Game Development: Writing with Integrated Foundation Year
Falmouth University
Game Development: Writing with Integrated Foundation Year
Course Summary
Explore your creativity and expand your professional skills by entering the creative industries on an Integrated Foundation Year degree. Taught over four years, these courses include an introductory year to build a solid foundation before you go on to specialise in your chosen subject at degree level.
If you're interested in taking on a new subject, or have been out of education for a while, then our Integrated Foundation Year courses might just be for you.
These four-year courses include an introductory year to help you build the core skills needed for degree-level study.
This is a chance for you to let your imagination run wild and explore your creativity, expand your professional skills and develop enhanced subject knowledge. We'll help you nurture your expertise in problem solving, risk-taking, designing and making as you develop your abilities.
Join a community of people who have a real passion for games. From day one, you’ll work as you would within a team in the industry, developing your own games. You’ll replicate professional practice, learning in a range of environments to discover your specialism and prepare for the career you want.
You'll learn how different specialisms work together, how to work effectively in a team and to develop the role you play in it. These courses simulate how industry operates, in a studio environment that's built to mirror a real games development studio.
Create backstories, dialogue, quests and player journeys as you learn foundational creative writing skills and translate them into narrative design for games.
You will:
Develop technical, design thinking and production skills in your chosen specialism
Learn teamwork, leadership and project management skills through a variety of learning environments
Develop critical thinking and creative problem-solving skills through the development of unique and innovative projects
Go on to study your chosen course specialism at degree level
Build your own games from day one and have the opportunity to establish your own company in your third year
Work in one of the largest and best equipped dedicated game-making spaces of any university in the UK
Work in a department dedicated to gaming and be surrounded by people working in all aspects of
the industry
Develop a multi-disciplinary approach, using Unity and Unreal to touch upon all aspects of game creation
Have the flexibility to change your area of specialism based on your skills and interests
Course Details - Modules
Foundation Year:
You'll study five core modules. These are all designed to help you explore the foundational elements of your chosen specialism. You'll gain relevant technical skills, learn to experiment and take risks, develop an understanding of professional practice, have opportunities to work across disciplines and collaborate with other students on live project briefs.
By the time you progress into year one of your chosen degree, you'll have a deeper knowledge of your subject, a clear understanding of your strengths, a developed practical and technical skillset and the confidence to excel in your chosen subject.
Modules:
Explore
Technique
Apply
Industry
Launch
Year one:
You'll learn what it takes to make a game, including asset creation, project management and pipelines, pitching ideas, and considering theories about what games are and how they engage players. Developing your skills and aligning them to your chosen route, you'll enhance cross-disciplinary groups as you pitch a game to tutors and build it together
Modules
Development Principles
Theory 1: Reading Experiences
Multidisciplinary Development Practice
Specialist modules depending on your route
Specialist modules depending on your route:
Art
Environment Art 1
Environment Art 2
Audio
Designing Sound
Music Technologies
Design
Game Design 1
Game Design 2
Production
Design Thinking
Art of Strategy
Programming
Principles of Computing
Creative Computing
Individual Creative Computing Project
Writing
Writing – Craft & Context
Breaking the Rules: Remix and Writing Back
Year two:
With greater confidence in your skills, you'll mirror professional game development as you tackle a larger game project in a multi-skilled group. Over the course of the year, you'll research and experiment with various approaches and create innovative features. You'll investigate strategies to enhance the player experience, and learn what drives industry trends and developments from visiting professionals, all the while developing the specialist skills that will inform your practice.
Modules
World Creation Project: Pre-Production
World Creation Project: Production
Theory 2: Form & Player Experience
Specialist modules depending on your route:
Art
Developing Specialist Game Art Practice
Developing Concept Art Vocabularies
Developing Character Art Vocabularies
Developing Environment Art Vocabularies
Audio
Supersonic
Developing Specialist Game Development Practice
Design
Game Design 3
Developing Specialist Game Development Practice
Production
Game Production Management
Programming
Specialisms in Creative Computing
Individual Specialist Computing Project: Interfaces & Interaction
Individual Specialist Computing Project: Artificial Intelligence
Writing
Games (Writing Workshop)
Developing Specialist Game Development Practice
Year three:
During the final year of your game development course, you'll produce a complete and potentially publishable game as part of a team. By pitching it to industry professionals, you'll receive reliable and insightful feedback. You'll also research a topic relevant to your project and build an online portfolio with a clear centrepiece, sharpening your real-world insights and building valuable career contacts.
