testing are used across the studio.

This role blends short-term execution with long-term strategy and is ideal for someone comfortable operating without existing QA processes or teams.

WHAT YOU’LL BE DOING

• Establish and own the overall Quality strategy across development, release, and LiveOps
• Rapidly stabilise quality in a studio currently operating without formal QA support
• Design and implement an outsourced-first QA model, including partner selection, onboarding, and ongoing management
• Embed QA into feature-based development teams to support fast iteration and delivery
• Define lightweight, pragmatic QA processes aligned with a modern, LiveOps-focused studio
• Balance manual testing, automation, and emerging AI-assisted testing approaches
• Support testing across table games and platform features in the short term, expanding into broader technical and systems testing over time
• Work closely with engineers on Unreal Engine-based development and live systems
• Establish meaningful quality metrics and reporting for leadership and stakeholders
• Act as the trusted voice of Quality, clearly communicating risk, readiness, and trade-offs

WHAT YOU’LL BRING

• Senior-level experience in game development QA, with a strong focus on online and LiveOps-driven products
• Proven experience building or modernising QA functions in growing or evolving studios
• Deep experience working with outsourced QA partners and embedded QA models
• Strong understanding of the game development lifecycle and how Quality supports it end-to-end
• Hands-on experience working with Unreal Engine environments
• Comfortable operating without pre-existing QA processes or teams
• Confident communicator able to work directly with senior leadership
• Willingness to relocate to Malta

NICE TO HAVE

• Experience driving or implementing test automation strategies
• Exposure to SDET or automation-focused QA roles
• Familiarity with CI/CD, backend, or LiveOps testing environments
• Experience supporting mobile-heavy player bases alongside PC development
• Interest in AI-driven testing tools and emerging QA technologies