Starting in the Fall of 2008 - Game Art

& Animation Track

Over the past two decades, the video game industry has rapidly advanced and become a valuable contributor to a variety of business including all aspects of entertainment as well as traditional/”serious” applications. There are many job descriptions within the industry: programmer, artist, animator, game designer, producer, etc. These can be, roughly, divided into those that deal with the aesthetics of game design, illustration and animation and the game development careers that focus on programming and engineering skills.

The focus of this Gaming Art & Animation track, while focused primarily on design and animation skills, is to bridge the gap between animation and game development by blending curriculum elements from the two areas of focus together with industry-specific courses that cater to careers in gaming graphics. This track is designed to be the first of a series of educational options within the gaming industry; plans exist to develop a Game Developer Degree program as well as Game Production (the business aspects of the industry.

The Gaming Art & Animation track covers such topics such as level design and characters for games, as well as effects and texturing. Students are provided a strong foundation in key areas that impact this field: traditional animation, storytelling, digital arts, etc. With this foundation, the remainder of the program builds on 3D character and level development skills, audio integration skills and post-production techniques.  The XNA platform, a MicroSoft product designed specifically for the needs of student game designers, will provide the technical integration platform for combining these digital assets into a working game. It is the development of an actual, working game that will inform much of the coursework during the second year.

Download the brochure HERE