Game Design

Game design is the discipline concerned with creating the rules, systems, mechanics and experiences that make a game engaging and meaningful. It is the conceptual and structural heart of game development: the game designer decides how a player interacts with the game world, what challenges they face, how progression works, what decisions they make and why those decisions feel significant. At degree level, game design is studied as a form of interactive audiovisual media, with both creative and analytical dimensions, drawing on storytelling, psychology, visual design and the technical knowledge of how game systems are implemented.

At the University of Liverpool you will study game design over three years of full-time study, on a programme that recognises the crucial role of the video game industry in national and international economies and is designed to develop the next generation of professionals in this immense and rapidly growing field. A sandwich year and the opportunity for a year abroad extend the programme with professional and international experience, and work placement is integrated throughout, giving you direct exposure to how games are designed and developed in industry contexts. The typical tariff of 120 reflects a programme that values creative aptitude and analytical curiosity alongside academic preparation.

Graduates work in games studios as game designers, level designers, narrative designers, systems designers, UX designers and product managers. The video game industry is one of the largest creative industries globally, and the combination of design thinking, understanding of player psychology and knowledge of game systems that this degree develops is applicable across a wide range of roles within it. Beyond games, graduates find careers in simulation, interactive media, experience design and UX roles in technology and digital product companies.

Many also pursue postgraduate study in game design, digital arts or interaction design, building on the creative and analytical foundations of the undergraduate programme.