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Postgraduate

MA Games Design

Close-up photo of a board game
Game design and photo by Ed Naujokas, MA Games Design, London College of Communication.
College
London College of Communication Start date
September 2024 Course length
1 year 3 months full-time (45 weeks across a four-term model)

Rooted in experimental practice, MA Games Design will equip you with the critical skills to produce a broad portfolio of innovative games underpinned by thoughtful research.

Course summary

Applications closed 2024/25

We are no longer accepting applications for 2024/25 entry to this course. Applications for 2025/26 entry will open in Autumn 2024.

Applying for more than 1 course

You can apply for more than 1 postgraduate course at UAL but we recommend that you apply for no more than 3. Find out more in the Apply Now section.

Why choose this course at London College of Communication

  • Freedom to explore through research and practice: respond to briefs, learn through creating and find your unique position between research and making.
  • Experiences beyond the screen: make games in the widest sense – including physical, experiential, critical and socially-reflective games across both digital and non-digital – and discover the possibilities of playable experiences.
  • Hear from industry: engage with gaming industry professionals and plug in to contemporary design practices through our range of guest lectures, events, and trips to external exhibitions.
  • Develop your portfolio: create finished games, exhibit work and graduate with a high-quality, diverse portfolio that will prepare you for a career or further study in games, or the wider interactive and design fields.
  • Collaborate beyond the boundaries of games design: work with students that have a diverse range of academic backgrounds within the course and foster your own connections across UAL.

Open Days

A recording of our latest Virtual Open Event for this course is available. Watch online.

Course overview

On MA Games Design, you’ll critically examine the concept of play in relation to your practice. You'll produce playable gaming experiences and use games design as a means to test critical ideas from broader culture.

Your practice will be underpinned by rigorous research, case-studies of existing games and critical reflection of your own practice through academic writing.

What to expect

  • Studio experience, where you’ll work alongside and with other students on independent and small group projects.
  • A combination of taught content and supported independent learning on personally selected projects.
  • A combination of experimental, practical game design projects underpinned with research and writing on game design theory.
  • Freedom to work in a range of genres and different mediums of play while utilising the range of diverse facilities within LCC, such as printmaking, electronics and the 3D workshop.
  • You’ll learn programming and development tools to create small playable experiences.
  • You’ll develop your game portfolio and academic skills to progress into research at MPhil/PhD-level, or advanced, self-directed experimental practice.

Work experience and opportunities

Core to the course design is creating an industry-ready portfolio of games that reflects your personal creative practice.

To diversify and expand the range of the course content, speakers from industry will be invited to provide guest lectures and discussions on a range of subjects in which they have personal and professional experience.

You’ll also have opportunities to take part in exhibitions and events. Past students have exhibited their work at Tate Modern and the V&A Museum, and have gone on to exhibit their games across the world.

Mode of Study

MA Games Design is in Full Time mode which runs for 45 weeks over 15 months. You will be expected to commit 40 hours per week to study.

Contact us

Register your interest to receive information and updates about studying at UAL.

Contact us to make an enquiry.

Course units

In response to the Climate Emergency, UAL has embedded responsible practices within the curriculum. We shaped our courses around principles of social and racial justice, and environmental sustainability that ensure learning outcomes reflect the urgent need to equip you with the understanding, skills, and values for ethical practice and empower you to work towards an equitable future.

Each course is divided into units, which are credit-rated. The minimum unit size is 20 credits. The MA course structure involves five units, totalling 180 credits.You will respond to briefs that are set to test your learning in the units described below:

Autumn, term 1

1. Design and Prototyping (40 credits)

You’ll prototype a range of playable games in different mediums and genres, focusing on testing concepts and ideas. You’ll also analyse and compare game mechanics and systems from existing games to gain an understanding of specific games design elements.

Spring, term 2

2.1 Understanding Play (20 credits)

You’ll utilise both primary and secondary research to gain a critical understanding of game design theory on a subject of your choice, and you’ll consider both the existing academic writing on game design theory and utilising theory from other subject areas.

2.2 Collaborative Unit (20 credits)

Working with other students from across the College or external partners, you’ll explore the influence of different subject knowledge areas and technical skills on your game design practice, resulting in a playable outcome.

Summer, term 3

3. Critical Play and Development (40 credits)

You’ll explore how the mechanics of play can be used in your own practice to express meaning and convey a message by developing a playable game experience. You’ll examine games as a form of literature, which can be deconstructed and critically analysed.

