Games, both digital and non-digital, have long been viewed as far more than just entertainment. Interconnected experiences across multiple media platforms such as films, games, virtual reality, mobile apps, and social media all can be used to educate, inform, engage, encourage, and entertain individuals.
The games studies and design program not only looks at the impacts of games and how they can be used, it helps students to gain the skills and experiences to work in this dynamic field. This is a “studio” focused concentration, with the production of media products in collaboration with peers within the concentration, and with undergraduate students interested in working on various dimensions of game studies.
This concentration would utilize resources from the Games for Entertainment and Learning Lab while being responsive to research in online communities from BITLab and policy insights from the Quello Center. Students interested in focusing on 3D games and avatar research may study with the Center for Avatar Research and Immersive Social Media Applications lab (CARISMA) lab or the Theoretical and Applied Research on Media Affect and Cognition lab (TARMAC). Students that focus on the therapeutic nature of games may also work with biopsychological studies in MAP Lab or with the interdisciplinary team at Trifecta, or the Health and Risk Communication Center. Our students often work on cross-college collaborations, and with external clients.