BA (Hons) Placement year available

Games Art and Design

Create games in professional-standard facilities with high-spec workstations, specialist software and collaborative studio spaces. Develop a deep understanding of leading commercial game engines, including Unity and Unreal, used extensively by professional game companies.

Start date: September 2027
Location: Cambridge
UCAS course code: I623
Duration: 3 years

Start date: September 2027
Location: Cambridge
UCAS course code: I624
Duration: 4 years with placement

Start date: September 2027
Location: Cambridge
UCAS course code: I625
Duration: 4 years with foundation

100%

for "Academic support" in the National Student Survey 2026.
Source: NSS 2026

Combine your creativity with practical games development skills on our BA (Hons) Games Art and Design degree in Chelmsford. Explore character, environment and concept art alongside game and level design, player experience and human-centred design.

Develop game-ready assets using industry-standard software and engines, while building a professional portfolio and experience of collaborative production to prepare for today’s fast-moving games and creative technology industries.

Subject to validation

Accreditation

Our course is accredited by TIGA, the trade association representing the gaming industry in the UK. We're also part of the Unreal Academic Partner programme, which recognises university courses committed to providing ongoing, high-quality educational opportunities.

"It’s really interesting to meet new people and learn how we can collaborate to make a game." Students and alumni explain what makes our computer games degrees special.

Why ARU?

Combine games art and design to develop a versatile creative skillset
Create characters, environments and game-ready assets alongside levels and experiences
Work with industry-standard software and engines, including Unity and Unreal
Collaborate in a studio-style environment that reflects professional games production
Build a professional portfolio and tackle live briefs for industry partners
Gain industry insight through guest speakers, games events and networking opportunities

Students outside a building in the Creative Quarter at ARU in Cambridge

Designed for creative life
Our Creative Quarter brings together studios, workshops, performance and exhibition spaces. Be part of a community built around making, experimentation and innovation, while developing your practical skills and portfolio, and connecting with industry.

Careers

Develop the creative, technical and professional skills needed for roles across games and the wider creative technology industries. You’ll build a professional portfolio and gain practical experience of industry-standard tools, software and production pipelines.

Your combined art and design skills can support careers in character, environment and concept art, game and level design, as well as multidisciplinary indie development, virtual production, VFX, animation and other creative technology roles.

Graduation doesn’t have to be the end of your time with us. You might decide to stay at ARU and study for a Masters. We’re planning a range of postgraduate degrees at ARU Peterborough, and there is a selection of existing courses in Cambridge and Chelmsford. Take advantage of our Alumni Scholarship and get 20% off your fees.

Where can Games Art and Design students gain industry experience?

What can you do with a Games Art and Design degree?

Where could a Games Art and Design degree take you?

How can ARU help with my employability and career development?

Teaching and modules

You’ll combine practical games development with industry insight and expert support, building a professional portfolio that reflects your individual strengths.

Thom Barrett, Course Director

The course is designed to develop your games art and design skills, empowering you to create engaging and well-crafted games. Throughout the course you will continually develop your understanding of professional games tools and processes, through lectures, practical workshops and independent study.

You will gain professional insight from industry speakers, while being supported and guided by your lecturing team. Your progress will be visible in the games you make while with us, becoming more complex and polished throughout the three years of your degree.

By the time you are ready to leave us, you will have created a portfolio of work demonstrating your skills and abilities. Your modules will include content for employability in the games industry, and beyond, giving you the confidence to begin forging your career.

Study a blend of games art and design, developing visual, creative and player-centred skills across the course. Explore character and environment creation, digital art, game and level design, prototyping, player experience and technical development, and learn to turn ideas into game-ready assets. You’ll work collaboratively in a studio-style environment using industry-standard tools and engines, develop rendering and production skills, respond to live briefs, and finish with portfolio work and a Major Project bringing together your creative and technical abilities.

Student work

Our student showcase

Press Start on your future in games: discover the new £2.5m games development facilities at ARU, designed to mirror real-world production environments and support the next generation of computer games artists and developers. Read more about our new facilities.
A showreel of work by students on our undergraduate games courses.
Discover how our course will help you translate other people's ideas into visually compelling characters and environments. Hear from ARU Senior Lecturer Dr Adam Twycross in this Springpod Subject Spotlight. Watch the full lecture on Springpod.
Find out how to prepare your portfolio for our Computer Games Art degree
Artwork for Final Project by Sam McHaffie. See more of our computer games students' work.
Artwork by Caitlin Pirie.
Artwork by David Lopes.
Artwork by David Lopes.
Artwork by David Lopes.
Artwork by Maria Sosnovska.
Artwork by Maria Sosnovska.
Artwork by Ryan Kelly.
Artwork by Talia Smith.
Artwork by Talia Smith.

What will I study?

Modules are subject to change and availability, and may vary by location. If you have the choice of optional modules, these are indicated with a *.

Core modules

Asset Production
Academic Skills for Games
Game Engines for Designers
Game Engines for Designers
Character Design for Games
QA & Testing for Games
Specialities in Games Art and Design
Employability in Games
Ruskin Module
Collaborative Games Design
Intermediate Project for Games
Tabletop Design for Games
Indie Games Development
Studio Practice for Games
Creative Industries Major Project

Module details

You can choose to take an optional placement year as part of this course. Placements typically happen in Year 3, and your course will take four years overall. Find out more about placement years.

Year 3

Work Placement - Cambridge School of Creative Industries

Module details

To prepare you for university study, you can take a foundation year at the start of this course. Find out more about foundation years.

Year 1

Foundation in Art and Design

Module details

What happens on a foundation year?

What happens on a placement year?

How is Games Art and Design assessed?

Who teaches Games Art and Design at ARU?

Read profiles of teaching and research staff on this course.

Thom Barrett (he/him)
Lecturer
Matthew Jones
Lecturer, Computer Games Design

Facilities

You’ll create in a professional-standard environment designed to reflect the realities of the games industry.

Professional-specification workstations, equipped with RTX graphics technology, give you access to powerful creative workflows, industry software, and specialist kit. Integrated studio spaces allow you to collaborate comfortably, replicating professional game studio workflows.

In our dedicated communal space you can collaborate, connect, play, and relax. You’ll also benefit from access to advanced shared technical resources including motion capture, 3D prototyping, full-body scanning, and emerging AR development technologies; and training in the use of all our creative facilities, including a digital workshop with a variety of computer aided manufacturing machines.

Collaborative studio spaces
Games development studio - integrated studio
Games development studio with x 144 34inches curved screens
VR/AR spaces
Comfortable workstations
Professional-specification software
Game playing space
Game playing space
Professional-specification workstations, equipped with RTX graphics technology
Student hub - communal social space
Student hub - space for collaborating and socialising
Professional-standard studio

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Entry requirements

Standard entry requirements

Important additional notes

Our published entry requirements are a guide only and our decision will be based on your overall suitability for the course as well as whether you meet the minimum entry requirements.

Other equivalent qualifications may be accepted for entry to this course; please email [email protected] for further information. Applicants to undergraduate courses can also check our information about undergraduate entry qualifications.

You'll need a computer and reliable internet access to successfully engage with your course.

We don't accept AS level qualifications on their own for entry to our undergraduate degree courses. However for some degree courses a small number of tariff points from AS levels are accepted as long as they're combined with tariff points from A levels or other equivalent level 3 qualifications in other subjects.

Important additional notes

Our published entry requirements are a guide only and our decision will be based on your overall suitability for the course as well as whether you meet the minimum entry requirements.

You'll need a computer and reliable internet access to successfully engage with your course.

Important additional notes

Our published entry requirements are a guide only and our decision will be based on your overall suitability for the course as well as whether you meet the minimum entry requirements.

You'll need a computer and reliable internet access to successfully engage with your course.

International students

English language requirements

Portfolio review

Contextual offers

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Fees and funding

UK students

£9,790 UK students starting 2026/27 (full-time, per year)

Paying your tuition fees
If you're a UK student, you don't need the money to pay for university now.

If you accept an offer to study at university, you can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan to cover your course fees.

Both full-time and part-time students can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan. You'll start repaying the loan in the April after you graduate.

For more information about student loans, see our undergraduate student finance page.

This information also applies to:

Irish nationals living in the UK or Ireland
EU, EEA and Swiss nationals benefiting from citizens’ rights under the UK-EU Withdrawal Agreement.

£10,050 UK students starting 2027/28 (full-time, per year)

Paying your tuition fees
If you're a UK student, you don't need the money to pay for university now.

If you accept an offer to study at university, you can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan to cover your course fees.

Both full-time and part-time students can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan. You'll start repaying the loan in the April after you graduate.

For more information about student loans, see our undergraduate student finance page.

This information also applies to:

Irish nationals living in the UK or Ireland
EU, EEA and Swiss nationals benefiting from citizens’ rights under the UK-EU Withdrawal Agreement.

£9,790 UK students starting 2026/27 (full-time, per year)

Paying your tuition fees
If you're a UK student, you don't need the money to pay for university now.

If you accept an offer to study at university, you can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan to cover your course fees.

Both full-time and part-time students can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan. You'll start repaying the loan in the April after you graduate.

For more information about student loans, see our undergraduate student finance page.

This information also applies to:

Irish nationals living in the UK or Ireland
EU, EEA and Swiss nationals benefiting from citizens’ rights under the UK-EU Withdrawal Agreement.

£10,050 UK students starting 2027/28 (full-time, per year)

Paying your tuition fees
If you're a UK student, you don't need the money to pay for university now.

If you accept an offer to study at university, you can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan to cover your course fees.

Both full-time and part-time students can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan. You'll start repaying the loan in the April after you graduate.

For more information about student loans, see our undergraduate student finance page.

This information also applies to:

Irish nationals living in the UK or Ireland
EU, EEA and Swiss nationals benefiting from citizens’ rights under the UK-EU Withdrawal Agreement.

£9,790 UK students starting 2026/27 (full-time, per year)

Paying your tuition fees
If you're a UK student, you don't need the money to pay for university now.

If you accept an offer to study at university, you can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan to cover your course fees.

Both full-time and part-time students can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan. You'll start repaying the loan in the April after you graduate.

For more information about student loans, see our undergraduate student finance page.

This information also applies to:

Irish nationals living in the UK or Ireland
EU, EEA and Swiss nationals benefiting from citizens’ rights under the UK-EU Withdrawal Agreement.

£10,050 UK students starting 2027/28 (full-time, per year)

Paying your tuition fees
If you're a UK student, you don't need the money to pay for university now.

If you accept an offer to study at university, you can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan to cover your course fees.

Both full-time and part-time students can apply for a Tuition Fee Loan. You'll start repaying the loan in the April after you graduate.

For more information about student loans, see our undergraduate student finance page.

This information also applies to:

Irish nationals living in the UK or Ireland
EU, EEA and Swiss nationals benefiting from citizens’ rights under the UK-EU Withdrawal Agreement.

International students

£18,400 International students starting 2026/27 (full-time, per year)