UCSC adds video game major to its curriculum

The class of 2010 will have a new major to consider when they hit the UCSC campus for the first time this fall: video game design. The University of California, Santa Cruz will be the first school in the UC system to offer this prestigious degree.

The major, which leads to a bachelor's degree in computer science, will focus on the technical, artistic and narrative elements of games, highlighted by a yearlong game-design project. UCSC will be adding a state-of-the-art computer lab to its campus to compliment the new major and has recruited gaming guru professor, Michael Mateas, noted for his most recent project, Façade.

Barry Spencer, a Santa Cruz resident and technology entrepreneur, has suggested that the major sounds more like a marketing ploy to lure students (to learn) than a program that will give graduates a 1-up in the job market.