Communication & Multimedia Design, major Game Design

Making games to develop the future! The major Game Design within Communication & Multimedia Design has been a very popular choice for many students in the past years: time to make the programme even more international and even more about games and new technology. Starting September 2021, the Game Design major will be transformed into a full blown bachelor programme: Creative Media & Game Technologies.

Do you like playing games and are you particularly curious about what it takes to make a game work, its looks, its mechanics, and its internal technical system? Then this programme may be something for you. This four year international major in Game Design & Development prepares you for becoming a designer in applied games and developer in gametools.

Throughout the programme, you will work on defining and promoting game concepts, understand the principles of game art, as well as developing the code for gameplay. While working in a team, you will learn how to turn a game concept into a final product and how to involve the end user in the development cycle. With an emphasis on research, innovation, intercultural communication, and entrepreneurship, it is both a generalist and a specialist training programme for the creative industry.  

During the first year, you will be introduced to all the majors of the Communication & Multimedia Design programme, focusing on the basics of game design, visual & interaction design, programming and user experience. The first half of the year will focus on concepting & prototyping a game and developing it (making it digital). During the first year you will be working in different teams and on actual products from the professional field.

After the first year you will specialise in game design and get challenging applied game design cases. You will also dive into game development. You will learn to use game programming tools like Unity 3D, learn more about programming in C# and use these tools to build games for Virtual Reality and mobile. In the Game Lab you will work in multidisciplinary teams of cases of real clients. You will take charge of your project and not only come up with an concept, but also develop it and create a final polished product. Local experts will support you and you will involve end-users in the development of the product. Completing the second year leaves you in an excellent position in terms of applying for an internship or studying abroad. In the third year, you will complete an internship with a game studio in the Netherlands or abroad. The other half of the third year offers many opportunities through minors, provided by Hanze UAS, or by one of our partner universities which are accessible through our Study Abroad system. You will complete the programme once you have done a graduation assignment in the fourth year.