MA Advanced 3D Game Art (Online)

Why study this subject?

The global gaming market is one that continues to expand, and with this so do job opportunities. Gaming offers a world of opportunity and with the right skills and abilities, a degree in 3D Game Art can help you boost a rewarding and creative career.

You could work for companies like Epic Games, Nintendo or Sony, or perhaps set up your own independent company to pursue your passion. Your love of gaming together with your creative and modelling skills could see you in numerous roles - from 3D Artist and Animator to Environmental Artist or Technical Animator.

Why study at Buckinghamshire New University?

This course will offer you the chance to focus on creating high quality game art. During your time with us you will be supported by knowledgeable lecturers and industry professionals while also taking advantage of our excellent resources.

The standard of animation and game art at BNU is very high and this is reflected in the proportion of our students who go on to work successfully in the industry afterwards. We also run small classes which ensures that students gain meaningful access to our tutors.

You’ll also be invited to join additional online groups where you will be able to meet the other students taking our animation, visual effects, game art and visualisation courses, both MA and BA, online and attendance. These help to foster a sense of community and are also places where extra-curricular collaborative projects, such as game jams, take place. You will also be able to meet our alumni in these broader forums. All forums are moderated by the lecturers. 

What facilities can I use?

You’ll have access to our virtualised computer system which will provide you with all the necessary hardware power to complete the course no matter where you are based. Our licences can also be accessed and used on your own machines by using our Bucks Anywhere service.

Software you can access includes:

• Maya
• ZBrush
• Nuke
• Mari
• Substance Suite
• Marvellous Designer
• Adobe Creative Suite
• Cinema 4D
• Redshift Renderer
• Shotgun
• Houdini
• Houdini Engine
• Unreal Engine
• Megascans Asset library
• Advanced Skeleton
• Ziva

What will I study?

On this degree you will cover abroad range of topics, from researching into the field of game art, looking at both historical and contemporary practice to generating ideas derived from your findings, we will help you grow your skillset.

After your initial research, you’ll create a small original sample game art of your own derived from your research work which will help to establish and personalise the overall direction of your studies and practice. You’ll then look in depth at character creation and game environments which make up the bulk of the artwork of a 3D game.

This degree is aimed at learners who have already mastered animation tools to a good extent, and are looking to focus their efforts on creating professional standard work that is highly creative and expressive. 

Preproducing and producing a completed game art project comprises the rest of the course. This will cover areas such as:

• modelling
• rigging
• animation
• texturing
• lighting
• game engines

The preproduction phase will help you to explore technical and artistic challenges and prepare to enter the production phase in which you will create your final major project. This may be a continuation of some of your early ideas or something new and may be done individually or in a group.

How will I be taught and assessed?

You will be given access to synchronous sessions each week with a lecturer who will be online throughout over the full 10 weeks of the modules except for the final production project. During these synchronous sessions, you will have the opportunity to ask questions to the lecturers and get real time responses and feedback. Normally these will begin with a group seminar and then break into 1:1 sessions where you will have the opportunity to discuss your individual progress. Sometimes these seminars will be used for presentations and review, in a manner that mimics the dailies process in industry.

In addition to this there will be video based lecture content focused on the demonstration of essential skills and clarification and expansion of key concepts and techniques. This will be facilitated via the online learning platform, where you will be able to access a set of recorded lectures which will be an average of 10 minutes in length. These will be delivered as appropriate to each individual module. 

You will be able to submit your work for asynchronous formative review which will be delivered as a video commentary on your work.

Each week you will be set a task related to the weekly content or be working towards your own project objective as agreed with the lecturers. You will be able to complete your work using the hardware at the university and will also be able to access the Bucks Anywhere service, which provides remote access, from any location, to a catalogue of University software applications for learners using personal or BNU devices. You will also be able to remotely access our VDI, which is a powerful computer that will give you access to all the software relevant to the course. This will enable you to work as and when suits you.

You will also be expected to join a closed online group where you will be able to discuss the work and ask questions throughout the week. It is expected that both lecturers and learners will contribute and answer questions. This will also be a place for you to post work for peer discussion and review.

You will create detailed and complex projects which you will then present for assessment. During the presentation you will be expected to discuss and critically evaluate your output and production processes. You will be expected to make interim presentations for formative feedback and to ensure work is proceeding on track. You will be expected to keep a formal learning journal of your progress as a source of notes for the final presentation. This will contain not only your progress but also your research and concept work.