4. Thesis and Final Project (60 credits)

Synthesising the knowledge, skills and experience from the previous units of the course, you’ll produce a self-directed project and associated thesis.

Autumn, term 4

4. Thesis and Final Project (continued)

If you are unable to continue or decide to exit the course, there are two possible exit awards. A Postgraduate Certificate will be awarded on successful completion of the first 60 credits and a Postgraduate Diploma will be awarded on successful completion of the first 120 credits.

Programme specification

Download course specification (PDF File 271.1 KB)

Learning and teaching methods

  • Lectures/large group learning
  • Workshop and seminar learning
  • Academic tutorials
  • Individual and group critiques
  • Individual project work
  • Self-directed learning
  • Assessed assignments
  • Technical workshops
  • Demonstrations

Assessment methods

  • Portfolio of work
  • Development logs
  • Prepared writing
  • Crits and presentations

Student work

Skylar Law

Akshay Jain

Xingzhi Zheng

Valeria Voronkova

What is MA Games Design?

Course Leader, David King talks through the course.

Facilities

  • Student reading a book in between two bookshelves in the Library
    Students in the Digital Space. London College of Communication, UAL. Photograph: Alys Tomlinson

    Digital Space

    The Digital Space is an open-plan, creative hub with computers set up with specialist software.

  • A 3D model of a wolf produced by an animation student.
    Image © Lewis Bush

    Animation and Games

    Learn about the resources on offer to students studying Animation and Games Design.

  • Students using the computers in the Digital Space
    Student in Creative Technology Lab, 2020. London College of Communication, UAL. Photograph: Tim Boddy

    Creative Technology Lab

    A multi-purpose space that supports students with: Creative Coding, Physical Computing, Projection Mapping, Games, and Virtual Reality.

Course stories

Staff

Visiting and Special Lecturers

Teaching on the course is also complemented by a range of visiting practitioners from the games and wider design industries. Previous and regular visiting lecturers have included:

  • Dr. Hannah Nicklin – narrative designer and academic
  • Mark Brown – Games designer and journalist
  • Minkette - Games designer
  • Holly Nielsen - Game historian and narrative designer
  • Ricky Haggett - Game Designer at Hollow Ponds
  • Marie Foulston - Curator and creative director of experiential design
  • Thryn Henderson - Game designer and researcher
  • Dr Mike Cook - Game academic
  • Matteo Menapace - Game Designer
  • V - artist, curator, game design, creative technologist
  • Cel Davison - Game designer, writer and illustrator at Humble Grove

Fees and funding

Home fee

£13,330

This fee is correct for 2024/25 entry and is subject to change for 2025/26 entry.

Tuition fees may increase in future years for new and continuing students on courses lasting more than one year. For this course, you can pay tuition fees in instalments.

Students from countries outside of the UK will generally be charged international fees. The rules are complex so read more about tuition fees and determining your fee status.

International fee

£28,570

This fee is correct for 2024/25 entry and is subject to change for 2025/26 entry.

Tuition fees may increase in future years for new and continuing students on courses lasting more than one year. For this course, you can pay tuition fees in instalments.

Students from countries outside of the UK will generally be charged international fees. The rules are complex so read more about tuition fees and determining your fee status.

Additional costs

You may need to cover additional costs which are not included in your tuition fees. These could include travel expenses and the costs of materials. For a list of general equipment needed for all UAL courses, visit our living expenses and additional costs page.

Accommodation

Find out about accommodation options and how much they will cost.

Scholarships, bursaries and awards

If you’ve completed a qualifying course at UAL, you may be eligible for a tuition fee discount on this course. Find out more about our Progression discount.

You can also find out more about the Postgraduate Masters Loan (Home students only) and scholarships, including £7,000 scholarships for Home and International students. Discover more about student funding.

If you’re based in the UK and plan to visit UAL for an Open Event, check if you’re eligible for our UAL Travel Bursary. This covers the costs of mainland train or airline travel to visit UAL.

How to pay

Find out how you can pay your tuition fees.

Scholarship search

Or view all

Entry requirements

An applicant will normally be considered for admission if they have achieved an educational level equivalent to an honours degree in either games design, animation, illustration, visual communication or graphic design or closely related subject, and present a portfolio of image-led work and project proposal.

The course aims to appeal to art and design graduates who are interested in expanding their experience by investigating emerging areas of games design practice. However, we will consider applicants who have graduated from other related disciplines, or who have relevant industry experience.

