Game design courses can help you learn level design, character development, storytelling techniques, and game mechanics. You can build skills in prototyping, user testing, and balancing gameplay to enhance player experience. Many courses introduce tools like Unity and Unreal Engine, that support creating interactive environments and implementing game logic. Additionally, you might explore programming languages such as C or C++ to bring your ideas to life, along with graphic design software for creating compelling visuals.

Duke University
Skills you'll gain: Video Game Development, Animations, Event-Driven Programming, Animation and Game Design, Game Design, Storyboarding, 3D Assets, Programming Principles, Computer Graphics, Computer Programming, Scripting, Debugging
Beginner · Course · 1 - 3 Months

Fudan University
Skills you'll gain: Unity Engine, Game Design, Video Game Development, Intellectual Property, Mobile Development, Cloud Deployment, User Interface (UI), Android (Operating System), C# (Programming Language), Conceptual Design, 3D Assets, Animation and Game Design, Cross Platform Development, Animations, System Design and Implementation, Computer Graphics, Visualization (Computer Graphics), Performance Tuning, Prototyping, Data Analysis Software
Beginner · Specialization · 3 - 6 Months

Vanderbilt University
Skills you'll gain: Storytelling, Game Design, Video Game Development, Animation and Game Design, Multimedia, Media and Communications, Art History, Interactive Learning, Psychology
Beginner · Course · 1 - 3 Months

École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne
Skills you'll gain: C++ (Programming Language), Programming Principles, Data Structures, Computer Programming, Game Design, Algorithms, Debugging
Beginner · Course · 1 - 3 Months

University of California, Irvine
Skills you'll gain: Education Software and Technology, Learning Management Systems, Collaborative Software, Digital pedagogy, Teaching, Augmented Reality, Game Design, Virtual Environment, Emerging Technologies, Information Privacy, Social Media
Mixed · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

Universidad de los Andes
Skills you'll gain: Game Design, Video Game Development, Functional Specification, Unity Engine, Animation and Game Design, Conceptual Design, Software Design Documents, Interaction Design, Prototyping, C# (Programming Language), Creativity
Beginner · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Skills you'll gain: Animation and Game Design, Computational Thinking, Animations, Programming Principles, Computer Programming, Dataflow, Storytelling, Game Design, Storyboarding, Scripting, Solution Design, Program Development, Event-Driven Programming, Coordination
Beginner · Course · 1 - 3 Months

Skills you'll gain: Animations, Game Design, Animation and Game Design, Storyboarding, Storytelling, Content Creation, Digital Publishing
Beginner · Guided Project · Less Than 2 Hours

Michigan State University
Skills you'll gain: Persona (User Experience), Research Design, Game Design, Design, Animation and Game Design, User Experience Design, Diversity Awareness, Augmented and Virtual Reality (AR/VR), Psychology, User Research, Cultural Sensitivity
Beginner · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

Rice University
Skills you'll gain: Combinatorics, Probability, Programming Principles, Program Development, Computational Thinking, Computer Programming, Object Oriented Programming (OOP), Development Testing, Software Testing, Applied Mathematics, Debugging, Algorithms, Python Programming, Game Design, Simulations
Intermediate · Course · 1 - 3 Months

University of California San Diego
Skills you'll gain: Application Development, Android (Operating System), Android Studio, Mobile Development, Software Development Tools, Game Design, Computer Programming Tools, Development Environment, Internet Of Things, Embedded Software, Web Servers, Web Applications, USB, Ubuntu, Peripheral Devices, Operating Systems, Software Installation, Command-Line Interface, System Configuration, Hardware Troubleshooting
Mixed · Course · 1 - 3 Months

Fudan University
Skills you'll gain: Game Design, Video Game Development, Conceptual Design, Animation and Game Design, System Design and Implementation, Computer Graphics, Visualization (Computer Graphics), Prototyping, Content Creation, User Experience Design, Storytelling, Creativity
Beginner · Course · 1 - 3 Months