Games Design and Development (BSc Honours)

Grow your design and development skills supported by experienced academic staff. Enhance your programming, experiment with technology and master gameplay design, prototyping, and in-game engine scripting.

Why choose Games Design and Development BSc at Middlesex?

• Do you want to design and balance game mechanics to create emergent dynamic player experiences? On this hands-on course, you'll be making games with a mix of digital and paper prototyping and planning from week one.
• Design and script games from day one. On this highly practical course, you'll be making games with a mix of digital and paper prototyping and planning. You will be introduced to a range of tools for bringing your ideas into reality, including Adventure Game Studio, RPGMaker, RenPy, Unity and Unreal.
• As well as technical skills you will develop the communications and entrepreneurial skills needed to put together and manage a multi-disciplined team. You will get plenty of hands-on experience and opportunities for collaborating with other Middlesex students from our 3D animation, art and design, music, computing and graphics departments as part of our coordinated workshop activities.
• You will learn design communication skills including writing, scripting, prototyping and storytelling. And learn the concepts and history of game design which will build confident communication skills so that you can explain what makes existing games successful and what players do in games that keeps them playing. You’ll also learn critical and analytical techniques for observing playtests, offering peer feedback, and iterating ideas. 
• There will be opportunities for experimental design to develop your ability to evaluate and adapt technologies to create new game experiences.

What you will gain

• The games industry is complex, diverse and spans a variety of old and new technologies from print to computer software to 3D printed game pieces. This BSc gives you the skills and knowledge you need to become a successful games developer and designer in this fast-changing industry.
• You will learn how to communicate a detailed game idea professionally across a range of modes including writing, prototyping, diagramming, speaking.  We will develop your experience with a variety of game engines and teach you how to use them to produce digital prototypes to match industry briefs. You will gain hands-on experience of creating and publishing games using surprising mixtures of technologies and gameplay design
• We'll help you build your portfolio, setting you up for a successful career in a range of creative industries. This degree's mix of in-person and online teaching will prepare you for the world of work.
• You’ll develop your employability skills and industry connections with a range of work placements and internship opportunities. Year after year, students from this programme produce fantastic, high-quality game prototypes. 

Global experiences at Middlesex

• We offer unique global experiences which could include studying part of your degree abroad and doing a placement or volunteering in another country, as well as many international opportunities in London. You'll build your cultural awareness and understanding and get a competitive edge in the job market. You may even qualify for grant funding under the Turing Scheme. Find out more about how studying at Middlesex will increase your global experience.

What you will learn

• You will learn key technical skills such as programming,  game engine scripting and technical game design and prototyping.  You will also learn how to effectively communicate and present your experimental game ideas. This will involve developing skills in creating concept documents, pitching game proposals, and incorporating feedback from peers and industry professionals.

3 great reasons to pick this course

• Develop your skills in world-class facilities- Access workstations equipped with the latest software including Unity, Processing, OpenFrameworks, Maya, Z-Brush, After Effects, Flash, Final Cut Pro and Photoshop. You also have access to a Motion Capture and Green Screen facility
• 5th- in London for overall student positivity (National Student Survey 2023) 
• Reputation for producing successful graduates-Our graduates have gone into roles at companies such as CD Projekt Red, Outplay Entertainment, Trick27, Pixel Foundation, Rockstar, PlayStation, Square Enix and more.

Part-time study

• Study at your own pace alongside work and other commitments and get the skills and knowledge you need to progress in your career.
• When choosing a part-time course, you will study the same modules as the full-time course but over a longer period.

About your course

• In year one you will play and analyse games critically in class using both digital and table-top games. You will use the critical language you develop to communicate your own designs through writing, diagramming, prototyping, and playtesting. 
• In years two and three you will develop your prototyping and design communication skills through a variety of industry facing briefs and projects, individually and in small groups, including collaborating with students on other degrees. The overall themes of this degree are design communication, data driven design, project work, analysis, research, reflection, collaboration, making, diversity, integrating fun with technology, play and experimentation.