Games and Game Design

[Music starts up.]

Text on screen: Webster University logo, Geneva

[Different views of the Geneva campus as a metro train goes by.]

Text on screen: Matthew Burton, Professor of Game Design

Matthew Burton: So game design is not only about creating games for fun, but it can be used to solve real-life problems.

[Burton discusses game design. Students work together on a game design project. Students work with images on a screen of lights, hallways and the outside of a house. A person emoji works at a desk with a laptop, monitor another equipment.]

Text on screen: Matthew Burton, Professor of Game Design

Burton: Our alumni work at companies that create video games for entertainment, but also work at companies that use game design technology for film and television, architectural visualizations, augmented reality applications and virtual reality training simulations.

[Student tries out virtual reality goggles. Students work on game design projects in a classroom. Students play a board game in a classroom. An emoji person runs up a hill to a dark castle with red trees around it and a night sky full of stars. Two people emojis punch, box and street fight in a park with a bench and trees in the background. A classroom board game image shown from a bird’s eye view with notes, desks, a professor, a chalkboard and money emojis are spread around.]

Text on screen classroom board game: Wave: 1 Cha-ching, Current, Notes ID: Slices thru Zombies! Catches wind! Hit Streak Current: 2, Items Left 38

Burton: We introduce the students to every role you might take within a game studio — from artist to animator, sound designer, producer, programmer — and then in future classes, students can explore those roles in a collaborative setting. So a student might say, “Hey, I really like that week where we did coding. I want to be a programmer in our future classes,” and then we're working in teams, developing soft skills and our technical skills, and building strong portfolio pieces.

Text on screen: Made at Webster

[A game design in a tunnel with lasers and spaceships zooming.]

Text on screen: Made at Webster

Burton: So students can come in knowing zero about game development or programming and come out with the ability to build any sort of game.

[Three students gather around a large flatscreen playing a video game. Students work at computers with large monitors on game design coding in a classroom.]

Burton: The technology we teach can be applied to so many different things: coding, for example. If you know how to write code you are going to have a tough time not finding a job in the future, And that's a big thing that we teach in the program. We have faculty who've worked with Disney, with Star Wars, with Elder Scrolls, Far Cry, Call of Duty.

[Students and professor gather in a large circle in a classroom with a large image on a screen and a few large monitors showing various maps and images. Professor talks to students from the front of a classroom and by using a large monitor.]

Burton: What really sets Webster apart is that we have an office dedicated to connect students with companies. We have an entire course to prepare students in their portfolio, their resume, their interview process, so that they can start applying for internships and be connected right away and get some real-world experience.

[Students in career services offices talking to advisors about internships and job opportunities. Students work side by side on game design programs in a classroom. Geneva campus and Webster Groves campus buildings showcased.]

Burton: So one reason you might consider Webster over other game design schools is that we have a global presence. We have campuses all around the world and offer game design courses in St. Louis and Geneva, Switzerland.

Text on screen: Visit webster.edu

Burton: If you're interested in learning more visit the game design page on webster.edu.

[Music ends.]