MA in Computer Games Art & Design

What you'll study The skills you will learn throughout the programme will have a focus on games design, art and animation, in addition to gaining the fundamentals of computer programming, entrepreneurship/business and practice. You will study the following modules: Module title Credits. Games Design and Games Analytics Games Design and Games Analytics 15 credits You'll study: Kinect, Freemium gameplay. Level design. Modding games. Games Analytics techniques. 15 credits. 3D Virtual Environments and Animation 3D Virtual Environments and Animation 15 credits This module is designed to offer advanced material for students who want to specialise in the area of applications in 3D environments and animation. It is geared towards research-led teaching, which would expose students to the most state-of-the-art 3D VR applications. 15 credits. Business and Practice Business and Practice 15 credits A single term module focused on imparting high quality post graduate entrepreneurial and employments skills. This module is lead by Richard Leinfellner; an industry veteran with 30 years of experience making commercially successful games. Richard has held executive roles as Executive Producer & Vice President at Electronic Arts as well as CEO of Babel Media, he started his career as an assembly language programmer & co-founder of Palace Software in 1984. The module focuses on the skills needed to build a viable / investment ready business plan and pitching it to investors/employers in a industry style Dragons Den. Topics include using LEAN rapid development methodologies & tools, assessing & mitigating real risks, copyright, business structure, writing compelling CV’s as well as supporting students in obtaining work placements. This course is also taught by Prof William Latham. 15 credits. Introduction to Modelling and Animation Introduction to Modelling and Animation 15 credits The scope of this module includes a range of skills to be acquired, which will empower the students to create their own assets for their own game designs, and to work in a team on group projects during the course, giving them the necessary basic art, modelling and animation skills to work in industry. The aim is to train students in the basic use of software packages (for example, 2D paint packages such as Photoshop and 3D Modelling Packages such as 3D Studio Max, Blender and Maya) for the production of game and special effects assets and animation data sets ready for importing into computer games. Skills developed include 2D texturing and associated mapping for 3D worlds. Initially, the students’ work will involve “re-skinning” in-game art assets from existing games such as PacMan, Tetris, Space Invaders and Lemmings using paint packages to produce animating 2D Sprite texture maps, to enable students to get visually pleasing results quickly. Students will then learn how to use modelling software to create a range of 3D assets varying from buildings to cars to household objects to vegetation to roads and terrain etc. keeping within set polygon budgets, thereby creating the building blocks of a small 3D world with moveable elements ready for importing into a game engine (such as Unity or Unreal). Students will learn how to hand draw in a “game concept art style” suitable for production design and how to pitch to clients. They will learn how to storyboard and draw in cartoon / popular art style. Working from their concept art of simple moving human characters, students will learn how to model and “rig” them, to create animated walk and run cycles with blended set key moves. Advanced export pathways including intermediate formats will be also be covered. At the end of the module the students will take the assets they have created and integrate them into an actual simple prototype game for PC or tablet. Throughout the module you’ll be taught project planning, resource management, risk analysis in the context of computer games art development and design. 15 credits. Advanced Modelling and Animation Advanced Modelling and Animation 30 credits The scope of this module builds on the Introduction to Modelling and Animation Course and engages the student in a range of harder and more expert problems. Students will be expected to build a rich 3D fantasy world of their own design, with objects such as fantasy buildings and architecture and assets suitable for importing into a 3D games engine world. Working from their concept art in a selected game genre, students will learn how model characters then “rig them”, to create animated walk and run cycles with blended set key moves, using Physics, Inverse Kinematics and AI packages where necessary. These animated characters are then used to populate and game 3D world as NPCs (Non Player Characters). The students will learn how to use a range a set of specialist modelling tools including SpeedTree and ZBrush and fit them into games art production pipeline. Students will learn the basics of Procedural content generation in the context of game engines and the distinct artistic and technical approach necessary. A section of the course in the later stages will cover the development of assets and the artistic styling of games on emerging platforms such as Virtual Reality platforms, using Location Based Gaming, Serious and Gamification Games, Crowd Sourced Games and Robotics platforms. Work will included the development of novel analytics techniques designed initially on paper. A section of the course will include teaching Advanced Project Planning, Quality control and early testing of assets, Resource Management using Gantt Charts, Excel and Bug Tracking Management Tools. Outsourcing and other production management approaches will be explored also in the context of Risk Analysis. 30 credits. History of Computer Games, Art and Animation History of Computer Games, Art and Animation 15 credits Students will learn about the history of games design, art and animation on a world-wide basis since the 1960’s covering the major trends and directions, including computer graphics and special effects and the interactive entertainment industry. Students will also learn about the broader cultural movements in the History of Art and Culture including Surrealism, Cubism, Pop Art, Ready Made Art and Post Modernism and the emergence of Computer Art. Basic cultural theory will be covered within the course. The course will explore the relationship between technological innovation and how this has been historically capitalised on by creative individuals. The course will include short sections on the Renaissance and Impressionism. The course will include key influential (such as Benoît Mandelbrot, Jon Lassetter) and events such as The SIGGRAPH Conference, The Games Developer Conference, CES Consumer Electronics Show and New York Armoury Show. This course will help give students a broad cultural perspective but also is expected to “feed into” shaping their own personal creative games ideas and designs and give them creative inspiration to be used on the other modules. The timing of this in second term is to give students the necessary research to work on projects or undertake placements with broader cultural understanding. 15 credits. You will also study: Industry Placement or Research Project and Dissertation (60 credits) Industry Seminars Series (shared with the MSc in Computer Games and Entertainment course) With leading speakers from the games and entertainment industry. Download the programme specification for the 2018-19 intake. If you would like an earlier version of the programme specification, please contact the Quality Office. Please note that due to staff research commitments not all of these modules may be available every year.