The Masters of Science in Game Design and Development defines a program of study that allows students to explore the entertainment technology landscape as well as other related areas. The program focuses its technical roots in the Computing and Information Sciences disciplines, while simultaneously covering the breadth of the development landscape through involvement in topics such as computer graphics design, human-computer interaction, interactive narrative, and game world design. The program is characterized by a clear focus on development, but meets the industry need to graduate developers that will be involved in the design process from the beginning, just as they are in the professional field. The degree is intended specifically for students that aspire to hold careers within the professional games industry or a related field such as simulation, edutainment or visualization, and focuses on producing graduates that understand the technical roots of their medium, the possibilities that creative application of software development affords, and the way in which their industry operates.

The program is a 2-year, cohort-based program in which students are admitted through a portfolio review process and subsequently pursue a “major” sequence of six courses to guarantee depth within a specialization area relative to game development, and a “minor” of three courses specifically outside their major area of study. In addition, all students will complete a seminar track of five courses within the program that ties students specializing in various majors together, and explores the overlap and interconnection of their work as well as providing a framework of understanding for the professional industry as a whole.

Upon completion of their coursework, students are organized into development teams that construct a working game engine and software title as a capstone experience, with both individual and group requirements. The capstone experience culminates in a private defense before program faculty as well as a public exhibition. The capstone project, the focus on team-based collaborative development, the seminar track on industry issues, and the applied nature of the coursework all work together to provide a comprehensive treatment of the subject.

The curriculum map shows the courses a student in the Masters in Game Design & Development must take to complete the degree. The curriculum for a student would include one of two possible major tracks, one of six possible minor tracks, a 5 course seminar sequence and a 2 quarter capstone.

Click the thumbnail to the left to see a graphical representation of the curriculum map for the Masters in Game Design & Development.

A Culture of Team-Based Work

First and foremost, it should be noted that students will not come to the capstone experience devoid of experience with team based projects. Coursework in several areas relies on team-based projects, some only few weeks in duration, others to run the entire quarter. Projects in 2D and 3D graphics, animation, and AI have all used this model in-class prior to a students work in the capstone portion of the degree. Additionally, the concept of team dynamics and planning are integral to several of the seminar-track courses, that are required of all students in the program. Team-based work is reflective of the entire degree as well as the entire field of Game Design & Development. To work effectively in the field, students must demonstrate mastery in not only technological implementation, but in communicating and interacting with the rest of the development community, and we feel that this skill is so critical that it has led us to the idea of the team-based capstone experience.

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Questions Arising from Admissions

The Game Design and Development degree program contains a mandatory portfolio as a part of the application process. All applicants, regardless of undergraduate affiliation, are required to submit a portfolio of work. Portfolios may include (but are certainly not limited to) the following types of articles:

• Small games or programming exercises from undergraduate work
• Simple game engines
• Attempted work in game artificial intelligence
• Level or map systems
• Work in computer graphics
• Usage of current APIs
• Level designs
• Character designs
• Work in user-interface or control systems for games / entertainment
• Game “mods” for existing titles, constructed using scripting languages
• Game development narratives
• Audio treatments (music, audio effects, etc.)
• Internal and external documentation samples
• 2D or 3D game art / models / etc.
• Group work at the undergraduate level

The primary focus of the portfolio review is to ensure that students have undergraduate preparation in their chosen major track within the Game Design and Development degree. Students will declare their desired major track sequence as a part of the application process: thus a student that wants to major in game AI would have a portfolio representative of undergraduate preparation for such work (an undergraduate course, AI experiments in existing engines, etc.) The portfolio process is also designed to provide baseline samples of core concepts such as object-oriented programming, computer literacy, and other desired skills. All entering students would be expected to exhibit these skills, regardless of track selection.

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Comparisons with Existing Degrees within the IT Department

Q: What are the differences between the MS-IT and MS-GDD Degrees?
A: The MS-IT degree is a long-standing MS degree that offers experiences across a wide range of information technology (IT) and computing-related topic areas. Students in this degree are expected to have background competency in computer programming, web and interactive media development, hardware and software architecture, and networking theory. Students then work with their advisor to develop an individualized plan of study from the over fifteen IT content areas offered by the IT department or from computer-related coursework from other academic disciplines.

The MS in GDD, in contrast, is a highly specialized degree program. While students also need background competency in programming and web and interactive media development, this degree program is specifically tailored for individuals who aspire to work in the commercial games industry or a closely related field such as computer simulation, edutainment, or serious games.

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