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The game program at Michigan State University is the #1 ranked public university for game design by Princeton Review (#7 overall). The program includes an undergraduate major, interdisciplinary minor, and graduate programs, as well as a host of research and development activities.

The Games and Interactive Media major provides our students a shared foundational core with extensive depth of knowledge in several areas related to games and interactivity, including: art, design, programming, and production, as well as the history, social impact, and business of games. Students also gain valuable skills in communicating and collaborating in team-based projects while building a strong portfolio of games. We partner with top game studios around the country to provide an authentic, real-world experience in our coursework. Learning is project-based, resulting in a portfolio of small and large projects that reflects a broad variety of work. Our students consistently produce high quality content and many have received awards for their creations.

Upon graduation, students will be prepared for careers within the interactive media industries, including the game industry. Our alumni work as game designers, technical designers, technical artists, programmers, artists, animators, concept artists, storytelling/narrative writers, and producers/project managers. Alumni work for some of the largest and most respected game companies in the world (EA, Activision, Ubisoft, Rockstar, Blizzard, Bungie, Insomniac, Iron Galaxy, Volition, Sony Santa Monica, and more).

Learn more at https://games.msu.edu

Game Program

GEL Lab

Meaningful Play Conference

Department of Media + Information

MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY GAMES SHOWCASE

Additional information about the program

Within the program, we have a two-year, cohort-based interdisciplinary program that brings together students from computer science, media and information, and art to create larger group projects.
Through the game courses, students learn the technology, design fundamentals, and development process of digital games along with the history, social impact, and business of games. Students also gain valuable skills in communicating and collaborating in team-based projects while building a strong portfolio of games.
We partner with top game studios to provide an authentic, real-world experience in our capstone course within the game minor. In this course, students work on a semester-long game project while they are guided and mentored by employees of these companies, with a company assigned to each student group.
We offer a West Coast Game Industry Field Experience trip to our students. We visit a number of game studios on this trip, alternating each year between the San Francisco and Los Angeles areas. Our students have the opportunity to meet with development teams, check out game studios, and explore the great sights and sounds of California! The trip is a wonderful experience full of unique networking opportunities, insights into the game design industry, and advice directly from game developers. Students are also highly encouraged to attend the Game Developers Conference at least once during their time in the game program!
We have a strong student game development organization, called Spartasoft that is devoted to helping other students gain skills and experience in game development, guiding students to apply for our cohort-based minor program, and aiding each other in future job placement. This is done through weekly meetings and lectures, at least two 48-hour game development events (game jams) each semester, and guest lectures from industry. We also have many other student organizations related to gaming, including a League of Legends club, Super Smash Brothers club, an Overwatch club, a hackers club, and more.
MSU faculty founded and hosted the international academic conference on Meaningful Play in 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, and upcoming in 2022. Meaningful Play is a conference about theory, research, and game design innovations, principles and practices. Meaningful Play brings scholars and industry professionals together to understand and improve upon games to entertain, inform, educate, and persuade in meaningful ways. In 2018, we had nearly 300 attendees from 30 US states and 12 countries attend the event. This event gives MSU students a unique chance to mix, mingle, and learn from leading researchers and industry veterans.
We integrate as many students as we can within the game research and development projects that are ongoing in the Games for Entertainment and Learning Lab, providing employment and relevant work experience while the students study in the program.