University of Northampton offers students master's degree in 'serious gaming'

'Serious gaming' aims to educate the wider public through real life issues

Young people are being urged to step away from video games this summer and get outside (Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)

If you’re serious about gaming – really serious – then the University of Northampton might just have the course for you.

The university will offer an MSc, on the one year course, called Computing (Serious Games), targeted at those who want to take their gaming skills and knowledge to the next level.

‘Serious gaming’ is the term used to describe games which are used as a tool to educate the wider public, and they also resemble real life.

Dr Scott Turner, a professor at Northampton, said: “There are a lot of game courses. This is one where we are just focusing on serious games rather than the more traditional games. So it is quite an unusual course in that respect. I think it’s a growing market.”

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Describing how the goal of education games is not to just to play a game as an entertainment game, he added: “They have to have all the things you’d expect from a good game.”

So, why are they called ‘serious’? These games aren’t for those who immerse themselves for hours in games like Destiny or FIFA, and the course is catered to those who want to create a game that can have a large impact on everyday life.

Examples include FloodSim which is a simulation game that informs people who live in the UK about the dangers of floods, or World Without Oil which aims to show people what life would be without oil.

Dr Turner said he hopes the course is going to appeal to those that want to do something a little bit different with their games experience, or to those who come in from different areas, and would like to pick up some experience in games technology in their subject area.

So, if you like gaming and want to head in that direction, Northampton is ready for you.