CODE IS ALL ABOUT BUILDING AN ECOSYSTEM WITH PLENTY OF OPPORTUNITIES TO LEARN!
CODE works closely with its partners in education to ensure students of all ages in Ōtepoti – Dunedin can access teaching across a wide range of subjects that will help them get jobs in the industry. And once they’re there, we operate a programme of workshops, masterclasses, meetups and mentorship to help them improve their workplace capabilities.
For the ecosystem to thrive, we need to nurture both industry capability and the skills of our rangatahi.
SCHOOLS
If you’re in Year 7 or 8, then why not join one of the CODE-sponsored after school
Game Dev Clubs? Suitable for all abilities, and it’s not just about programming –
there’s room for people interested in all aspects of making games – design, art,
scripting, sound and so on. For more information head to the Game Dev Club Facebook page.
We’re also hoping to get more active for older age groups as well – look out for
the Otago Polytechnic School Game Jam which usually takes place in early
Summer for Years 12 and 13 students. We’re looking at supporting schools with
curriculum development over the next couple of years to help build pathways to
tertiary education with the aim of joining the burgeoning local games industry.
Over 30% of the new jobs in game development in Aotearoa in the 2022 industry survey were added in Dunedin!
OTAGO POLYTECHNIC
For students interested in careers in game development, there are multiple
options to study at Otago Polytechnic within one of their Whare Mātoro (Otago Game Space) pathways.
For example the Level 4 NZ Certificate in Digital Media and Design may be a qualification to consider - especially as it can also act as a bridge to the two full Level 7 three year degree options:
Bachelor of Design (Communication) for those most interested in the design side (game design, animation, art for example) and the Bachelor of
Information Technology for those more interested in programming skills
(gameplay programming, AI, tools and VFX for example).
For more information jump on the Otago Polytechnic website here.
UNIVERSITY OF OTAGO
There are a many options for students interested in academic studies that can lead to opportunities and employment in the local games industry.
Within the English and Linguistics, Information Science and Computer Science Divisions sit a number of game development and game studies pathways allied within the Digital Humanities Hub.
From courses in Creative Writing for Games and Interactive Media, to Pervasive Computing and Interactive Technologies papers, plus the renowned Computer Game Design paper run as a Summer School
option, there are many pathways to consider.
For more information about your options, you can head to the Digital Humanities Hub.
INDUSTRY CAPABILITY
If you are a game developer in Ōtepoti – Dunedin and you’re not yet on our radar, please hit the Subscribe button to be added to our mailout list.
We run regular workshops and masterclasses on a variety of subjects, which to date have including pitching workshops, game design, lighting, porting from PC to console and many others.
Additionally, we organise targeted mentorship for teams we fund, and occasionally for specific teams who have not yet got a successful funding application across the line.
Get in touch with us or register here for our industry mailing list.
COMMUNITY
CODE encourages all members of the community to get involved! We have sponsored and supported many events such as the International Science Festival, various game dev jams and so on. We’re planning to operate more community facing programmes in future to involve a broader cross-section of Ōtepoti – Dunedin’s creative community to engage with game development as a hobby and potentially a future career or sideline.
CODE supports the regular meetups operated by the Dunedin Game Developers Association (join the Facebook Group or follow CODE on Twitter for more information about the events which take place most months of the year) which are open to interested members of the public and of course students.