New video games and digital arts labs to support teaching and research

University invests in new labs for video games and digital arts

Abertay University has launched new leading-edge lab spaces to support teaching and research activities for video games design and digital art. 

The new Competitive Games Lab and Wacom Cintiq Lab have been added to Abertay’s national Centre for Excellence in Computer Games Education, bringing the latest, industry-standard equipment and facilities onto campus for students and research staff. 

Kitted with 20 high-specification gaming PCs, the Competitive Games Lab will provide a space where games can be play-tested by designers and researchers, including a focus on accessibility features for gamers with additional needs. The lab will be used to lead research across a range of themes relevant to the games industry, including how to defend esports events from cyberattacks and strategies to promote a positive and inclusive culture in what is a traditionally male-dominated sector.

Academics will also use the space to explore how in-game dynamics can be used to increase the time that online games players interact with others of similar abilities, potentially improving both user experience and profitability. 

Featuring 20 specialist digital arts tablets, the Cintiq Lab is affiliated with tablet manufacturer Wacom, the leading industry supplier. Predominantly used for teaching on degree programmes, the lab will teach students how to create and edit their artwork using interactive styli and incorporate their designs into games.

The agreement with Wacom means Abertay students are learning on the very latest machines, preparing them on the tools they will use in the games industry after graduation.   

The new labs were funded as part of a wider project that has used proceeds from the sale of disused buildings to reinvest in key areas of campus, with additional funding of £41,000 provided by Dundee City Council through the UK Government’s Shared Prosperity Fund. 

The unveiling of the new labs followed a separate recent investment in a Virtual Production Research Environment, used for teaching and research linked to the growing virtual production industry for games, film, theatre and television. 

Principal and Vice Chancellor, Professor Liz Bacon said: “As Europe’s top ranked university for video games design we are committed to investing in the very best laboratories and equipment to support our work in teaching, research and knowledge exchange, and to ensure that our graduates have the skillset that industry needs and expects. The video games industry is an important economic driver for Dundee, Scotland and the UK and it’s vital that we keep investing – both at individual institution and government level – if we are to keep pace with the many other competitors in games clusters across the globe. Our sincere thanks go to Dundee City Council for supporting the creation of these leading-edge spaces which will be an asset to Abertay and the city.” 

Councillor Mark Flynn, Leader of Dundee City Council said: “Abertay University plays a crucial role in Scotland’s video games sector, making an important contribution to the national economy and supporting a significant number of highly skilled jobs. The university’s work is fundamental to maintaining and growing the success of Dundee in the digital industries and we are very pleased to have been able to contribute to the development of this first-rate new accommodation for teaching and research.”  

Abertay is the Princeton Review’s top International School for games design and was recently ranked in the UK top 10 for student experience by the Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide.