GDC Courses

What Can Game Designers Learn from Competitive Reality Shows

Explores how competitive reality shows can inform game design through strategic gameplay, emergent narrative, and complex player experiences.

• YouTube
• 32 minutes
• Self-Paced
• Conference Talk

Playtesting - God of War

How playtesting shaped the development of God of War (2018), from the perspective of the game's developers.

• YouTube
• 1 hour 2 minutes
• Self-Paced
• Conference Talk

Press Y to Cry - Generating Emotions in Videogame Narrative

Explores narrative models and interaction designs that deepen emotional experiences during videogame play.

• YouTube
• 32 minutes
• Self-Paced
• Conference Talk

Beyond the Remake of Shadow of the Colossus - A Technical Perspective

A technical look at how classic games are remastered, refurbished, and remade, from God of War Collection to Shadow of the Colossus.

• YouTube
• 1 hour 4 minutes
• Self-Paced
• Conference Talk

The Impossible Quest - Getting a Job in Games

Microtalks reveal how game companies approach hiring and how developers navigate obstacles to careers in the games industry.

• YouTube
• 49 minutes
• Self-Paced
• Conference Talk

Genshin Impact - Crafting an Anime-Style Open World

A GDC session on how Genshin Impact developed its anime style, character and stage design, and production pipeline for an open-world game.

• YouTube
• 27 minutes
• Self-Paced
• Conference Talk

Studio Design - Building a Foundation for Success and Avoiding Business Disaster

Explore business design fundamentals for building game studios on a sound foundation and avoiding business failure.

• YouTube
• 57 minutes
• Self-Paced
• Conference Talk

Lessons Learned in the Trenches - Developing Games as a Service

A studio director’s lessons from building and running Fallout 76, Battlecry, and other games as a service.

• YouTube
• 1 hour 10 minutes
• Self-Paced
• Conference Talk

Squad Coordination in Days Gone

An inside look at how Days Gone coordinated groups of AI in combat.

• YouTube
• 54 minutes
• Self-Paced
• Conference Talk

Developing a UX Mindset on Fortnite

Explores how adopting a UX mindset and understanding the human brain informed the development of Fortnite.

• YouTube
• 35 minutes
• Self-Paced
• Conference Talk

The Resilient Job Hunt - Addressing the Well of Doubts

Panelists demystify game-industry hiring and share discipline-specific job-search advice and personal stories of breaking into the industry.

• YouTube
• 59 minutes
• Self-Paced
• Conference Talk

Immersing with Music - Approaches to Musical Storytelling in 'Cyberpunk 2077'

Game composers share creative approaches to using music for immersion and storytelling in Cyberpunk 2077.

• YouTube
• 43 minutes
• Self-Paced
• Conference Talk

LUTious Color - Grading for Games

Introduction to color grading analytics and techniques for games.

• YouTube
• 29 minutes
• Self-Paced
• Conference Talk

Puzzle Game Magic Secrets

Explores puzzle game design through the lens of human cognition.

• YouTube
• 1 hour 1 minute
• Self-Paced
• Conference Talk

Making the Believable Horses of 'Red Dead Redemption II'

How Rockstar Games made the horses in Red Dead Redemption II believable and central to the player’s experience.

• YouTube
• 51 minutes
• Self-Paced
• Conference Talk