BA (Hons) Games Design

Ba (hons) games design will teach you how to take the software tools of games design and create new gaming experiences. Explore skills sought by industry, such as storyboarding, coding and play testing which will enable you to translate your ideas into playable games.

Working from original concepts, you will develop ideas and test them to evaluate their experience of play. You'll not only design the players interaction with the game mechanics but also the visual feedback needed to communicate the player’s progress, the various gamestates and the behaviours of individual game objects and characters.

This concept-to-game approach is supported by the growing theoretical area of games studies.

• BA (Hons) Games Design will teach you skills sought by industry, such as coding and programming, enabling you to take software tools and create new playable games from your ideas.

What to expect

• You’ll be taught to regularly generate new concepts and to be innovative in your practice.
• You'll learn the design and development skills necessary sought after by leading design and software companies worldwide such as interactive design, the psychology of games, designing the experience of play, computer programming and 3D modelling.
• You'll learn how to write game design documents starting from the initial concept, before mastering the various stages of development.
• Put your skills into practice as you continually build playable games throughout the course. During this process, you'll demonstrate storyboarding and visualisation techniques to communicate ideas with linear or non-linear content.
• You will also be expected to analyse gaming trends and identify unique selling points to build into the game's hooks and features; to create your own animated content, adding functionality with scripting before testing for performance and usability.
• The final major project gives you the opportunity to research an aspect of games design that is of particular interest to you and to present your findings in a dissertation. 

Industry experience and opportunities

• You’ll have the opportunity to undertake the Diploma in Professional Studies (DPS) or the UAL Diploma in Creative Computing between Years 2 and 3 to enhance your learning experience and employability skills.

Mode of Study

• BA (Hons) Games Design runs for 93 weeks in full time mode. It is divided into 3 stages over 3 academic years. Each stage lasts 31 weeks.

Course units

• In response to the Climate Emergency, UAL has embedded responsible practices within the curriculum. We shaped our courses around principles of social and racial justice, and environmental sustainability that ensure learning outcomes reflect the urgent need to equip you with the understanding, skills, and values for ethical practice and empower you to work towards an equitable future.
• In common with all courses at University of the Arts London, this course is credit rated. The course is 3 years, levels 4-6. Each year requires you to achieve 120 credit points. To be awarded the BA (Hons) Games Design qualification, you need to accumulate a total of 360 credits.

Year 1

• Introduction to Games Design (20 credits)
• Concept and Design 1 (40 credits)
• Prototype Development 1 (40 credits)
• Theory of Interaction Design (20 credits)
• The units in the first year will define computer games, their history and the subjective nature of play. You will be introduced to practical game design theories and how it effects the design of game hooks and features. You’ll develop an awareness of design documents used to communicate game concepts, and the programming skills needed to implement design documents and build game prototypes.

Year 2

• Concept and Design 2 (40 credits)
• Prototype Development 2 (20 credits)
• Understanding Player Experience (20 credits)
• Introduction to Professional Practice (20 credits)
• In year 2 you will explore the importance of characters and game environments to aid immersion and enrich the player experience. You’ll examine the importance of genres in specifying potential target audiences. You will be introduced to 3D modelling and how to construct and texture game elements. Develop your programming skills to control multiple autonomous and dynamic objects.

Year 3

• Major Project Practical (60 credits)
• Professional Practice (Progression) (40 credits)
• Thesis (20 credits)
• In your third year you will build on existing 3D knowledge by introducing rigging, and the preparation and creation of animation and the use within a games engine. You will be introduced to the integrated development environment: the use of the content pipeline to import graphical images and 3D models, as well as testing and evaluating concepts.
• The final year gives students the opportunity to specialise in an area of games design which they are particularly interested in. It supports the acquisition of specialist knowledge for their Major Project dissertation and aids in the development of specialist skills for the Major Project practical, via personal study and supervision.

Optional Diploma between Years 2 and 3

• Between Years 2 and 3 of your course, you’ll also have the opportunity to undertake one of the following qualifications:

Diploma in Professional Studies (DPS) (Optional)

• An optional, year-long learning opportunity which enables you to develop your professional skills by undertaking time out for industry experience. Supported throughout the year by academics, you’ll build on the knowledge gained on your course in a range of national or international locations, and graduate with an additional qualification of Diploma in Professional Studies.

UAL Diploma in Creative Computing (Optional)

• Between Years 2 and 3, you can undertake the year-long Diploma in Creative Computing. This will develop your skills in creative computing alongside your degree. After successfully completing the diploma and your undergraduate degree, you’ll graduate with an enhanced degree: BA (Hons) Games Design (with Creative Computing).

Learning and teaching methods

• Supervision
• Tutorials
• Peer review
• Lectures
• Seminar
• Tutorials
• Workshops supporting individual and group needs
• Guest lectures

Assessment methods

• Report
• Presentation
• Self-assessment document
• Reflective diary

You also need to know

Communicating with you

• Once you have submitted your initial application, we will email you with your login details for our Applicant portal.
• Requests for supplementary documents like qualifications and English language tests will be made through the applicant portal. You can also use it to ask questions regarding your application. Visit our After you apply page for more information.

Visas and immigration history check

• All non-UK nationals must complete an immigration history check. Your application may be considered by our course teams before this check takes place. This means that we may request your portfolio and/or video task before we identify any issues arising from your immigration history check. Sometimes your history may mean that we are not able to continue considering your application. Visit our Immigration and visas advice page for more information.

External student transfer policy

• UAL accepts transfers from other institutions on a case-by-case basis. Read our Student transfer policy for more information.

Alternative offers

• If your application is really strong, but we believe your strengths and skillset are better suited to a different course, we may make you an alternative offer. This means you will be offered a place on a different course or at a different UAL College.

Deferring your place

• You must apply in the year that you intend to start your course. If you are made an offer and your circumstances change, you can submit a deferral request to defer your place by 1 academic year. You must have met your conditions by 31 August 2025. If you need an English language test in order to meet the entry requirements, the test must be valid on the deferred start date of your course. If not, you will need to reapply. Requests are granted on a first-come, first-served basis.

Contextual Admissions

• This course is part of the Contextual Admissions scheme.
• This scheme helps us better understand your personal circumstances so that we can assess your application fairly and in context. This ensures that your individual merit and creative potential can shine through, no matter what opportunities and experiences you have received.

Career paths

• The aim of the course is to develop graduates who combine an experimental and innovative approach to design with an understanding of the player experience with critical and analytical skills to be able to develop for a chosen platform.
• The career opportunities for graduates include games design, level design, content creation, project management, quality management and localisation.

Alumni

• BA (Hons) Games Design graduates have gone on to work within the games industry as designers, producers, developers, 3D/2D content creators, localisation and quality assurance managers. They also excel in roles outside of the games industries as flash developers, web developers and 3D modellers.