Digital Computer Games Design and Development

Are you passionate about games, media, and technology? This course is where creativity meets technical expertise. Perfect for those who want to work in the UK’s growing digital games industry. This course gives you a comprehensive introduction to the Games industry, equipping you with the skills needed to excel in various technical roles from design and programming to development and testing. You'll gain hands-on experience with the latest industry-standard tools, preparing you for a successful career in video game creation or further study.

What you will learn

• Exploring and Developing Creative Media Skills
• Personal Development
• Responding to a Creative Brief

You will explore the technical skills relating to areas such as consoles and mobile phones:

• Hardware and software.
• 2D asset production, e.g. sprites, backgrounds, vector graphics, bitmap graphics, editing assets, exporting for games engine.
• 3D asset production, e.g. models, (polygons, primitives, meshes), environments, editing geometry, texturing, rendering, exporting for games engine.
• Designing narrative and gameplay, e.g. content, story, objectives, goals, challenges, reward.
• Games engines, e.g. importing assets, level maps, lighting, atmospheric effects, sound.
• Interface design, e.g. layout, information, asset placement, viewpoint (first/third person, camera and character placement), consideration of input device.
• Interaction, e.g. scripts, triggers, buttons, actions, colliders, game mechanics, pickups.
• Publishing and optimisation.

Progression

This qualification provides learners with the opportunity to develop their technical Creative Media and digital Games design through a process of self-evaluation, practice and review. In addition to the sector-specific content available in this qualification, the requirements mean that learners develop the transferable skills needed to progress to further education and ultimately higher education and employment. Learners who complete this qualification alongside other Level 2 qualifications may progress to further learning at Level 3, for example the Pearson BTEC National Extended Diploma in Digital Computer Games Design and Development.

Highlights  

You can look forward to:

• Trips to support the sector such as EGX and Warhammer Exhibition Centre
• Game jam competitions
• Industry specific guest speakers
• Studio lab environment using industry standard software
• Work placement week where you’ll put skills into practice

Assessment  

Your knowledge and understanding will be assessed through two project assignments. The assignments will be industry-related, with the opportunity to create your own game considering the gaming industry and its audience that you will be required to evaluate through written reflection.

Anything else?  

In addition to acquiring essential digital knowledge and skills, you’ll also develop transferable soft skills and critical work competencies that will prepare you for your next steps in the digital sector. You’ll take part in continual professional development (CPD) and complete the college’s Which Three Skills programme to develop skills like communication, teamwork, resilience and problem solving.

At Gloucestershire College we want students to develop their English and Maths skills so that they achieve their learning goals and future career aims. For this reason, all full-time students (16-18) who have not achieved grade 4 or above English language or maths GCSE will study these subjects as part of their course.