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Game Design and Development (BA)

brantford

Want to make games that matter?

Learn to communicate through playful and immersive experiences such as video games, board games and escape rooms with our Game Design and Development (GDD) program. Create gameplay that pushes the medium forward, exploring, expanding and innovating how games engage players and represent diverse viewpoints as you create cozy, meaningful and transformative games.

Develop in-demand job skills including creativity, writing and visual design, critical thinking, problem solving and iterative design processes. Combine technical and creative writing with the fundamentals of programming and art to create functional prototypes while preparing to work with a multifaceted development team in the game industry. 

Looking ahead to a career in education? Apply to the GDD with Teaching Option program.

Apply Your Learning

Make the most out of your university career by taking advantage of all that Laurier has to offer you. Volunteer work, campus clubs, leadership programs, studying abroad, work experience – there are so many ways you can extend your classroom experience into the real world.

Here are just a few examples of the experiences you’ll have access to in the Game Design and Development program:

  • Apply to the Game Changers Residence Learning Community to live and learn with other first-year Game Design and Development students.
  • Participate in campus, community and corporate experiential learning opportunities such as game jams and research projects to gain hands-on experience and build your professional portfolio.
  • Create and release your own games by yourself and with others through project-based coursework and student groups, such as the Game Design and Development Student Association and Themed Entertainment Association @ University club.

Check out the Game Design and Development Experience Guide.

 

2022 graduates who secured employment or went on to postgraduate studies

 

Laurier ranks in the top 6 percent of universities worldwide*

 

students who gained hands-on learning experiences at Laurier in 2022

*Center for World University Rankings (CWUR)

Admissions

Format: full time      Duration: four years     Start: September (fall term) or May (spring term)    
OUAC codes: UGM (GDD); UGN (GDD with Teaching Option); UGC (GDD in Combination); UGD (GDD and Computer Science)

Your Next Steps

Apply Now Strengthen Your Application Important Dates

Program Options and Courses

Flexible Career Options

The Game Design and Development (GDD) program is now offered as a Bachelor of Arts degree, allowing students to customize their degree to their desired career path.

Want to improve your programming skills to demonstrate your designs? Consider a Computer Science Minor or a Combination BA with Computer Science.

Interested in writing for games? Explore a Combination BA with English to improve your writing and critical analysis skills.

If designing the user interfaces for games is of interest to you, a Minor or Specialization in User Experience Design will help you consider how to create engaging user experiences.

If teaching with games is of interest to you, Laurier’s GDD with Teaching Option will help you explore how to combine teaching and game design, and can open up the pathway to Laurier’s Bachelor of Education program.

First-Year Courses

  • Critical Play
  • Critical Game Design
  • Games as Art
  • Graphic Design Studio
  • The Engaged Citizen: Social and Environmental Justice
  • Cross-Media Storytelling
  • Designing Digital and Social Media

Sample First-Year Electives

  • Design Thinking
  • Leadership Foundations
  • Introduction to Psychology
  • UX Strategy

Sample Upper-Year Courses

  • Ethics in Game Design
  • Escape Room and Puzzle Design
  • Web Game Development
  • Solo Critical Game Development
  • Capstone in Games Entrepreneurship

Similar Programs

Teaching Option

Interested in a direct pathway to a Bachelor of Education?

Laurier’s undergraduate Teaching Option consists of 4.0 credits throughout your degree: five core half-credit courses offered through the Faculty of Education, plus three elective half-credit courses from an approved list. 

If you're admitted into and complete this Teaching Option pathway, you'll have earned a guaranteed spot in our Bachelor of Education (BEd) program, provided you meet all the admissions requirements, including:
A student writing on the whiteboard with two other students observing.

Community Service-Learning

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Community Service-Learning (CSL) courses at Laurier integrate service in the community with what you are learning in your classes. Placements are approximately 10 weeks and take place on a weekly basis from the second week of classes to the final week, typically for two hours per week.

CSL placements consist of volunteering at a local community service, such as a soup kitchen or a children's treatment centre. It’s a great way to apply classroom knowledge and gain practical experience in your field of study. Build your resume, develop your network, and graduate with experience.

Interested? Learn more about Community Service-Learning.

Tuition and Scholarships

Getting a university education is an investment in your future.

At Laurier, we take financial health seriously by providing a wide variety of funding opportunities for you throughout your degree, such as scholarships and bursaries, and by equipping you with the skills to manage your finances effectively in the years to come.

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“I chose Laurier for this program because I wanted an experience that strayed away from the AAA mentality and treated games with the cultural respect they were owed. At Laurier, games have meaning, are purposeful and are empowered to be world-changing and that's nothing short of inspirational.”

Tilak Vyas, Game Design and Development student

Your Career Awaits

It’s not only about the journey; it’s about the destination. Let us help you get to where you’re going.

Here are just some examples of our graduates' destinations. What’s yours?

Sample Career Options

Note: Additional training and education may be required.

  • application or web game designer
  • educational/training game designer
  • escape room designer
  • junior design director
  • quality assurance analyst
  • game designer
  • game writer
  • game design consultant
  • indie game entrepreneur
  • project manager
  • simulation designer/developer
  • social media coordinator

Explore more careers.

Support After Graduation

Alumni for life means that you have access to Career and Employment Support offered at Laurier for your entire career.

Brantford Campus

The Brantford campus is woven into the downtown core of the City of Brantford and is home to more than 3,000 students. Close to great walking and biking trails, you get the best of both worlds.

There are many ways to tour our Brantford campus, whether that's on a guided tour with one of our Laurier student ambassadors, on your own using virtual reality, or even on-demand through one of our pre-recorded tours. See our campus spaces and start to picture yourself at Laurier.
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"Laurier was the only place I knew my interests and my goals would be combined into a course that would help me get where I wanted to go. It's focus on games for change really made me feel like I could go out in the world and be the difference I wanted to see.

I remember going into Laurier thinking that I had one shot at proving I was a 'good game designer.' Instead I learned that design is flexible. You will not be punished for trying and failing, and this environment truly lets you explore just what you can do when given the space to try.”

Nedward W. Rehanek, Game Design and Development graduate

Interested in More Info?

Email chooselaurier@wlu.ca, call 548.889.8888 or see all contact information.

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