Modules
Professional Practice and enterprise
Major Game Development Project: Pre-Production
Preparing for the Future
Major Game Development Project: Production
The modules above are those being studied by our students, or proposed new ones. Programme structures and modules can change as part of our curriculum enhancement and review processes. If a certain module is important to you, please discuss it with the Course Leader.
Course Details – Assessment Method
Foundation Year:
Assessments are 100% coursework based
Assessment will take place at the end of each module, and you'll get feedback and evaluation throughout the year. You'll be assessed through visual, verbal and written assignments, including your portfolio and a reflective journal.
Progressing in your specialism
Students studying on courses with an Integrated Foundation Year must successfully complete all foundation modules before they can progress to the next stage of their course.
Your specialism:
Teamwork features heavily to reflect the industry.
Game making is the primary form of assessment.
Continuous assessment with no formal examinations.
Visual, verbal and written assignments.
Portfolio of project work.
Course Details – Professional Bodies
Professional Bodies are not listed for this Course.
How to Apply
26 January This is the deadline for applications to be completed and sent for this course. If the university or college still has places available you can apply after this date, but your application is not guaranteed to be considered.
Application Codes
Course code:
FY31
Institution code:
F33
Campus Name:
Penryn Campus
Campus code:
Points of Entry
The following entry points are available for this course:
Foundation
Entry Requirements for Advanced Entry (Year 2 and Beyond)
Entry Requirements for Advanced Entry are not listed for this Course.
International applicants
Standard Qualification Requirements
We welcome A Levels in a wide range of subjects, especially in those relevant to the course for which you apply.
A typical offer is between 104 and 120 UCAS points, primarily from Level 3 equivalent qualifications, such as A levels, a BTEC Extended Diploma or a Foundation Diploma, or current, relevant experience. Grade 4 (or C) or above in GCSE English Language, or equivalent, is a minimum language requirement for all applicants. Due to the creative nature of our courses, you will be considered on your own individual merit and potential to succeed on your chosen course. Please contact the Applicant Services team for advice if you are predicted UCAS points below this range, or if you have questions about the qualifications or experience you have.
A typical offer is between 104 and 120 UCAS points
We may consider a standalone AS in a relevant subject, if it is taken along with other A Levels and if an A Level has not been taken in the same subject. However, you will not be disadvantaged if you do not have a standalone AS subject as we will not ordinarily use them in our offers.
60 credits (with a minimum of 45 credits achieved at level 3) in a relevant subject.
A typical offer is between 104 and 120 UCAS points
Acceptable when combined with other qualifications
Acceptable when combined with other qualifications
Acceptable when combined with other qualifications
A typical offer is between 104 and 120 UCAS points
A typical offer is between 104 and 120 UCAS points
Acceptable when combined with other qualifications
A typical offer is between 104 and 120 UCAS points
Acceptable when combined with other qualifications
a minimum of 40 UCAS tariff points, when combined with a minimum of 64 UCAS tariff points from the Supporting Qualifications
A typical offer is between 104 and 120 UCAS points
If you are able to demonstrate relevant, current, equivalent experience instead of formal qualifications, we encourage you to apply. Please contact our Applicant Services team before applying, for advice regarding your individual experience and eligibility.
If you are an international applicant and require a Student visa to study in the UK, you must have a recognised English language test approved and vouched for by the University at the appropriate level. Our Applicant Services team can help you with any general questions you may have about study visas or suitable language tests. For more specific advice, we recommend you also consult UKCISA http://www.ukcisa.org.uk/
Please click the following link to find out more about qualification requirements for this course
Minimum Qualification Requirements
Minimum Further Information are not listed for this Course.
English language requirements
Test
Grade
AdditionalDetails
IELTS (Academic)
6.0
An (IELTS) Academic minimum score of 6.0 overall is required, with a minimum of 5.5 in Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening
Trinity ISE
A minimum of Trinity ISE II with Distinction in all four components is required.
Cambridge English Advanced
A minimum on the Cambridge English scale of 169 is required
PTE Academic
55.0
A minimum score in the Pearson Academic Test of English of 55 overall is required, with a minimum of 51 in all four components.
If English is not your first language, you will need to demonstrate English language skills that are sufficiently developed for successful completion of your studies. We accept a range of recognised English language qualifications that are equivalent to the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) Academic minimum score of 6.0 overall, with a minimum of 5.5 in Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening