BFA Game Design

Overview of our BFA in Game Design

Our three-year Bachelor's degree in game design is for highly motivated students who would like to enter an intensive hands-on course of study. By completing the Bachelor's degree in three years, students:

• Save one year of expenses.
• Begin working on their craft sooner.

The Academy makes this accelerated schedule possible by creating an extended academic year, allowing students to complete three full-length semesters in each calendar year.






The New York Film Academy (NYFA) Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in Game Design is an eight semester, conservatory-based, full-time study undergraduate program. The curriculum is designed to give storytellers all the tools they need to succeed in achieving their goals around game design. The New York Film Academy Bachelor of Fine Arts in Game Design provides a creative setting in which to challenge, inspire, and perfect the talents of its student body.

GAME DESIGN DEGREE PROGRAM OBJECTIVES

The educational objectives of the Bachelor of Fine Arts in Game Design are to give students an introductory education in the art and craft of professional game writing and design. Students are instructed through a strict regimen consisting of lectures, seminars, and total immersion workshops to excel in the creative art of game writing & design.

Overall, the first five semesters concentrate on building a baseline foundation in the art, technology, design, storytelling, and business of video games. The focus of the final three semesters is to build on that foundation and produce all the materials, both written and verbal, that the student will need to effectively relay their stories inside their created world. NYFA’s game design program is a liberal arts education that emphasis the same general education credits as other BFA programs. Throughout their time studying at the New York Film Academy, students will include courses in the humanities, social science, natural science, and the history of media. This creates well-rounded students whose expertise in game design is accompanied by general critical thinking and problem solving skills.

The educational objectives in the Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in Game Design are to teach students the art and craft of game design and storytelling.To accomplish this goal NYFA employs a curriculum of lectures, seminars, and total immersion workshops.

All Students Will:

• Be able to deconstruct any game experience into Formal, Dramatic, and Dynamic systems.
• Acquire the skills of game prototyping, playtesting, iteration, presentation, and collaboration.
• Know how to prototype multiple games regardless of technical skills.
• Know how to develop software using industry best practices, including Agile and Scrum.

BACHELOR’S DEGREE IN GAME DESIGN: YEAR ONE

Students gain a foundation of knowledge in the Playcentric Design and Systems Literacy courses. Students work collaboratively to create working software, supported by an instructor who assists them with hands-on coding. Students are exposed to additional facets of games through courses in Narrative Design, Game Analysis, and 3D Art.

GAME DESIGN BFA: YEAR-ONE LEARNING OUTCOMES

As a result of successful completion of this year, students will develop the skills to:

• Understand, through analysis, the key elements that make up specific video game genres (Role Playing Game, First Person Shooter, Platformer, Sports, Massively Multi-Player Online, etc.), and how they are employed effectively to create a successful game.
• Understand the business of game publishing.
• Master, through study, guest lectures, and practical application, the theories of game design; how to make a game fun; how to make a game entertaining; how to engage and immerse the player in a gameplay experience.
• Understand the process of creating 3D assets and animation for video games.
• Understand the technology involved in creating games.

BACHELOR’S DEGREE IN GAME DESIGN: YEAR TWO

The fourth semester of the NYFA BFA in Game Design focuses on the core educational components of our program – playable system design and Agile development. With two working digital games under their belt, and a foundational understanding of Playcentric Design, students are now challenged to stretch their new skills by designing original play mechanics. General Education classes in psychology and literature expand upon the base of study begun in the first year.

In the fifth semester, students continue to develop software collaboratively. Studies in the humanities develop skill in interpreting and understanding the human condition. Courses in science and world cultures develop students’ understanding of the diverse interpersonal and societal forces that shape people’s lives and stories.

The goal of semester six is to complete another collaborative project, which can serve as another portfolio piece. Free to Play Games and a class on professionalism, The Business of Video Games, round out the term.

GAME DESIGN BFA: YEAR-TWO LEARNING OUTCOMES

Skills learned as a result of successful completion of this year include:

• Understanding the process of creating art assets and animation for video games and how that process informs, alters and co-exists with the design and writing aspects of game development.
• Understand the technology involved in creating games.
• Understand the process of programming video games on all platforms – PC, console, portable, Internet, iPhone and iPad – and how that process dictates what can and cannot be achieved from a design and writing point of view.
• Understand, through frequent Senior Faculty Review Meetings, the concepts of milestones, weekly development updates, and other notes-driven and/or schedule-oriented aspects of video game development.
• Master the art of writing a 30+ page Game Design Wiki.
• Master, through frequent collaboration with peers in the Game Design and other NYFA programs, the ability to work effectively in a high-pressure creative environment.

BACHELOR’S DEGREE IN GAME DESIGN: YEAR THREE

Semester seven kicks off a two-semester Collaborative Thesis Project that will generate the student’s most ambitious work yet. In semester seven, students will also take a Marketing Video Games class that teaches students about how to build buzz around their games and projects.

The final semester of the NYFA BFA in Game Design is focused on completing the Collaborative Thesis Project II, which includes a Game Design Wiki, written story materials, and polished working software.

GAME DESIGN BFA: YEAR-THREE LEARNING OUTCOMES

• Understand, through lectures, in-class exercises, and special guests, the composition of the video game industry, the functions of the various companies, the functions of the various employees within those companies, and how games go from “blue sky” idea to finished product.
• Master, through in-class exercises and special guests, the art of pitching a video game to developers and publishers, as well as how to effectively communicate and market the uniqueness and commerciality of a new video game concept.
• Deliver a polished working game in collaboration with teammates.