Game Design

Experience the entire game development cycle and develop specialized skills in coding, game art, and level design.

Creative Economy

The creative economy is increasingly digital, mobile, and interactive. From film production and 3D animation to game, digital, and VR/AR design, VFS is at the heart of the entertainment and media industries’ transformation. In 2019, VFS alumni were credited on 6 of the top 10 best-selling video games worldwide, in a global industry estimated to be worth more than US$300 billion by 2025.

Alumni Success

Vancouver Film School graduates are some of the most successful and sought-after professionals in the entire gaming industry. You will find our alumni working all over the globe, pushing boundaries, discovering new frontiers, winning all kinds of awards and honours, and leading today’s creative economy.

A VFS Game Design Education

In 12 months you will graduate with:

A diploma in Game Design
A professional quality online portfolio
Access to the VFS Alumni Directory & Job Board
Industry connections that will help guide your career
A lifetime network

Term 01

Establish fundamental skills in game theory, pre-production techniques, and storytelling.

Term 02

Build on your game design foundation and start to work effectively in teams. Create your own playable 2D game in Unity.

Term 03

Shift from theoretical to practical with hands-on work on detailed design documentation and front-end interfaces, and begin specializing in coding, game art or level design.

Term 04

The core part of this term is dedicated to designing and planning a major team-based final project.

Term 05

Conceive, plan, and execute a final project that delivers a rewarding interactive experience.

Term 06

Engage with ongoing play-testing and complete your final project before unveiling your work to the industry.

See Full Course Description View Faculty

Specializations

Students combine the programs focus on production with two of three specializations below, to develop a professional-quality online portfolio that demonstrates a thorough understanding of game design.

Coding

Game Art

Level Design

Admissions Info

To make sure you have accurate admissions information please select your region based on country of citizenship.

Tuition

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Start Dates

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How to Apply Request Info

Requirements

You will be asked to submit one of the following along with your application. Your advisor can help with selecting the best option.

A synopsis of a game that you are passionate about creating

Explain the concept, vision, or idea. Include the genre of game you would utilize. Make references to other games to explain how you would make your game (one page maximum).

In addition, provide an outline detailing your story, possible levels, and characters (one page maximum).
Provide diagrams explaining any features or game mechanics (one to two pages maximum) and a simplified map of the game world described in your synopsis.

You'll find information on how to send your synopsis in the application form, or you can ask your Advisor.

*Intermediate computer skills are a requirement, including the ability to use Microsoft Word and Excel.

Successful completion of the VFS Foundation Visual Art & Design program

When you talk to your Advisor, let them know that you've completed the Foundation program and they will put a copy of your diploma in your file for you.*

*Intermediate computer skills are a requirement, including the ability to use Microsoft Word and Excel.

For more about language requirements and other information for international students, visit the International Students page.

Student Work

While training at VFS, students are immersed in the game design industry, and spend a lot of hands-on time creating professional-quality work. And, nothing is a greater testament to the incomparable industry resources and career preparation that define VFS’s education model, than the top quality work our students produce. Here, a portfolio of outstanding work is just the beginning. Just take a look.

Mach X

Created by Jorge Peral

Unincrediball

Created by Salim Ali

Bijou and Big

Created by Noah Vejvoda

Get in the game!

Visit the VFS Indie Arcade to download and play more than 200 games produced by VFS students over the past decade — for free.

Learn More

Industry Partners

VFS doesn’t just teach you about the industry, it IS the industry. With veteran instructors, mentors and an education Advisory Board recruited straight from the professional world, we are able to constantly update our award-winning curriculum to keep up with an ever-evolving industry. Plus, students also have lots of opportunities to connect and network with industry leaders during special workshop sessions, training presentations, and industry social events hosted by VFS

Pitch + Play

Present a short version of your final reel, and a short speech to introduce yourself to industry professionals, before talking with them in an informal setting.

Campus Life

The VFS Game Design campus looks and feels just like the professional game developer studios you'll find throughout downtown Vancouver. Surrounded by some of the city's best cafes, restaurants, and cultural attractions, you'll have all the resources you need at your fingertips: a massive game library, arcades, screening theatres, and your own dedicated workspace.

Testimonials

"We’re so lucky to have Vancouver Film School in our own backyard. I’ve had the pleasure of working with many graduates of the Game Design program, and their incredible contributions to our games and our studio culture can’t be overstated. I’m not sure what VFS is putting in the water, but whatever it is, I sure hope they keep doing it."

Philippe Boulle
Sega Relic Entertainment
Game Director

"Vancouver Film School generates some of the best graduates in the world right now. Some of the most brilliant, dedicated systems designers I've ever worked with have emerged from this program. We are always interested in visiting with new VFS grads and are consistently impressed with their passion and drive to grow as game-makers. VFS is a terrific program."

Tim Fields
Kabam, Inc.
Vice President

"Vancouver Film School has stood out year over year as an outstanding academic institution forming professionals with relevant and high quality market skills. Their hands on curriculum and vast faculty knowledge of the entertainment and media industry has made them one of most desirable programs worldwide."

Mauricio Vergara
Unity Technologies
Senior Manager, Education Business Development

"VFS made it easy to connect with various companies in the industry. Although the onus was on us to foster the relationships that would lead to jobs, the staff at VFS provided a 'foot in the door' that gave me an opportunity to prove myself."

Armando Troisi
Fathom Interactive
Game Design Graduate

"After analyzing the thorough curriculum the school had to offer, I realized that, by exposing me to a wide variety of disciplines and aspects of the videogame world, studying at VFS was the best option that soon became my entry to this industry."

Diego R. Pons
Next Level Games
Game Design Graduate

"You can't think of this as school. This is industry experience. If you go into the program and you think of it that way, you will get a job in the industry because you are working with people from the industry."

Paul Parsons
SkyBox Labs
Game Design Graduate

"VFS did of course make a big difference. It was certainly the catalyst for getting a job at BioWare. I knew a lot coming in, but it still paled to what I was able to learn."

Mark Barazzuol
Lost Mystic Games
Game Design Graduate

FAQ

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How to Apply Request Info

View Foundation Visual Art & Design

You know you’re creative, but you’re not sure where to get started? Explore visual media, screenwriting, drawing, filmmaking, animation, design, acting, and more. Discover what you can do in just one year.

Learn How

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