STUDY

Undergraduate

BSc (Hons) Games Development

Games controller
Course options: Professional Placement
Institution code: S82
UCAS code: GW42
Start date: September 2025
Duration: Three/four years full-time, four and a half to nine years part-time
Location: Ipswich
Typical Offer: 112 UCAS tariff points (or above), BBC (A-Level), DMM (BTEC), Merit (T Level)
Course options: Professional Placement
Institution code: S82
UCAS code: GW42
Start date: September 2025
Duration: Three/four years full-time, four and a half to nine years part-time
Location: Ipswich
Typical Offer: 112 UCAS tariff points (or above), BBC (A-Level), DMM (BTEC), Merit (T Level)

Overview

Embark on an unparalleled Games Studio experience that sets you apart.

Our Games Development degree offers an immersive journey like no other. From day one, you'll dive into a fully integrated games studio environment, putting your skills to work on actual games. Industry leaders, senior peers, and qualified mentors provide constant guidance, enriching your voyage. 

Unveil your potential through the Games Development Pathway system as you shape your games studio project. Immerse yourself in diverse, industry career paths and receive mentorship to pinpoint your specialisation. Enhance your degree by showcasing your creations in the prestigious UK Games Funded Tranzfuser competition and joining our illustrious Games Hub, home to consistent finalists since 2016. Experience the grandeur of Game Anglia, the largest games festival in the East of England and present your projects at the indie development zone, captivating industry professionals and earning recognition. 

Delve into the forefront of gaming innovation.

Our curriculum blends cutting-edge industry practices with ground-breaking academic research. Unlike other UK institutions, we fuse games design with psychology and neuroscientific insights, creating a well-rounded foundation. Your journey to become a successful games developer encompasses these vital perspectives, equipping you for the evolving industry landscape. Witness the evolution of our award-winning student-made games, crafted within a professional studio environment under expert mentorship. Our alumni are employed by leading industry giants, contributing to games you've enjoyed like Hogwarts Legacy, Watch Dogs 2, Red Dead Redemption 2, Horizon Zero Dawn, Killzone Mercenary, Ghost Recon Wildlands, and more. 

Chart your path to success from day one.

Gain direct exposure to industry giants like Bandai Namco and Ubisoft. Feed an entrepreneurial spirit through our Games Hub, guiding you in taking games to market and even funding your ventures through student competitions. Elevate your projects using specialised equipment like eye-tracking and VR headsets. Forge a solid career foundation through placements and our Professional Practice module. Leverage the expertise of our academic team and The Ipswich Games Hub to secure Tranzfuser funding for your game. Our thriving student game jam community, exemplified by the annual Global Game Jam, challenges you to create a game in 48 hours, pushing your creative boundaries. 

Choose your specialisation 

There are two core pathways offered as part of BSc (Hons) Games Development focus on Design and Programming. In the first year, you will study three core modules and three modules that you have chosen from the pathway system. On the design pathway, you will become architects of engaging and emotive experiences reflecting the fundamental need for you to understand your audience intimately, designing for desirable emotions, and for the anticipation of those desirable emotions.

As a first year student, you will be introduced to a range of duties performed by game designers and be acquainted with the principles and tools to develop your own games. By the end of your first year, you will have gained a deep understanding of your players and what they want, in addition to unlocking the ability to trigger specific emotions in those players. We'll work in C++ and C# to ensure you are learning industry-standard languages and prepare you for the work you will undertake in the second year of study.

In your second year on the design pathway, you will augment your knowledge by studying the advanced behavioural psychological techniques that are applied to games. Students on the programming pathway take a deeper dive into writing code for games. You will look at graphics programming with OpenGL, AI techniques core to building immersive experiences, alongside an intensive module that has you writing your own 2D game engine, pulling together elements from the other modules you have worked through in your studies. 

In your final year, you are almost ready to take the game development scene by storm and you will need a professional online presence and CV. We have first-hand experience of industry recruitment and with our support you will stand out from the crowd.

The University of Suffolk is world-class and committed to our region. We are proudly modern and innovative and we believe in transformative education. We are on the rise with a focus on student satisfaction, graduate prospects, spending on academic services and student facilities.

2nd

in the East of England for graduate prospects

(The Complete University Guide 2024)

6th

in the UK for spend on academic services

(The Complete University Guide 2024)

11th

in the UK for social inclusion

(The Good University Guide 2023)

Course Modules

Our undergraduate programmes are delivered as 'block and blend', more information can be found on Why Suffolk? You can also watch our Block and Blend video.

The BSc (Hons) Games Development offers two core pathways: Design and Programming.

