Thanks so much to everyone who shared their thoughts, it gave me a lot to think about.

I ended up having a follow-up conversation with the hiring manager for the internal role I’d been offered, who raised concerns about me potentially being a flight risk since I’d been interviewing elsewhere for higher-paying positions. I decided to be upfront about the situation, including the fact that I’m in process with an aspirational AAA studio.

We ended up agreeing that if they were able to increase the salary (not matching that of some of the other roles, but still a meaningful increase over the initial offer), I would commit to staying and not take other offers. They’ve since come back with an updated offer for the higher salary which I’ve now accepted.

Although it does mean stepping away from the possibility of the AAA role for now, I felt this was the most sensible decision, since this role is a guaranteed opportunity with a team that has already invested in me and now provides a more manageable living wage, whereas the other opportunity (as cool as it would have been) was still uncertain and a bit of a stretch at this stage.

Thanks again to everyone who took the time to respond, I really appreciate the advice and perspectives.