Video game partnership

Otago Polytechnic has teamed up with Swedish company Futuregames - a leading game development learning provider - to launch a new video games-related study programme.

It will focus on creating virtual worlds for games or work within virtual production. Students will explore world building, content creation and game design using Unreal Engine - a game engine that can be harnessed for environments, including PC, PlayStation, XBox, Nintendo Switch, iOS, and Android.

Te Maru Pumanawa College of Creative Practice and Enterprise head Prof Federico Freschi said the programme would also enable students to learn about real-time 3-D art and design, lighting and atmospherics, interactive logic and narrative game design.

The New Zealand games scene was fast becoming a multimillion-dollar industry, and game development studios in New Zealand and globally were in need of specialist game designers and programmers, he said.

Otago Polytechnic recently signed a memorandum of understanding with Futuregames, which will provide professional development for staff, mentoring for student projects, review and feedback on Otago Polytechnic’s games courses, as well as a range of learning materials.

The degree sits within the New Zealand certificate in digital media and design (level 4) and will be open to 19 students from July.

 

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