Game Art & Design
Go from player to maker.
Learn everything game-making-- from introductory coding to how to build playable prototypes in CCAD’s Game Art & Design program. You’ll grow your skills inside in the classroom and out as you learn from expert faculty members, visiting professionals, and even your peers in student-led organizations, such as the Game Development Guild, the Battle Game Alliance, and the Tabletop/Role Play Game Club.
As a Game Art & Design student, you’ll take part in community game forums, game jams, and major regional events such as GDEX, the Midwest’s premier gaming expo, and the Origins Game Fair, an annual tabletop gaming convention-- you’ll do it in our hometown, Columbus, ranked the No. 3 city in the Midwest for gaming.
And that’s not all. You’ll have opportunities to make games with real-life impact—like Smokey’s Scouts, a free mobile game created by CCAD students in partnership with the Mid-Atlantic Interstate Forest Fire Protection Compact and USDA Forest Service.
Recent employers
- 360 Alley
- Afroduck Studios
- Arkane Studios
- Artana
- BioWare
- EA (Electronic Arts)
- Game-U
- GuessworkVR
- Insomniac Games
- Legio Vox Studios
- Litteseed.io
- McGraw-Hill Education
- Mindstream Interactive
- Multivarious Games
- Nike
- Trace 3D
- RIOT Games
- Super77 Games
- Super Lame Games
Game Art & Design Student work
Parasocial Parasidse
Garret Dodson
Snack Break
Caden Clingo
Ayla's Repair Shop
Carrigan Reilly
Another Man's Treasure
Sam Toddie & Khang M. Van
The Afterlife Foundation
Stephanie Hyson
Waterwheel
Taylor Smith
Parasocial Parasidse
Garret Dodson
2024
Digital render
Snack Break
Caden Clingo
2024
Digital render
Ayla's Repair Shop
Carrigan Reilly
2024
Digital render
Another Man's Treasure
Sam Toddie & Khang M. Van
2024
Digital render
The Afterlife Foundation
Stephanie Hyson
2023
Video
Waterwheel
Taylor Smith
2023
Video
Game Art & Design hub
Spaces to make
Our campus has the tools and the spaces to help you make your vision real.
Make the virtual real with augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) for prototyping purposes. (Plus, we offer department access to tetherless VR and AR kits.)
Faculty
Meet the people who will help you along your creative and professional journey.
Course Spotlight
Programming for Play
This course introduces students to core game programming concepts through the lens of visual scripting tools. Students explore the fundamentals of game logic and interactivity through hands-on workshops and projects. By the end of the semester, students demonstrate their craft in showcasing 3 game prototypes they’ve programmed and drafted art assets for.
Game Art & Design First Year Experience
Academic Year
Freshman Year - Fall
| Course Title |
|---|
| 2D Creative Practice |
| Systems of Drawing |
| Collaboration |
| Mod Contemporary or Historical Art History |
| Writing and the Arts |
Freshman Year - Spring
| Course Title |
|---|
| Intro to Game Art with History |
| Drawing for Entertainment Design |
| 3D Making with Care |
| Liberal Arts Self and Society Course |
Game Art & Design careers
After earning their BFA in Game Art & Design, our graduates leave ready to take on such roles as:
- Independent/self-published game artist
- Independent/self-published game designer
- Interactive media artist
- 2D/3D game production artist
- Interactive curriculum designer
Game Art & Design News
What could you do in only four weeks’ time? If you’re a Columbus College of Art & Design student, you might just use that time to create—from scratch—an internationally award-winning game with a powerful social message.
