Game development courses can help you learn programming languages like C and C++, game design principles, 3D modeling, and animation techniques. You can build skills in level design, user interface creation, and game mechanics implementation. Many courses introduce tools such as Unity and Unreal Engine, that support creating immersive gaming experiences and allow you to apply your skills in real projects.

Michigan State University
Skills you'll gain: Unity Engine, Game Design, Video Game Development, Prototyping, 3D Modeling, Software Design Documents, Peer Review, Cross Platform Development, C# (Programming Language), User Interface (UI), 3D Assets, Software Design, Storytelling, Software Documentation, User Experience Design, Animation and Game Design, Conceptual Design, Computer Graphics, Ideation, Multimedia
Beginner · Specialization · 3 - 6 Months

Epic Games
Skills you'll gain: Unreal Engine, Game Design, Video Game Development, Animation and Game Design, Ideation, 3D Modeling, Visualization (Computer Graphics), Software Documentation, Software Design Documents, 3D Assets, User Experience Design, Computer Graphics, Usability, User Interface (UI), User Experience, User Interface (UI) Design, Interactive Design, Virtual Environment, Version Control, Prototyping
Beginner · Professional Certificate · 3 - 6 Months

University of Colorado System
Skills you'll gain: Object Oriented Design, Unity Engine, Debugging, Object Oriented Programming (OOP), Game Design, Video Game Development, Software Design Patterns, Data Structures, C# (Programming Language), Prototyping, Graph Theory, Computer Programming, Data Management, Event-Driven Programming, Software Architecture, Application Design, Algorithms, Computational Thinking, Data Storage, Application Development
Beginner · Specialization · 3 - 6 Months

University of Colorado System
Skills you'll gain: Unreal Engine, Object Oriented Programming (OOP), C++ (Programming Language), Video Game Development, Debugging, Computer Programming, Event-Driven Programming, Unity Engine, Data Structures, C# (Programming Language), Data Storage, Software Design Patterns, 3D Assets, Development Environment, Game Design, Software Documentation, UI Components, Programming Principles, Software Architecture, Application Development
Intermediate · Specialization · 3 - 6 Months

Epic Games
Skills you'll gain: Game Design, Video Game Development, Prototyping, Unreal Engine, System Design and Implementation, Creativity, User Interface (UI), Storytelling
Beginner · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

Skills you'll gain: Event-Driven Programming, Debugging, Programming Principles, Algorithms, Video Game Development, Computer Programming Tools, Game Design, Computer Programming, Program Development, Animation and Game Design, Interactive Design, Integrated Development Environments, Computer Science
Beginner · Guided Project · Less Than 2 Hours

Skills you'll gain: Unreal Engine, Video Game Development, Animation and Game Design, Game Design, User Interface (UI), Prototyping, Virtual Environment, Virtual Reality, Visualization (Computer Graphics), Simulations, Artificial Intelligence, User Interface (UI) Design, Augmented and Virtual Reality (AR/VR), Animations, Scripting, 3D Assets, Debugging
Intermediate · Specialization · 3 - 6 Months

Skills you'll gain: Event-Driven Programming, Debugging, Game Design, Animation and Game Design, Program Development, Algorithms, Computer Programming, Application Development, Problem Solving, Design, Computer Science
Beginner · Guided Project · Less Than 2 Hours

Skills you'll gain: Unreal Engine, Game Design, Video Game Development, Software Design, HTML and CSS, User Interface (UI), Animations, Debugging, Computing Platforms
Beginner · Course · 1 - 4 Weeks

California Institute of the Arts
Skills you'll gain: Animation and Game Design, Game Design, Animations, Prototyping, Conceptual Design, Video Game Development, Storytelling, Software Design Documents, Ideation, Visualization (Computer Graphics), Storyboarding, Design, Virtual Environment, Art History, Technical Design, Design Elements And Principles, Usability Testing, Creative Design, Design Strategies, Interactive Design
Beginner · Specialization · 3 - 6 Months

Stanford University
Skills you'll gain: Game Theory, Strategic Decision-Making, Mathematical Modeling, Graph Theory, Bayesian Statistics, Behavioral Economics, Probability, Economics, Problem Solving, Algorithms
Beginner · Course · 1 - 3 Months

Skills you'll gain: Prompt Engineering, Software Development Life Cycle, Cloud-Native Computing, Istio, Software Architecture, Kubernetes, CI/CD, Cloud Computing Architecture, Application Deployment, React Redux, Node.JS, Responsive Web Design, Restful API, Django (Web Framework), Git (Version Control System), Server Side, Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), Cloud Computing, Data Import/Export, Engineering Software
Build toward a degree
Beginner · Professional Certificate · 3 - 6 Months
Browse the game development courses below—popular starting points on Coursera.
Yes. Many game development courses offer a free audit option, which allows learners to access video lessons and reading materials at no cost. To complete assignments or earn a certificate, you’ll need to upgrade or apply for financial aid.
You’ll learn how to create game concepts, design levels, write scripts, and bring games to life with tools like Unity and C#. Topics may include physics and animation, user experience, monetization strategies, and the entire game development pipeline.
Not necessarily. Many beginner-friendly courses introduce coding fundamentals alongside game design concepts. However, some familiarity with programming or computer science can help you progress more quickly.