| Ranking | School | City |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Webster University | Webster Groves |
| 2 | Drury University | Springfield |
Our 2021 ranking of the top game design school programs in Missouri. For an explanation of the ranking criteria, click here.
Founded in 1915, Webster University serves around 18,250 students studying at campuses in North America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and online. The school offers more than 160 programs housed within five colleges and schools including the College of Arts & Sciences, Leigh Gerdine College of Fine Arts, George Herbert Walker School of Business & Technology, the School of Communications, and the School of Education.
The School of Communications houses the Electronic and Photographic Media Department, which offers a BA in Games and Game Design and a Certificate in Game Design.
The Certificate program, which consists of 18 credit hours, “gives students a foundation of development principle in the conceptualizing of gameplay experience for production within video game development software,” says the school. Courses include History of Video Games, Introduction to Video Game Theory and Design, Traditional Game Design, Video Game Design I & II, and Video Game Level Design.
The 128 credit hour BA program prepares students for careers within the growing field of games and ‘serious games’ development. Students in the program will, “cultivate their understanding of the principles of game design with tools and techniques that will allow for the creation of numerous levels, mods and games during their academic study.” Courses will give students a “broad social understanding of the considerations of games developing in an age of advancing technology, and how to tailor-make games to ensure their personal creative concepts are developed and realized.”
Course highlights for the program include 3D Animation and Rigging, 3D Modeling, Audio Production, Computer Programming, Games and Society, Interface Design, Introduction to Mobile Technology, Special Topics in Game Design, Storyboarding, Video Game Production, Visual Design for Interactive Media, Visual Storytelling, World Design, and Writing Screenplays for Film.
A Capstone course is also part of the program and internship opportunities are available.
Founded in 1873, Drury University serves 3,210 students from the U.S. and 57 other countries. The school offers more than 70 majors and programs, 39 minors, and five graduate programs through a number of colleges, schools, and departments. Programs for aspiring game designers is offered through the School of Natural & Mathematical Sciences, Department of Mathematics and Computer Science. Options include a BS in Computer Science (CS): Game Development and a 20 credit hour Minor in Computer Science with Game Development course options.
Launched in 2016, the BS in CS: Game Development “requires a core of computer science courses (23 hours) covering essential elements of the Computer Science Body of Knowledge that all computer science graduates must master,” says the school. “In addition to core computer science courses, 15 additional hours of computer science coursework in game development is required. An additional 12 hours of supporting coursework from media arts courses is required, along with 11 hours of mathematics.”
Course highlights for the program include Advanced Rigging & Dynamics, Artificial Intelligence, Game Development, Computer Animation, Game Development Practicum I & II, Multimedia Storytelling, and Software Engineering.
The BS in Computer Science: Game Development program prepares graduates for careers in Game Development and/or graduate work in a related Computer Science or related Digital Media field.
