Video Game Design and Development

Become a Video Game Designer

The video game industry is one of the largest sectors in the world. Within this booming industry, video game designers are among the first to kick off game development, defining game rules, characters, and the central storyline. This 100% online course will help you design and create your own video game for the PC. You will be prepared to join a video game development team or strike out on your own as an independent designer.

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Job Outlook for Video Game Designers

According to Payscale.com, the median annual salary for video game designers was $64,800.
As the video game industry grows, so does the opportunity to specialize. For instance, VentureBeat found that the eSports field grossed over $1 billion in 2019 alone.
Opportunities for video game designers is growing in the Southern United States, especially in emerging tech hubs like Austin, Texas and Atlanta, Georgia.

WHAT DO VIDEO GAME DESIGNERS DO?

The role of video game designer will vary depending on where they work, but these professionals work on concepts like gameplay and user experience for a video game in the pre-production phase. This can range from defining game mechanics to creating levels and puzzles or drafting character art and animations.

HOW DO YOU BECOME A VIDEO GAME DESIGNER?

Most industry experts suggest that you need to enjoy and understand video games to become a video game designer or developer. Hands-on gaming experience is a start, but you must also be able to draft and conceptualize a video game on paper and translate this idea into design software. Beyond this, you need to master the four major skill sets used by entry-level video game designers: programming languages, mathematics skills, game asset creation, and modern real-time game engines.

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A VIDEO GAME DESIGNER AND VIDEO GAME DEVELOPER?

While video game designers are more involved with character, level and animation design, developers build out the world of a video game using various programming languages. Having both technical and design skills is an important aspect of planning and shipping a video game.

Create your own video game as a portfolio piece
Learn how to design and create video games for PC
Understand the technical and aesthetic fundamentals for creating a successful game
Master the math, programming language and game engine knowledge needed to design video games

To succeed in this course, you will need basic computer skills and a high school-level understanding of mathematics.

C++ PROGRAMMING FOR GAME DEVELOPERS I

Learn the fundamentals of creating a C++ program. You'll understand console input and output, arithmetic operators, functions, and more.

C++ PROGRAMMING FOR GAME DEVELOPERS II

Discover template classes and functions, how to handle errors, number systems, data representations, and bit operations.

GAME MATHEMATICS

Move on to learning game mathematics, including algebra, set theory, polynomials, trigonometry, and more.

GENERAL GAME MODELING

Learn about interface and rendering modes. Find out everything you need to know about primitives, meshes, and mesh editing.

GAME TEXTURING

Understand pivots and manipulators, the 3D cursor, object joins, separation, and duplications. You'll also learn about polygon structure and count, and how to model with bevel, extrude, and multi-resolution.

UNREAL ENGINE FOUNDATION

Create projects and understand the user interface. Learn about viewport navigation, as well as how to view modes and show flags. Discover how to place objects in a level, as well as how to manage content and lighting.

Instructor

Frank Luna

Frank Luna has programmed interactive 3D computer graphics for more than a decade. He has 15 years of C++ programming experience, having worked as a contractor, with Hero Interactive, and on the open source Scorch 3D engine. Since 2004, he has taught C++ and mathematics for games at the Game Institute. He has also written a number of best-selling textbooks on game and graphics programming, including "Introduction to 3D Game Programming with DirectX 11.0."

John DeGoes

John DeGoes began writing software and designing digital logic circuits during the early 1980s. He has been actively involved in the fields of computer science, mathematics, and game development for more than fifteen years. He has authored two games programming books, "3D Game Programming with C++" and "3D Game Programming with C++ Gold Edition" and several published articles on the subject. DeGoes holds a bachelor's degree in applied mathematics from Montana State University-Billings and is working on his doctorate in applied mathematics.