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Acquire the globally in-demand skills necessary to succeed as a writer in the fast-growing world of video games.
As the gaming industry matures, excellence in writing and game narrative has become increasingly important to the success of both major studio titles and independent games. Through this interactive medium, writers and game developers are telling stories in new and exciting ways. To meet this need, studios are hiring increasing numbers of writers and narrative designers.
In this Professional Certificate Program, you’ll learn the tools and techniques of writing for video games in a comprehensive program designed by successful, working game writers and teachers. From story and character development to worldbuilding and interactive narrative, this Certificate will help you excel in a business that requires creative, flexible team players.
If you choose the verified track, you will gain additional access to interviews with game industry experts as well as targeted writing assignments that will help you build a portfolio of work suitable for applying to a wide variety of industry positions, or assist you in moving into a writing role in an existing video game company. In our final course, Working as a Game Writer, verified learners will receive direct feedback from our faculty on their final portfolios.
UBC’s School of Creative Writing has been a global leader in writing education for more than 50 years. We are innovative pioneers of multi-genre writing instruction, both in-class and online, and have been offering courses in video game writing since 2017.
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Courses under this program:
Course 1: Video Game Writing EssentialsLearn the essentials of writing for video games, from how games are developed and what game writers do, to the ways game stories differ from other kinds of stories.
Course 2: Writing Video Game CharactersLearn how to make effective, memorable video game characters, from protagonists and antagonists to NPCs.
Course 3: Writing Video Game Scenes and DialogueLearn the fundamentals of writing cinematics, cutscenes, and in-game dialogue.
Course 4: Worldbuilding for Video GamesLearn the fundamentals of building video game worlds, from a writer’s perspective.
Course 5: Interactive NarrativeLearn how to use player choice and interactivity to create compelling game experiences
Course 6: Working as a Game WriterLearn what it takes to work as a video game writer: from resumes to writing tests to contracts and NDAs.