BSc (Hons) Computer Games Development

This module will teach you foundational programming skills. You’ll learn about data types, variables, control structures, and algorithms. You’ll solve problems, create documented software, and by the end, design and test your own programs, effectively communicating your work.

This module covers computing fundamentals, you’ll explore data structures, algorithms, computational thinking, databases, and the societal impacts of computing. You’ll learn to store, access, and search data efficiently, solve problems mathematically, design relational databases with SQL, and consider computing’s ethical implications.

Dive into computer science and discrete mathematics with this module. You’ll tackle mathematical and network algorithms, critical path analysis, linear programming, and game theory. It’s a journey through finite and infinite concepts, preparing you for advanced mathematics and practical computing applications.

In this module, you’ll delve into human-computer interaction and user-centric design, focusing on human factors and user needs to create immersive products. You’ll also explore computer technologies for creating and distributing digital resources, ensuring they meet diverse media platform requirements.

In this module, you’ll reflect on and develop professional skills through project production. You’ll enhance your reflective writing, communication, teamwork, problem-solving, and critical thinking, gaining insight into your strengths and areas for growth.

In this module, you’ll collaborate with other students on a project within your subject’s themes, honing vital professional skills like leadership, interpersonal relations, communication, negotiation, and problem-solving, essential for teamwork in real-world scenarios.

Discover the foundational principles for programming languages. You'll study variables, data types, assignment, conditionals, functions, data structures and the object-oriented paradigm. You'll work with other students on a project to simulate the working environment and will develop your problem-solving and computational thinking skills.

You'll look at principles of computer organisation, the layered nature of systems structures & the interfaces between them. You'll also study: components of a computer, the architecture, how they're organised, hardware, data representation, computer logic circuits, manipulation of data at the bit level & the theory of computation and its paradigms.

Discover the techniques used in the design and creation of video game levels including building, designing & testing 3D game scenarios, using advanced game engines and industry standard tools. You'll study how to generate 3D terrains, import & manipulate 3D models, create & apply textures and special effects and implement basic game play.

Discover the elements of game design. You'll review games history & genres then analyse the anatomy of games & develop your own game concepts, expressed using industry-style documentation. Discussions about different game control systems, player motivations and psychology will establish ground rules for creating immersive game playing experiences.

This module is designed specifically for game developers, not mathematicians, and aims to provide you with maths tools & techniques relevant to 3D games manipulation. To program a more complex game, you must master concepts like matrices & vectors. You'll study solutions for dealing with problems you'll face programming many types of 3D games.

Explore the world of Extended Reality (XR) by developing both AR and VR applications. You’ll learn to create interactive mobile AR experiences and simple VR scenes. This module focuses on user experience, creative design, and technical foundations. Projects include using real-time tools and publishing your work to mobile or headset platforms.

Learn the core skills of 3D modelling, texturing and animation for games. You’ll use industry-standard tools to design characters, environments and props, and explore how assets are optimised and prepared for real-time engines like Unity and Unreal. Projects will focus on technical accuracy and creative visual storytelling.

This creative programming module aims to provide you with practical skills needed to create and manipulate 2D and 3D objects using a Graphical Application Programming Interface. You'll also be introduced to the related topic of shader programming and how these small programs that run on the graphics card can produce customized visual effects.

This module within a practical Integrated development environment (Visual Studio) and using a modern OOP language (C#, C++, Java), will demonstrate how the key techniques of inheritance, polymorphism and encapsulation can be directly applied to produce high quality software systems.

This module aims to provide students with the opportunity to gain experience linked to their intended graduate employment field within the computing and technology sector. Operating as a structured period of work-related learning, students will complete activities, tasks, projects, or live briefs for, at, or in collaboration with an internal or external organisation.

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This unit provides you with an opportunity to work on a small project, ideally in a small team but individual projects are possible where appropriate. You may also work with people studying other disciplines. Projects are the basis of much creative work and typically involve pre-production, production and postproduction phases, as well as teamwork.

Build on your knowledge of game design by creating a fully functional VR experience. Using Unity and the XR Interaction Toolkit, you’ll design, test and optimise immersive VR environments like an Escape Room or interactive simulation. You’ll also explore user comfort, interactivity, and the practical skills needed to develop for platforms like Meta Quest.

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This practical class aims to provide you with a deeper understanding of high-level programming language. It covers several advanced topics, including object oriented, concurrent and network programming and provides insight into how data is managed in such systems. Practical sessions expose you to industrial software development practices.

This module draws on techniques from the field of Artificial Intelligence to implement the illusion of intelligence within Non-Player Characters. Utilising a commercial games engine, you will develop software that implements complex AI behaviour using multiple coordinated AI techniques that have been proven in a range of high-profile AAA titles.

You'll have the opportunity to carry out an individual in-depth investigation of a topic of interest, and to further develop your skills in research, problem solving and critical analysis. You'll select the project in consultation with your supervisor and may involve a local company. The work will be culminate in a final report and oral defence.

You'll develop a deeper understanding of production process in a simulated workplace. In a team you'll develop a game of your choice using appropriately researched tools, pitch the idea, demonstrate that recognised production techniques have been used in the development process and provide evidence that legal & marketing issues have been addressed.

Discover how to design and develop a game engine, including their modular nature and different architectural approaches to their design. Using components built in this and related modules, you will implement your own engine, that will render 3D assets and include features such as user input, physics, cameras and a scripting component.

This module investigates and applies the successful combination of static verification techniques (inspection, walkthrough), alongside dynamic testing approaches (component, system, integration and acceptance), in the pursuit of creating software that is both fit for purpose and right first time, all within the framework of quality assurance.

You'll learn about the role of the physics programmer: developing the physics a game will employ. Typically, a game will only simulate a few aspects of real-world physics. To reduce unnecessary CPU (Central Processing Unit) usage, you'll study “shortcuts” that are computationally inexpensive but look and act “good enough” for the game.