In the first and second year, you'll study core modules and choose from the pathway system. Design focuses on creating engaging experiences by understanding players' emotions and designing for them. Programming delves into code for games, covering graphics, AI, and even creating a 2D game engine.

In the final year, you'll prepare for the industry with a strong online presence and CV, gaining a competitive edge.

Downloadable information regarding all University of Suffolk courses, including Key Facts, Course Aims, Course Structure and Assessment, is available in the Definitive Course Record.    

Harness the power of fundamental design skills and learn how to craft a wide variety of engaging player experiences. Engage with topics such as motivation, players, emotion and mechanics. These concepts are considered with reference to the player's interactive experience and contextually, in conjunction with associated tools, as a part of the iterative development process.

Develop games in a contemporary game engine (e.g. Unity, Unreal) to bring your designs to life! This module equips you with a wide variety of transferable skills, including problem-solving, critical thinking, scripting.

Experimenting with your newly-acquired design skills, develop your projects and test them on your chosen audience. Working in teams, you will adopt a professional pipeline to turn your ideas into realities. You will also work with students from the second year who will act as more senior members of the team.

Non digital game making allows you to focus on the key components of game development without the barrier of developing the game within a game engine. You will apply the design skills learned in other modules directly into this one, allowing you to rapidly iterate and hone your design skills in an efficient and effective way.

Game jams are events that require you to create a game in a limited timeframe, and are usually accompanied with certain design constraints, such as a theme that participants should design towards. By engaging in game creation through game jams, you will be introduced to the co-creation process and improve your soft skills, design skills and problem solving.

You will produce several small scale projects that allow you to explore and investigate the topics covered through workshops and lectures. The core programming language is C++.

An introduction to the range of algorithms and data structures that are used throughout programming.

This module introduces games development topics that will be built on in future modules. 

Games design has deep behavioural psychological underpinnings which will be covered here. You will obtain a solid understanding of topics such as knowledge, intelligence and memory, behavioural economics, social mechanics, conditioning, habit forming, and reinforcement. You will be introduced to systems design and the structural forms associated with sustainable fun, progression and replayability with reference to a cross section of genres and experiential goals.

It is crucial that you have sufficient understanding of the technical aspects of game development so that you are able to produce your own prototypes, explore mechanics and create fully-fledged games. Continue learning how to develop games and enhance your abilities in gameplay scripting as you iterate on a range of 2D and 3D games.

Explore the cutting edge of games development by engaging with the vast amount of research that is published within the field. Learn how research can be used as an additional tool in your arsenal to enhance your games. For example, design a game using VR and Neuralfeedback, which allows you to use brain activity to influence the game. Use eye-tracking technology to understand player behaviour or even as a mechanic itself. Use state of the art user experience techniques to create innovative mechanics and intuitive interfaces. As part of this module, this is an opportunity to compete in an annual game design competition which is internationally recognised and seen by several industry members.

Having developed games in a team, it is now your turn to manage a small team of your own as you oversee the development of games from original concepts and documentation through to testing and polishing.

Enhance your game development skills and build on the creative process. Over the course of the module you will be completing a series of games and engage with professional critique of games made by your peers. This process is designed to challenge your boundaries and as a method to recognise your creative identity. This module is designed to explicitly recognise your creative voice and pulls together skills learned over the course of the degree so far.

Throughout this module, you are introduced to the design work which informs the development of immersive worlds and identifiable characters. You are further introduced to the concept of, and components associated with, structural forms. 

Study the multitude of elements that make up a game engine, then design and develop your own 2D game engine.

This module explains the basic features and concepts of GUI Programming and the creation of tools applications/plugins, etc. with a variety of uses within a game’s development environment.

Learn a range of AI techniques commonly used in the games industry including; pathfinding, finite state machines and behaviour trees.

The module introduces students to the fundamental algorithms, theory, principles methods and techniques of 2D and 3D computer graphics. The mathematical underpinnings are covered in further detail from the level 4 Math for Software Development module. You will develop skills in implementing and developing computer graphic applications with C++ and standard graphics libraries (such as OpenGL) within a games programming context. The shader pipeline is also introduced, with you producing shader programs for use in your graphics applications.

This module represents the culmination of skills you have learnt over the course of the degree in addition to the acquisition of new skills. Spanning the entire academic year, it is a major project intended to push your boundaries to produce a substantial piece of work in your field of study. You have a degree of creative freedom with this project and you will be assigned a supervisor to guide and mentor you throughout. Notable past dissertations include topics such as: eliciting awe through a 3D environment, the procedural generation of level missions, the investigation into the effect of music and lighting on flow and styles of play, designing meaningful quests, the impact of rewards against player traits, and more. This module is a way for you to demonstrate to employers your expertise in an area within games, but also as a way to prepare you for postgraduate study.

