BA (Hons) Game Design with Foundation Year

This module develops your artistic and software skills in digital art. Using professional practices and processes you will learn essential pipelines for the production of 2d and 3d artwork. After studying some drawing techniques you will start to develop finished artwork. This will involve learning a staged concept and design process then an evaluation of different output formats and workflow for key game assets.

This module offers an introduction into branding, advertising, influencer marketing, video marketing and digital marketing communications. Communication is a broad and multi-disciplinary topic which is common to all of these, and throughout this module students will explore different areas of communication theory, including semiotics, as well as branding theory and advertising.

You will learn about designing characters and the spaces they inhabit, including the aesthetics, mechanics, and narratives that make them engaging. You will write a brief game narrative then design a principal character and environment to help play the story.

The module is sectioned into two parts. The first part of the module aims to provide students with a practical understanding of the digital business, the need for digital transformation to support innovation and to continue to have a competitive advantage in the marketplace. The various digital business models are explored along with the importance of digital capability. The second part of the module introduces students to the information systems that support todays digital business. A range of information systems are examined including those that support the operations of the digital business, through to its sales and marketing functions. The importance big data and business intelligence are introduced before examining how today’s digital business can apply business intelligence to develop new products and services long with improvements in efficiency and its business processes.

This module provides students with knowledge of frameworks to understand the importance of marketing and digital marketing tools within the business environment.   Activities will provide students with the opportunity to understand the marketing concepts an organisation will need to use in order to compete in today's dynamic market place.  This module will further engage students towards developing a clear understanding of some these key issues and apply concepts and techniques discussed during the sessions and through independent academic research.  

In this module, students are invited to explore how they and their peers perceive the world and examine how that fits in with creative practice and the wider context of the Creative Industries. The focus is on empowering voices and refining the articulation of ideas. The module aims to develop students' abilities to critically analyse information and engage in thoughtful, sometimes controversial, discussions on contemporary issues. It provides an opportunity to explore concepts including cultural, social, political, economic, and environmental factors and across various disciplines. Additionally, it encourages the exploration of diverse perspectives and fosters the development of collaborative and inclusive communication skills.

Website Development and Design will examine the creation and management of a website, as well monitoring and measuring its performance. This includes measurement of digital marketing activities such as Search engine Optimisation (SEO), Keyword analysis, Marketing Mix, Competitor Analysis, developing a buyer persona, Social Media Integration, Email Marketing, Online Advertisements and Key performance indicators (KPIs). Students will gain practical experience of using the latest techniques for measuring and analysing digital performance.

In this module you will design and implement audio, visual and dynamic effects to enhance player experience. By analysing narratives and game mechanics you will find the key elements to reveal and heighten through audio-visual effects. This will mean you become fluent in techniques for creating immersive environments and understand the interplay of audio, visual and dynamic effects in building atmospheric scenes and events.

You will gain expertise in designing and developing games for mobile platforms, researching trends, technicalities, market and user expectation in designing gameplay, UX and interface. After researching user reviews and data for mobile games and the state of the market, you'll look closer at examples from a design basis. You will then design a package of mobile game assets demonstrating your knowledge of the technical and creative context of your design.

This module is about ‘you’ and your place in the world, with a view to refining your specialism as a professional/practitioner and improving your profile. The module will be delivered across specific course groupings that capture the core values of each course. Across this module students will typically undertake at least one major externally facing project (e.g. live brief, placement, virtual placement, etc) or 2-3 smaller projects by negotiation. These projects will support student transferable skills around employment within the Creative Industries.

This module provides you with an opportunity to fully produce and publish your game related artefact or interactive project. This will be done through the weekly workshops where you would receive feedback on your work in progress, as well the extensive work outside the formal sessions. You will further develop technical skills and deliver a polished project artefact. There will be weekly feedback sessions, and you may be asked to present your work in progress with class and receive further feedback.

You will work collaboratively to produce a game, evaluating game studio roles and responsibilities and developing communication and organisational skills. You will research the industry context of teamworking and game production, comparing and contrasting this with the module experience. You will write a report that summarises this, evaluates the team work and suggests organisational practice for future collaborative work.

This module is about your 'career' after you complete your formal UG study. It is about the realities of (and preparation for) freelance, entrepreneurial, industry and further study trajectories. This pan-school module will hinge around students creating a personal career strategy plan called ‘28 days later’. The purpose is for students to take accountability and ownership over their future direction by creating a career plan that they activate when leaving the course with a view to maximise their long term employability prospects.