5D001E - Professional Practice 01 Sep 2027 - 23 Aug 2028 | Version 0

Associated Module Information

Module Code: 5D001E
Module Title: Professional Practice
Faculty: Faculty of Business and Creative Industries
Faculty Group: Games and Design
Faculty Sub Group: Games and Design
Module Leader:
Module Team:
First Intended Intake: SEP 2027 Final Year of Intake:
Date Closed:
Credit Value: 60 Credit Level: 5
Language: English
Percentage of Module Taught in Welsh: 0
Equivalent Module:
HECOS codes: 101268 - computer games design
HECOS Code Weighting: 100

Document Version Information

Version 0
Valid From 01 Sep 2027
Valid To 23 Aug 2028

Module Aims

  • To provide students with experience of working as part of a professional development team in response to an industry or professionally contextualised brief. 

  • To develop students’ understanding of professional games production and public-facing presentation, including collaboration, communication, planning, iteration, milestone delivery, audience, market context, basic budgeting, publishing and individual accountability. 

  • To develop students’ ability to investigate, critically analyse and communicate specialist knowledge in a chosen area of professional games practice through an approved Student Choice format, preparing them for independent and student-directed work at Level 6. 

Content Summary

This module provides a sustained professional practice experience where students work as part of a development team to respond to an industry or professionally contextualised challenge. Students plan, develop, publish and present a substantial game project, applying design, technical, production and communication skills within a structured studio environment. 

Emphasis is placed on professional working methods, including role responsibility, collaboration, production planning, milestone delivery, communication, critique, playtesting, iteration and response to feedback. Students manage scope, contribute reliably to a shared project, and evidence their individual contribution within the wider team process. 

For the first time in the course, students consider their game as a public-facing product. This includes identifying an audience, considering market context, preparing presentation materials, basic budgeting and resource planning, asset licensing, release-readiness, and publishing or presenting the game through a platform such as itch.io.  

Alongside the practical project, students complete a Student Choice assessment in which they investigate a self-selected specialist area of professional games practice. Students may choose from an approved range of formats, but all submissions must demonstrate research-informed analysis, critical engagement with relevant sources, and clear communication of specialist knowledge. This supports progression into more independent critical, reflective and research-informed work at Level 6. 

Learning and Teaching Methods

Activity Type Hours
Lecture 10
Seminar 14
Practical Classes and Workshops and supervised studio learning 88
Formative Assessment (scheduled) 10
Guided Learning 30
Groupwork (Unscheduled) 60
Formative Assessment and feedback (Unscheduled) 20
Independent/self-directed study 248
Summative Assessment (Scheduled) 120
Total Hours Selected 600

Learning Outcomes

# Learning Outcome
LO1 Demonstrate professional practice within a development team, including communication, role responsibility, production planning, flexibility and accountability.
LO2 Apply appropriate design, production and publishing processes to produce and present a substantial game project in response to an industry or professionally contextualised brief.
LO3 Investigate, analyse and communicate research-informed specialist knowledge relevant to a chosen area of professional games practice through an approved Student Choice assessment format.

Module Requisites

N/A

Assessment Criteria

Assessment Category Assessment Type Description Duration Word Count Weight (%) Best of? Pass Mark
Asynchronous Assessment Portfolio Substantial playable game project with supporting production evidence, role/contribution evidence, milestone documentation, playtesting, audience/market consideration, basic budgeting/resource planning, publishing materials and reflection. 0 N/A 80 No 40
Asynchronous Assessment Student Choice Student Choice assessment equivalent to 2,400 words. Approved formats may include written work, presentation, video essay, podcast, web page/wiki, critical commentary or other agreed format. All formats must address the same learning outcome, use appropriate research/sources, meet the same assessment criteria and represent equivalent workload. 0 N/A 20 No 40

Assessment Matrix

Assessment Type Learning Outcomes
LO1 LO2 LO3
Portfolio ✔ ✔ ✘
Student Choice ✘ ✘ ✔

Reading List

  • Fullerton, T. (2019) Game Design Workshop: A Playcentric Approach to Creating Innovative Games. 4th edn. Boca Raton: CRC Press.  

  • Salen, K. and Zimmerman, E. (2004) Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.  

  • Schell, J. (2019) The Art of Game Design: A Book of Lenses. 3rd edn. Boca Raton: CRC Press.  

  • Swink, S. (2009) Game Feel: A Game Designer’s Guide to Virtual Sensation. Burlington: Morgan Kaufmann.  

  • Zubek, R. (2020) Elements of Game Design. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.  

  • Bogost, I. (2011) How to Do Things with Videogames. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.  

  • Costikyan, G. (2013) Uncertainty in Games. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.  

  • Juul, J. (2005) Half-Real: Video Games between Real Rules and Fictional Worlds. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.  

  • Macklin, C. and Sharp, J. (2016) Games, Design and Play: A Detailed Approach to Iterative Game Design. Boston: Addison-Wesley.  

  • Anthropy, A. and Clark, N. (2014) A Game Design Vocabulary: Exploring the Foundational Principles Behind Good Game Design. Upper Saddle River: Addison-Wesley.  

  • Zimmerman, E. (2003) ‘Play as Research: The Iterative Design Process’, in Laurel, B. (ed.) Design Research: Methods and Perspectives. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.Macklin, C., & Sharp, J. (2016). Games, Design and Play: A Detailed Approach to Iterative Game Design. Boston, MA: Addison-Wesley. 

  • Fullerton, T., Swain, C., & Hoffman, S. (2004). Game Design Workshop: Designing, Prototyping, and Playtesting Games. San Francisco, CA: CMP Books. 

  • De Koven, B., & Gramazio, H. (2020). The Infinite Playground: A Player’s Guide to Imagination. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. 

  • Zubek, R. (2020). Elements of Game Design. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. 

  • Isbister, K. (2017). How Games Move Us: Emotion by Design. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. 

  • Taylor, S., & Lowthorpe, C. (2017). Punk Playthings: Provocations for 21st Century Game Makers. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press. 

  • Kaitila, C. (2012). The Game Jam Survival Guide. Birmingham: Packt Publishing. 

  • Knapp, J. (2016). Sprint: How to Solve Big Problems and Test New Ideas in Just Five Days. London: Transworld Publishers. 

  • Reynolds, G. (2012). Presentation Zen: Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery (2nd ed.). Berkeley, CA: New Riders. 

  • Parkin, S. (2015). Death by Video Game. London: Serpent’s Tail. 

  • Recommended Newer Additions (2020–2025) 

  • Kultima, A. (2021). Game Design Praxiology. Tampere University Press. 

  • Anthropy, A. (2023). The State of Play: Creators and Critics on Video Game Culture. Seven Stories Press. 

  • Sharp, J. (2022). Works of Game: On the Aesthetics of Games and Art. MIT Press. 

  • Rogers, S. (2024). Level Up! The Guide to Great Video Game Design (3rd ed.). Wiley. 

  • Salen, K. and Zimmerman, E. (2004) Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals. 

  • Zubek, R. (2020) Elements of Game Design. 

  • Schell, J. (2019) The Art of Game Design: A Book of Lenses. 

  • Fullerton, T. (2018) Game Design Workshop. 

  • Totten, C. W. (2019) An Architectural Approach to Level Design. 

  • Koster, R. (2013) Theory of Fun for Game Design.