Game Design and Development

Game design and development brings together creative imagination and technical skill to produce interactive experiences that engage, challenge, and entertain. It is a discipline that sits at the intersection of art, storytelling, software engineering, and psychology, drawing on all of these to ask how digital environments can be constructed to create meaningful experiences for players. The games industry is one of the most significant and commercially successful parts of the creative economy, and it encompasses a wide range of practices from narrative design and visual art to programming and project management.

At Sheffield Hallam University, this three-year full-time programme includes an integrated foundation year that prepares you for the main degree, and incorporates emerging technologies such as virtual reality, augmented reality, extended reality, and generative AI into the curriculum. You will work on real game development projects set by industry clients, giving you experience of the brief-led, collaborative development process that professional studios use. State-of-the-art facilities support your practical work, and the integration of a sandwich placement year and work placement opportunities means you will have substantial professional experience before you graduate.

The typical entry tariff of 120 points reflects the standard expected.

You will develop both creative and technical fluency, learning to design game mechanics, prototype ideas, collaborate in development teams, and ship finished work. The programme builds awareness of how the industry functions as well as the craft skills needed to contribute to it.

Graduates pursue careers as game designers, level designers, narrative designers, programmers, producers, and artists in studios of all sizes, from independent developers to large commercial publishers. The skills developed also transfer well into the broader creative and technology industries, including simulation, training, VR and AR development, UX design, and interactive media. Postgraduate study in game design or related areas of digital creativity and technology is also a well-established route.