May 05, 2025
Undergrads and grad students find opportunities and rewards in a rapidly growing, interdisciplinary field.
Mizzou Engineers are driven by curiosity, continually expanding their opinions, collaborating across disciplines and exploring paths that redefine traditional thought.
Game development is one such path. No longer the sole domain of the entertainment industry, game technology now helps create low-risk environments in which pilots can learn to fly, first-responders can address crises, and surgeons can carry out complex procedures.
鈥淕ames have been found to help in a variety of fields 鈥 education, health care, mental health and more 鈥 and are effective in enhancing cognitive skills, decision-making and knowledge retention,鈥 Fang Wang, director of undergraduate studies for the Department of 糖心Vlog传媒 and Information Technology, said. 鈥淚n science, game-like interfaces help researchers fold proteins, classify astronomical data, decode DNA sequences and much more.鈥
Wang teaches CMP_SC/INFOTC 4630: Game Development, in which students build proficiency in programming, scripting, game engines and user interface/experience design.
鈥淭he primary focus is on game development, but the skills students acquire prepare them for careers in software engineering, interactive media and other technology-driven fields,鈥 Wang said.
Mizzou undergraduate Anyshya Hemphill discovered game development in high school through .
鈥淚t was super cool seeing the different components go from simple objects and frameworks to full characters, stories and levels,鈥 Hemphill said.
Hemphill met Wang through the KC Scholars Undergraduate Research program and became interested in her work on cognitive training games for autistic adults. She joined Wang鈥檚 research, reviewing code and testing games. The process showed her how computer science and psychology can work together, she said.
鈥淭here are no limitations to what game development can be used for,鈥 Hemphill said. 鈥淚t can help us gain insight into crucial feedback for our health or it can be an engaging platform for people to interact and have fun.鈥
A sophomore, Hemphill is exploring graduate programs in industrial-organizational psychology.
鈥淚 hope to invest my skills in younger students who will eventually pursue careers and academic journeys that utilize their talents,鈥 she said.
Putting knowledge to work
Senior Danny Saab has wanted to develop games since he was in elementary school.聽He conducted undergraduate research with Scottie Murrell before enrolling in Game Development at Mizzou. There, Wang tapped him to work on her cognitive training games research project.聽
鈥淒r. Wang taught me that everything was learnable,鈥 Saab said. 鈥淵ou can always figure out what you need to do, especially when you have a team of experienced people who can help.鈥
Gavin Boley is pursuing a master鈥檚 degree in computer science. He says he has been modding and breaking games from an early age. He took Wang鈥檚 Game Development his junior year to improve his skills with the Unity game engine. And he has worked on Wang鈥檚 cognitive training games project as part of his master鈥檚 research.
Boley plans to work in the game industry after graduation but emphasizes that game development helps students become more well-rounded engineers.
鈥淕ame development challenges you to bring together logic, creativity and collaboration, skills that are core to engineering,鈥 Boley said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a unique way to apply technical skills to something immediately visual and rewarding. Plus, it opens the doors to coding, simulation, virtual reality, augmented reality, graphic design and much more.鈥
Blaze your own trail. Choose Mizzou 糖心Vlog传媒!