Program Overview

Course overview

This programme combines Philosophy with a Minor pathway in Game Design Studies – a new and distinctive provision in the study of interactive audiovisual media. The principles and theories of game design offer a unique dimension to the study of philosophy, and questions of meaning and perspective.

Introduction

Your first year will be spent developing your foundational knowledge through a series of required modules, through which you will also acquire the skills to read and write about philosophy, and to undertake critical analysis. During your second and final years, you will take 75% of your modules from a broad range of Philosophy options, covering subjects from metaphysics and philosophy of the future, to Chinese and Indian philosophy.

Your Minor pathway will introduce you to the study of video games, which includes topics such as the history and development of gaming cultures, the complex nature of interactive media, and the critical issues that accompany engagement with virtual worlds, multicursal narratives, and dynamic musical content. Digital games represent one of the fastest growing forms of entertainment media: consequently, there is a growing need for many jobs that are not only in the games industry, but in surrounding industries as well. This programme develops a wide range of skills that prepare students for employment at various entry points in the job market, including content creation, publishing, journalism, and marketing.

Year in Industry

This programme is available with a Year in Industry. Year Three is spent on a paid placement within an organisation in industry, broadly defined. You will be supported by the School of the Arts and the Department throughout, and your reflexive written account of the experience will contribute towards your final degree result. If you wish to study this programme with a Year in Industry, please put the option code ‘YI’ in the ‘Further Choices’ section of your UCAS application form.

What you'll learn