Build a single, high-quality game in a small team. The game which is developed can be created for any platform including non-digital and on any subject matter, however, there should have a clear and identified target market. You will also gain an understanding of the importance of building an early business case for your proposed game, as well as understanding the various potential markets and platforms. It is highly encouraged that the games developed in this module are also submitted to the Tranzfuser competition through our Games Hub, to give you the chance at obtaining funding and continuing your game development journey!

You are almost ready to take the game development scene by storm and you will need a professional online presence and curriculum vitae. We have first-hand experience of industry recruitment and with our support you will stand out from the crowd. You will also engage with mock interviews as part of this module, further preparing you for the road ahead into the games industry.

Working with industry partners, you will have the opportunity to engage with a professional brief and dip your toes into the world of professional game development.

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WHY SUFFOLK

2nd in the UK for Career Prospects

WUSCA 2024

3rd in the UK for spend on academic services

Complete University Guide 2025

4th in the UK for Teaching Satisfaction

Guardian University Guide 2024
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Student at The DigiTech Centre
Three students gaming in classroom
Computer Games and Creative Technologies
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Students at The DigiTech Centre
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Inside The DigiTech Centre

Entry Requirements

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Career Opportunities

Positions which our graduates have achieved after graduation include: 

  • Level Designer

  • Lead Game Designer

  • Technical Designer

  • Assistant Producer

  • Game Designer

  • Software Developer

  • Full-Stack Engineer

  • Gameplay programmer

  • Quest Designer

  • Game Designer

  • QA Games Tester

  • QA Team Lead

  • Content Designer

  • Games Master

  • Product Co-ordinator

  • Assistant Pipeline Director

  • Indie Developer

 

Our Ipswich-based students have worked on games such as Horizon Zero Dawn, Killzone Mercenary, Watchdogs 2, Ghost Recon Wildlands and Star Citizen. Graduates from the BSc (Hons) Games Development degree have been employed by top games studios in the UK and abroad. Graduate destinations include: Ubisoft (Romania), d3t Ltd, Guerilla Games, Rockstar, Electronic Arts (Romania), Spil Games (Netherlands), Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, Splash Damage, Sliding Pixel, The Imaginati, Dreadnought Studios, DGForm (Italy), Imaginarium Studios, War Hungry Games, Firelight Games, Betdigital, Aeria Games  (Germany), GmbH, Techland, Hammer Studio (China).

 

Your Course Team

Chris Janes

Chris was formerly a gameplay programmer who worked on various games, most notably Hidden: Source. His teaching includes software design and AI for games.

Chris Janes staff profile photo

Dr Adam Clayden

Dr. Adam Clayden received his PhD from the University of Edinburgh (2019). He currently leads BSc (Hons) Games Development at University of Suffolk.

Adam Clayden staff profile photo

Heather Bishop

Heather has pursued a career in Academia to support her research in game design having graduated from the University of Suffolk in 2018.

Heather Bishop staff profile photo

Dave Pimm

Dave works on gaming projects and lectures in Computer Games Design with a particular interest in interactive narrative design and behavioural psychology.

Rob Kurta

Rob specialises in non-digital games design, but before joining Suffolk spent 15 years at the University of East London teaching Computer Games Design.

Nick Thomas

Nick is a Lecturer in Computing and since joining the University of Suffolk, Nick has researched and worked on projects utilising VR technology.

Nick Thomas staff profile photo

Fees and Funding

UK Full-time Tuition Fee

£9,250

per year
International Full-time Tuition Fee

£15,690

per year

The decision to study a degree is an investment into your future, there are various means of support available to you in order to help fund your tuition fees and living costs. You can apply for funding from the Spring before your course starts.

UK Fees and Finance UK Bursaries and Scholarships International Fees and Scholarships

Ipswich Award

The University of Suffolk is offering a £1,000 Award for students joining the University of Suffolk’s Ipswich campus. The Award is based on specific eligibility criteria based on your year of entry.

More information
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How to Apply

To study this course on a full-time basis, you can apply through UCAS. As well as providing your academic qualifications, you’ll be able to showcase your skills, qualities and passion for the subject.

Apply Now Further Information on Applying
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Charlotte Spurgeon, Associate Designer, d3t Ltd.

"I would definitely recommend studying at the University of Suffolk, especially if you are interested in the technology sector, as the facilities are very up-to-date and constantly improving."

read more
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