Game development is both a multi-billion dollar industry as well as one of the fastest-growing segments of the entertainment industry. According to the Entertainment Software Association, 60 percent of all Americans age six and older play computer and video games and 35 percent of all Americans identified computer and video games as the most enjoyable entertainment activity, easily surpassing television (18 percent) and movies (11 percent).
Since creating a successful game requires a large number of individuals with varied skills, one must typically acquire skills in programming, project management, and game design. A typical game development team consists of a designer, several programmers, a sound engineer, a multimedia specialist, a producer to manage schedules and budgets, and ten or more artists and animators. Often towards the end of a project, additional artists and programmers are added, as well as testers who play the game repeatedly to discover and track software bugs.
A degree in Game Development will prepare students for entry-level positions in programming, testing and game design. During the final semester of the degree program, game artists and developers will work in conjunction to create and manage a complete, usable game.
Graduates are able to:
- design a single-level game using storyboarding techniques
- compare and contrast game requirements based on genre
- analyze player control, manual and visual interface design, and usability
- identify phases in the game development cycle, as well as be skilled in project management and game documentation
- produce a character identity using character development elements
- create a rudimentary game using the Torque Game Engine
- merge complex artwork and code to create a working video game
- create a project report
- identify several approaches for maximizing a job search
- describe computer video post-production techniques used in the game industry
- describe the relationship between character development and audio
- set a mood using sound effects, ambient and environmental sounds and music
- demonstrate knowledge of the legal and ethical issues related to sound and video sampling and the current copyright laws pertaining to music, video and audio recordings
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