MA Games Development
Course Overview
Games are big business, and the industry needs professionals who combine technical expertise, creative vision, and business acumen to succeed. The University of Greater Manchester’s MA in Games Development aims to give you the practical experience, industry insights, and personal confidence to thrive in this fast-paced sector.With a focus on real-world game development, this course helps you master cutting-edge tools and techniques, build an impressive portfolio, and gives you the opportunity to graduate with at least one published game credit to your name. Whether you're working independently on your personal portfolio or choose to form an indie-style development team, you'll gain hands-on experience working across multiple output platforms for a range of target audiences.
Our expert tutors – many with published game credits and industry experience – will support you in designing, developing, and publishing your work, while helping you gain valuable business and entrepreneurial skills, from pitching projects and negotiating contracts to understanding intellectual property and marketing strategies.
Highlights
- Hands-on Game Development – Work on live projects and industry briefs designed to challenge and inspire you.
- The Opportunity to Graduate with a Published Game Credit – Stand out to employers with a real-world, portfolio-ready project.
- Learn from Industry Experts – Our tutors and guest speakers include successful game developers and studio professionals.
- Master Advanced Skills – Specialise in game design, programming or art, refining your expertise.
- Business & Entrepreneurial Training – Learn how to run an indie studio, pitch projects, and navigate the business side of gaming.
- State-of-the-Art Facilities – Work with high-spec hardware, industry-standard software, and specialist equipment such as Motion Capture and Photogrammetry Scanning hardware.
- Unbeatable Location – Bolton offers a thriving social and creative scene with central Manchester just 20 minutes away.
Key Features
- Game Design & Development – Create engaging, immersive, and innovative experiences across mobile, desktop, and VR platforms.
- Game Art & Animation – Hone your artistic skills, from concept art to 3D modelling, UI Design, and reality capture for characters and environments.
- Game Programming – Master AI, physics, networking, and technical systems design. Create flexible systems and immersive gameplay.
- Indie Game Production – Work independently or in small teams, gaining experience in project management, business strategy, and marketing.
- Ethical & Professional Development – Learn industry best practices, ensuring your games are innovative, inclusive, and commercially viable.
- North West of England is renowned for its beautiful countryside, coastline and heritage. This makes Bolton an ideal base from which to explore some of the best cultural and outdoor activities the UK offers.
Entry Requirements
- You should have an honours degree at 2:2 or above in a relevant games-focused subject with significant game-creation experience.
- Relevant industry experience may be considered in place of formal qualifications (in line with the University’s Recognition of Prior Experiential Learning (RPEL) procedures).
- You may need to submit a portfolio of work or attend an interview.
- If English isn’t your first language, you’ll also need IELTS 6.0 with no less than 5.5 in any band (or equivalent). We also accept a range of other English language qualifications – please visit our English Language Requirements web page for more details.
Where changes are made to material information contained in this course description or a decision is taken to suspend a course between the offer of admissions and enrolment, we will inform applicants at the earliest possible opportunity and will outline the various options available to the applicant.
Career Opportunities
This MA sets you up for exciting careers in the games industry and beyond. You'll gain skills in areas such as:
- Game Development – Specialising as a Programmer, Artist, Designer, Producer, or Technical systems expert.
- Indie Game Production & Entrepreneurship – Launch your own studio or freelance career with confidence.
- Gamification & Interactive Media – Apply game design to business, education, healthcare, and other industries.
What can I do with this qualification?
- Games Programmer – Network, engine, toolchain and artificial intelligence.
- Games Artist – Concept Artist, Technical Artist, UI/UX Artist, Animator/Rigger and 3D modeller with further specialisms in characters, vehicles, environments, weapons and prop creation.
- Games Designer – UI/UX Designer, Level Designer, Technical Systems Designer, Gameplay Scripter and Narrative Designer.
- Production and Management – Producer, Project Manager, Quality Assurance Tester.
Alternative career options
Beyond games, your skills could open doors in film, animation, virtual reality, and digital media—or even board game design.
