UC Santa Cruz’s (UCSC) Baskin School of Engineering offers revolutionary undergraduate and graduate degree gaming programs within its Computational Media department. We combine award-winning faculty with groundbreaking academic facilities to provide unique, world-class educational experiences to turbocharge your gaming career.
In addition to UCSC’s widely-recognized undergraduate games degrees, we offer two unique Masters programs for game designers, located in the heart of SIlicon Valley. Our Game and Playable Media (GPM) masters program is annually ranked among the top 5 programs in North America, and focuses on designing and developing entertainment games using traditional and modern experiences. Our Serious Games (SG) masters program is the first of its kind in the United States, tailored to designing, developing and analyzing novel games that have the potential for high societal impact, such as learning games, simulations, and health-based
games.
Both Masters programs are project-oriented, span five academic quarters, and immediately immerse students in a simulated professional environment. Surrounded by industry-experienced faculty and guest speakers, students engage in various hands-on activities using state of the art technology. Upon graduation, each student has created a capstone project which perfectly showcases their talents to prospective employers.
Spellcasters
Spellcasters is a VR physical therapy experience aiming to support stroke patients in their quest to regain arm movements. Once inside the game, players perform therapeutic arm exercises while holding a controller, which casts spells inside the game to create gardens. Trace magical spells and get instant feedback in VR. Decorate your own garden and interact with the animals. You can also create your own customized scalable spells. Spellcasters has a multiplayer option so that the stroke patient can play with other people, including other patients, physical therapists, family, and friends.
Wood Joints Cafe
Wood Joints Cafe is a 3D puzzle game based on mortise and tenon joints. In this game, the player matches wood pieces together with corresponding joint types, unlocking story beats as more levels are completed. Throughout the game, players strengthen their spatial awareness abilities, which scientists believe is housed in the posterior parietal cortex area of the brain. These skills are key to building strong foundations in STEM fields.
Block Block
Block Block is a whimsical multiplayer platformer party game with amazing art direction, tight character controls, and a new experience that will make you laugh and bond with friends. Strategically place your blocks to help your character jump and run, grabbing the victory flag at the end of each level before your opponent can. Don’t be shy about blocking their path en route to victory!
Vertical Slice
You are Grace Liang, experienced game programmer, dropped into the disastrous project that is Agency. Through all the flawed ideas, bugs, and bad tempers, you will see the ups and downs of game development firsthand. Will the team succeed in making the greatest game of all time, or will they fail to deliver on their blockbuster hit?
Dear Future
Do you think this place is haunted?
Dear Future is a multiplayer wandering game where you photograph a cryptic city using an inherited camera to help solve a mystery. After your session ends, the next player will receive the camera and continue. What will you pass on to those that come after you?
Knights
Explore the medieval world in a rogue, turn-based RPG experience. Knights, a solo adventure game, entices you to search through a variety of characters so that you can strategize your way to victory. Find the one that expresses your style and suits your strength!
Last Lunar Air
You’re on the moon. Alone and low on air. All you have is your spacesuit and your skateboard. Your final breath approaches … so you might as well go out in style.
Skate your way across the lonely lunar landscape. Grind falling comets, soar over spikes, carve up the craters, and replenish your fleeing air supply with sweet air time. All for that final sky ride, that breathtaking trek, that Last Lunar Air.
Bomblebees
Bumblebees is a PVP party game that fuses realtime, top-down combat with tile-matching puzzle games. Think Bomberman played on top of a Bejeweled board … building combos grants you access to powerful weapons and tools to defeat your foes!
Bond
Bond, a creature collector roguelite, is a fast-paced action game all about befriending forest critters and using their unique abilities in combat to fight against evil forest spirits to protect your precious home!
Al Cielo
Explore the life of a young child who wants to build a rocket ship in AI Cielo, a VR first person exploration puzzle game that explores themes of childhood, escapism, and magical realism!
Homerun Miko
Join Hanani and her fox-spirit guide Kousake on an adventure to combine her passion with her duty to restore balance to the seasons!
Use your trusty baseball bat, throwing arm, and spirit form to bonk snow spirits and solve puzzles. Talk to Housake for help or learn more about the realm of spirits!
