BSc(Hons)Computing for Games

Study location	United Kingdom, Falmouth (Penryn Campus)
Type	Bachelor courses, full-time
Nominal duration	3 years
Study language	English
Awards	BSc(Hons)
Course code	I610

Entry qualification	High school / secondary education (or higher) The entry qualification documents are accepted in the following languages: English. Often you can get a suitable transcript from your school. If this is not the case, you will need official translations along with verified copies of the original.

Language requirements	English IELTS: 6.0 (with a minimum of 5.5 in each skill) CAE: 168 (with a minimum of 162 in each skill)

Other requirements	At least 1 reference(s) must be provided. A motivation letter must be added to your application.

More information	falmouth.ac.uk/computing-for-games

Overview

Interested? To learn more about this study programme, entry requirements and application process, please contact one of our consultants in a country nearest to you.

Programme structure

Year One

Your first year combines an introduction to programming with the fundamentals of computing using Python, focused on supporting complete beginners and establishing standards for collaborative software development. You‘ll then apply this knowledge practically through a small team-based design and development project in PyGame.

You’ll then transition to C++, SOL, and Unreal 4. Embarking on your first multi-disciplinary game development project, you’ll work alongside artsists, animators, composers, designers, and writers in the Games Academy. Throughout this project, you‘ll gain a practical understanding of the processes and pipelines used to engineer games in addition to the architecture of game engines.

Throughout your first year, you’ll integrate individual creative computing projects into your games. Typically, such projects will involve proceduraIIy-generated graphics and sound effects, database-driven level design tools, and physical game controllers.

o Principles of computing
o Game development practice
o Game engineering & architecture
o Creative computing: Tinkering
o Creative computing: Codecraft

Year Two

In your second year, your studies will broaden to enable you to explore specialist fields crucial to contemporary games. Throughout the year, you’ll develop a game in collaboration with the other disciplines in the Games Academy. This will enable you to leverage your specialist computing skills to develop a portfolio of game components to potentially integrate into your current and future game projects.

Specialist topics will challenge you to explore emerging interface technologies, such as augmented reality and virtual reality, in parallel with graphics and simulation technologies. You’ll learn how to use equipment such as the HTC Vive and how to use shader languages such as GLSL. Examples of portfolio pieces include terrain generation using Perlin noise and bespoke game controllers for use in virtual reality environments.

Further specialist topics will challenge you to explore artificial intelligence and distributed systems. You’ll learn about cutting-edge techniques such as Monte Carlo Tree Search and how to develop client-server multiplayer games in C++ and Java. Examples of portfolio pieces include a Companion AI library and creating a MUD.

o Artificial Intelligence
o Interfaces and interaction
o Distributed systems
o Graphics and simulation
o Game development

Year Three

Your final year allows you to leverage the skills and expertise that you have gathered throughout the course by producing a substantial game in collaboration with the other disciplines. Unlike the previous year, however, you’ll define a specialism (eg artificial intelligence) and conduct research in that field. This will form part of your final year project, where you’ll integrate cutting edge computing technology into a game that you are working on.

Supplementing this are advanced topics in computing including legacy game systems and algorithms, as well as professional skills support for setting up a portfolio website from scratch in HTM L/CSS.

o Legacy game systems
o Algorithms & optimisation
o Research practice
o Research dissertation
o Game development

Career opportunities

Our graduates have a broad range of careers open to them. The practical software development skills and computing knowledge are both highly transferrable. Typical destinations are in digital games, software development, and related spheres. The Games Academy also helps students to set up their own small development companies, or move forward to incubation programmes such as Launchpad.

o Hello Games
o Spider Eye
o TTGames
o Media Molecule