Games Design

Games design is the discipline of conceiving and shaping the interactive experiences that make games compelling. It requires an understanding of player psychology, user experience, and the mechanics and systems that create engagement, challenge, and emotional resonance. Games designers collaborate with concept artists, games artists, writers, and musicians to bring their vision to life, refining designs through feedback and iteration in the way that any craft-based discipline demands.

They use specialised software and tools to prototype and visualise game concepts, developing the ability to communicate design intent clearly across a creative team.

At Leeds Arts University this three-year, full-time programme situates games design within an art school tradition, bringing a creative and critical perspective to the discipline that distinguishes it from more technically oriented programmes. You will develop your understanding of game mechanics, narrative, visual design, and user experience alongside the prototyping and testing skills needed to move ideas from concept to playable form. Leeds Arts' focus on creative thinking and visual culture gives the programme a distinctive character, encouraging you to develop a design voice that goes beyond competent execution of established conventions.

Graduates of games design at Leeds Arts work across the games industry in roles including game designer, level designer, narrative designer, concept artist, and UX researcher. The creative and critical skills developed on the programme are also valued in interactive media, experience design, educational technology, and the growing range of contexts where game thinking is being applied to non-game challenges. Some graduates build independent studios or develop their own games.

Others move into related creative fields, using the design intelligence and collaborative project skills the degree develops in work that connects the games industry to the broader creative economy. Further study at postgraduate level in games, interactive design, or creative technology is an option for those who want to develop a specialist direction.