Students applying to this course will be expected to demonstrate a specific interest in this area of study and should have a commitment to engaging with games design.

Coding experience

Entry onto the course requires that you have some experience of coding. This maybe HTML/CSS/JavaScript or others such as actionscript, Java, C++ etc. Your level of experience can be quite low, as we will upskill applicants where needed, but you need to be comfortable with learning code and understand key concepts such as 'for loops' and 'conditional if' statements.

This level of experience would have been gained by studying an undergraduate multimedia course in art and design, pre-university qualifications in computer science, multimedia and/or web authoring or advanced self-taught practice of coding through free services such as codecademy.com.

Educational level may be demonstrated by:

  • Honours degree (named above);
  • Possession of equivalent qualifications;
  • Prior experiential learning, the outcome of which can be demonstrated to be equivalent to formal qualifications otherwise required;
  • Or a combination of formal qualifications and experiential learning which, taken together, can be demonstrated to be equivalent to formal qualifications otherwise required.

APEL (Accreditation of Prior Learning)

Applicants who do not meet these course entry requirements may still be considered in exceptional cases. The course team will consider each application that demonstrates additional strengths and alternative evidence. This might, for example, be demonstrated by:

  • Related academic or work experience
  • The quality of the personal statement
  • A strong academic or other professional reference
  • OR a combination of these factors

Each application will be considered on its own merit but we cannot guarantee an offer in each case.

Language requirements

All classes are conducted in English. If English is not your first language, we strongly recommend you let us know your English language test score in your application. If you have booked a test or are awaiting your results, please indicate this in your application. When asked to upload a CV as part of your application, please include any information about your English test score.

  • IELTS 6.5 (or equivalent) is required, with a minimum of 5.5 in each of the four skills.
  • If your first language is not English, you can check you have achieved the correct IELTS level in English on the Language Requirements page.

For further details regarding international admissions and advice please visit the International Applications page.

Selection criteria

Offers will be made based on the following selection criteria, which applicants are expected to demonstrate:

  • Sufficient prior knowledge and experience of and/or potential in games design and/or coding and design practice to be able to successfully complete the programme of study and have an academic or professional background in a relevant subject.
  • Knowledge of the world of visual culture and ability to engage in critical discussion.

Information for disabled applicants

UAL is committed to achieving inclusion and equality for disabled students. This includes students who have:

     
  • Dyslexia or another Specific Learning Difference
  • A sensory impairment
  • A physical impairment
  • A long-term health or mental health condition
  • Autism
  • Another long-term condition which has an impact on your day-to-day life

Our Disability Service arranges adjustments and support for disabled applicants and students.

Read our Disability and dyslexia: applying for a course and joining UAL information.

Apply now

Application deadline

Deadline

Round 1:

13 December 2023 at 1pm (UK time)

Round 2:

3 April 2024 at 1pm (UK time)

Digital portfolio and video task deadline

Round 1:

16 January 2024

Round 2:

16 April 2024

Decision outcome

Round 1:

End of March 2024

Round 2:

End of June 2024

Round 1
Round 2
Deadline
13 December 2023 at 1pm (UK time)
3 April 2024 at 1pm (UK time)
Digital portfolio and video task deadline
16 January 2024
16 April 2024
Decision outcome
End of March 2024
End of June 2024

Applications are now closed for 2024/25 entry. Applications for 2025/26 entry will open in autumn 2024.

Read more about deadlines

Apply now

Application deadline

Deadline

Round 1:

13 December 2023 at 1pm (UK time)

Round 2:

3 April 2024 at 1pm (UK time)

Digital portfolio and video task deadline

Round 1:

16 January 2024

Round 2:

16 April 2024

Decision outcome

Round 1:

End of March 2024

Round 2:

End of June 2024

Round 1
Round 2
Deadline
13 December 2023 at 1pm (UK time)
3 April 2024 at 1pm (UK time)
Digital portfolio and video task deadline
16 January 2024
16 April 2024
Decision outcome
End of March 2024
End of June 2024

Applications are now closed for 2024/25 entry. Applications for 2025/26 entry will open in autumn 2024.

Read more about deadlines

How to apply

Follow this step-by-step guide to apply for this course

Step 1: Initial application

You will need to submit an initial application including your personal statement, CV and study proposal.

Personal statement advice

Your personal statement should be maximum 500 words and include:

  • your reasons for choosing the course
  • your current creative practice and how this course will help you achieve your future plans
  • any relevant education and experience, especially if you do not have any formal academic qualifications.

Visit our personal statement page for more advice.

CV advice

Please provide a CV detailing your education, qualifications and any relevant work or voluntary experience. If you have any web projects or other media that you would like to share, please include links in your CV. If English is not your first language, please also include your most recent English language test score.

Study proposal

Please provide a summary of your study proposal (400-800 words)

It should:

  • outline of your intentions for your major project
  • describe your area of enquiry, research methods and objectives as well as how you intend to develop your project.

Please note, your proposal serves to inform your application and we understand that your ideas will develop and change throughout your studies.

Step 2: Video task and digital portfolio

We will review your initial application. If you have met the standard entry requirements, we will ask you to submit a video task and digital portfolio.

You’ll need to submit these via PebblePad, our online portfolio tool. Please submit your video task on the first page followed by your portfolio.

Video task advice

We would like you to submit a 2-3 minute video to help us learn more about you. When recording your task, please face the camera and speak in English.

What to include in your video task

  • Choose 1 project from your portfolio and explain how it challenged you and your understanding of games design.
  • Tell us how this experience inspired you to apply to MA Games Design at London College of Communication.

Read our guidance for how to submit your video task and which file types we accept.

Digital portfolio advice

Your portfolio should consist of recent work that reflects your creative strengths.

It should:

  • be a maximum of 10 pages, including your video task
  • include work from a minimum of 5 projects. If you don’t come from a traditional “design” background and don’t have a developed portfolio, please include examples that demonstrate your creative ability. This could be concepts for games, game artefacts or any other visually indicative content.
  • demonstrate your skills in design, interaction, coding and/or other relevant areas within games design
  • include images, videos and, ideally, links to interactive and playable content
  • include additional context for any examples that you believe to be relevant but not specifically related to “play”, interaction and games design.

For more support, see our Portfolio advice and PebblePad advice.

Step 3: Interview

You may be invited to an interview following our review of your application. All interviews are held online and last 15 to 20 minutes.

For top tips, see our Interview advice.

You also need to know

Communicating with you

Once you have submitted your initial application, we will email you with your login details for our Applicant portal.

Requests for supplementary documents like qualifications and English language tests will be made through the applicant portal. You can also use it to ask questions regarding your application. Visit our After you apply page for more information.

Applying to more than 1 course

You can apply for more than 1 postgraduate course at UAL but we recommend that you apply for no more than 3 courses. You need to tailor your application, supporting documents and portfolio to each course, so applying for many different courses could risk the overall quality of your application. If you receive offers for multiple courses, you'll only be able to accept 1 offer. UAL doesn't accept repeat applications to the same course in the same academic year.

Visas and immigration history check

All non-UK nationals must complete an immigration history check. Your application may be considered by our course teams before this check takes place. This means that we may request your portfolio and/or video task before we identify any issues arising from your immigration history check. Sometimes your history may mean that we are not able to continue considering your application. Visit our Immigration and visas advice page for more information.

External student transfer policy

UAL accepts transfers from other institutions on a case-by-case basis. Read our Student transfer policy for more information.

Alternative offers

If your application is really strong, but we believe your strengths and skillset are better suited to a different course, we may make you an alternative offer. This means you will be offered a place on a different course or at a different UAL College.

Deferring your place

We do not accept any deferral requests for our postgraduate courses. This means that you must apply in the year that you plan to start your course and you will not be able to defer your place to start at a later date.

Application deadlines

For postgraduate courses at UAL there are 2 equal consideration deadlines to ensure fairness for all our applicants. If you apply ahead of either of these deadlines, your application will be considered on an equal basis with all other applications in that round. If there are places available after the second deadline, the course will remain open to applications until places have been filled.

Careers

Graduates of the course will be equipped to work in an increasingly technologically informed and interdisciplinary design world, with in-depth skills in the following areas: game design and production both 3D and 2D visual communication for games, narrative and sequential image making and time-based design as well as having a portfolio of personal work to enable you to seek work across the games sector.

A significant proportion of graduates of MA Games Design may also want to practice as commercial games designers.

UAL Alumni Association

Our alumni association offers graduates support and a number of benefits.

Student Jobs and Careers

Find out how careers and employability helps our students and graduates start their careers.

London College of Communication

Contact

Telephone

+44 (0)20 7514 6500

Address

Elephant & Castle

London
SE1 6SB