Advance your gaming career. Learn to create stunning, inspiring worlds while gaining the skills you need with the fundamentals of game design using Unreal Engine. No prior experience is necessary.
Suggested by: Coursera (What is Coursera?)
No prior knowledge required
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This professional certificate is designed for anyone interested in developing a strong foundational understanding of game design. Learners will gain a deep understanding of the fundamentals of game design, using the Unreal Engine as a tool, level design, blueprinting, visual and audio development, and user experience (UX) and user interface (UI) design. Each course includes hands-on learning through exercises and projects that build on each other in preparation for a final thesis project. Learners who complete the certificate will gain a balance of theory and practice in designing games using the Unreal Engine.
Hands-on Learning Project
This certificate gives learners the opportunity to practice their skills in the Unreal Engine through hands-on assessments, graded and ungraded exams, and a final course project. The course is taught by industry professionals, and the skills learners will gain from these projects range from project management and planning to world building, sound effects, level design, blueprinting, UX, UI, and prototyping.
This certificate includes:
10+ practical assessments (tests and hands-on learning)
8 measured assessments (tests and practical learning)
8 practical projects
The final project combines all courses. The learner creates a delivery game. The overall theme and type of game can be customized. The learner will also choose the perspective and art style to use for the prototypes. The final project builds on the projects from courses 5 and 6 and uses the skills and toolkits from courses 1 through 4.
Course 1 • 18 hours
This course introduces the fundamentals of video games and delves into the complex art of game design, exploring concepts from generating original game ideas to writing comprehensive design documents. Throughout the modules, learners will discover the iterative development process, emphasizing the importance of teamwork and reflection as essential components in creating engaging interactive experiences.
This course is designed for learners of any experience level who are interested in an initial introduction to the video game industry.
Course 2 • 21 hours
Welcome to the Unreal Engine Fundamentals course: your gateway to the world of game design using Unreal Engine 5. In this introductory course, we equip you with the essential skills to navigate Unreal Engine from new use to proficient game design.
We’ll walk you through setting up your account, downloading the engine, and getting to know the interface. Then, we’ll explore Quixel Megascans, importing assets, materials, world building, lighting, sound, and source control. Throughout the course, you’ll learn to sculpt engaging environments, implement dynamic lighting, basic audio effects, and successfully collaborate with teammates using source control.
This course is designed for learners who are interested in understanding the basics of the Unreal Engine service. No prior experience with Unreal Engine is required to participate in this course.
Course 3 • 11 hours
In this course, embark on an adventure into the heart of game design through our Level Design course. Discover the art and theory that shapes player experiences, examining real-game examples to understand the nuances of level design.
Craft your level design skills for different game scenarios, creating personalized design documents that foster collaborative team efforts. Dive into the collaborative process, mastering the creation of comprehensive-level design documents that ensure a shared vision among team members.
Experience the hands-on transformation of your conceptual-level sketches into playable environments using Unreal Engine. Explore the greyboxing process with Unreal Engine’s tools, and follow best practices to bring your levels to life with lighting and traversal.
By the end of the course, you’ll confidently apply level design theory, turning your creative ideas into tangible results in Unreal Engine. This course is intended for learners who are interested in learning an introduction to level design without having any experience.
Course 4 • 20 hours
The Visual Blueprint scripting system in Unreal Engine is a visual programming language that uses a node-based interface to create game elements. The node-based workflow provides designers with a wide range of programming concepts and tools that are generally considered to be for programmers only.
This course introduces students to the Visual Blueprint scripting system. Participants will learn the basics of Blueprint, how it relates to C++, and programming principles in Blueprint, and use their knowledge to create an interactive door for a video game.
Course 5 • 10 hours
In this course, you will be exposed to visual development and sound design for games. You will learn about 3D modeling, animation, visual effects (VFX), and sound effects (SFX).
The course covers a variety of art-related topics that will assist you in the process of designing, prototyping, and visualizing new ideas.
Course 6 • 9 hours
Unleash the full potential of your design skills with our comprehensive course on User Interface (UI) in Unreal Engine! Designed for game developers and aspiring UI designers, this course equips you with fundamental and advanced techniques for creating intuitive and engaging interfaces.
Dive into effective UI design principles, from minimalist and modular approaches to understanding programming paradigms. Get hands-on experience with Unreal Engine’s UMG, learn to distinguish between the designer graph and the code graph, and master the fundamentals of UI creation.
Course 7 • 9 hours
