Games Architecture (Level 6)
Students are introduced to the different software architectures that can be used to design and implement game engines. This starts with comparisons and evaluation of alternative designs that follow onto a discussion of the useful design principles of inheritance-based designs that are then utilised and expanded into component-based game engines like the Entity-Component-System architecture. Considerations of Modularity are explored in detail. Appropriate design patterns and their uses in modern games architectures are discussed, compared and evaluation.
Students are also introduced to the different hardware architectures that are currently used in console and PC platforms. Discussions and considerations of current technologies will include CPU architectures and technologies, bottlenecks and their solutions including bandwidth considerations and mobile device architecture considerations, and the asset pipeline.
Honours Stage Project (level 6)
Students on this module design, implement, test, critique and manage a project throughout their level 6 year. The projects are numerous and different, but all students have a project supervisor who guides the students throughout the ir project. The outcome artifact of the project is a usable software produce and a these report.
Communicating and Teaching Computing (Level 6)
This module enables students to undertake a placement in a school, college or other educational establishment where they can develop practical teaching and communication skills, as well as extending their knowledge of the education process. These skills are valued by employers, whether students are interested in potentially going on to train or teach others or not. Students will also have the opportunity to develop an educational project to demonstrate their skills in practice.
Commercial Development Practice (Level 7)
This module has several objectives and benefits, chiefly to allow students to demonstrate their all-round ability as a software professional in tackling a substantial piece of software design and development work within a commercial context using contemporary commercial practices. Students are expected to demonstrate technical, quality control, project management and general customer relationship skills and to bring the task to a successful conclusion. The work undertaken in the project is designed to help students acquire experience in general professional activities and commercial skills which helps improve student employability.