Fees & Funding
Home/EU Fees
Home students starting this course in the first year will be required to pay a Home fee of £8,496 for the academic year 2025/26.
International Fees
Overseas students starting this course in the first year will be required to pay a Overseas fee of £17,500 for the academic year 2025/26.
Bursaries
Click here for more information on our Master's Bursaries.
Important note regarding tuition fees for the 2025-26 academic year: EU nationals who meet residency requirements (have settled or pre-settled status) may be eligible for 'Home' fee status. If you do not meet these residency requirements, overseas fees will apply. Irish citizens living in the UK or Ireland will be eligible for 'Home' fee status under the Common Travel Area arrangement. Please read the student finance for EU students web page on www.gov.uk for information.
The fees for a student's course of study will be set for the normal duration of that course subject only to inflationary increases – measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) recorded in March each year to take effect for subsequent start dates.
How to apply
Home Applicants
You may apply directly to the University using the University's online application form. Please select your chosen start date from the list below:
You should have to hand:
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Details of the educational establishments you attended and dates
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Your certificates for the qualifications you are using to gain entry to the course – you will need to enter the completion date and upload copies
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Details of any employment history including name, address, dates and role
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Personal statement – this can be either input into the relevant field or uploaded separately
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Details including e-mail addresses of two referees, at least one of which should be someone who can provide an academic reference
Please make sure any documents you wish to upload in support of your application are in pdf or jpeg format. Personal statements may be word documents.
Please ensure your data is correct at each stage of the application before you proceed to the next page. If you use the back button at any time during the application, you should check the validity of the data you have already input.
If you experience difficulties during the application process, contact the Admissions Team on 01204 903394 or admissions-team@bolton.ac.uk
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Apply online: University of Bolton MA Games Development - 22 September 2025
International Applicants
Thank you for your interest
In order to determine your suitability for this course as an international student and also to confirm you meet any initial eligibility criteria, we need you to answer a few short questions.
Teaching & Assessment
The course is project-based and highly practical. You will engage in a variety of projects designed for small groups of independent game developers or solo creators. Working closely with our expert Games Development Lecturers, you will receive tailored guidance, benefiting from a diverse range of insights and professional expertise.
New concepts, techniques, and tools will be introduced throughout the course, with dedicated teaching and learning support to help you integrate these skills effectively. This hands-on approach ensures that you develop both technical proficiency and creative confidence as you progress through your work.
Our assessment strategy is designed to be flexible and supportive. If you do not achieve a learning outcome in one module, you will have opportunities to demonstrate your understanding in subsequent modules. Assessments are primarily project-based, allowing you to showcase your development process and creative problem-solving skills. Reflection is a key component of the assessment, typically involving written reports and/or a viva presentation, ensuring that you critically evaluate your work and continuously refine your approach.
Modules
The modules listed below may be a mixture of compulsory and optional. You may not have the opportunity to study all the modules shown as part of the course.
- Work for Hire
- Target Markets and Product Criteria
- XR and Immersive Experiences
- Exhibition Project
- Games Development Masters Project
Assessment methods
| Level | Assessment method |
|---|---|
| Level 1 | Coursework 94% Practical exams 6% |
Learning Activities
| Level | Activity |
|---|---|
| Level 1 | Guided independent study 84% Scheduled learning and teaching activities 16% |
The university will use all reasonable endeavours to deliver your course as described in its published material and the programme specification for the academic year in which you begin your course. The university considers changes to courses very carefully and the university will minimise any changes. Please be aware that our courses are subject to review on an ongoing basis and changes may be necessary due to legitimate staffing, financial, regulatory and academic reasons. The content of course modules and mode of associated assessments may be updated on an annual basis. This is to ensure that all modules are up-to-date and responsive to employment and sector needs. The published course material and the programme specification contain indicative ‘optional modules’ that may be subject to change due to circumstances outside of our control. For this reason, we cannot guarantee to run any specific optional module.
