Games research and education (M.Sc. and Ph.D.)

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The Institute of Digital Games is the centre for research and education in game design, game analysis, and game technology at the University of Malta.

Our work is at the forefront of innovative games research. We explore games and play, uncovering new playful and generative possibilities in game design and technology. We delve into everything games can teach us about ourselves.

Our multidisciplinary academic team spans computer science, literature, game design, philosophy, media studies, and social sciences.

Read our latest report: IDG Annual Report - Academic Year 2021/22

David developed an innovative model for understanding board game involvement for his thesis.

It is an environment roaring with ideas, thoughts, games, prototypes, concepts. It was a period when I felt constantly inspired.

Rebecca is researching narrative in games. As part of her thesis, she developed a choice-driven video game.

Practice in the form of game project assignments and a supportive teaching staff really boost your confidence as a game designer!

The Institute feels like a little community that you're part of.

William's research explored the procedural generation of multi-floor levels for first-person shooters.

Being involved in the research process, I realised how passionate everyone at IDG is about their research.

David C.
Graduated in 2015
Rebecca P.
Graduated in 2017
William C.
Graduated in 2015

Blog What we have been up to lately

Machine Learning and Games: IDG published in IEEE …

November 3, 2018

Machine Learning in the Gaming Industry: Cutting Edge Research at the IDG The Institute of Digital Games is excited to announce that the work of Daniele Gravina, Dr Antonios Liapis, and Prof. Georgios Yannakakis on "Quality Diversity Through … read more

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Location-Based Game in Valletta - Play-testers required

November 2, 2018

Location Based Games 2018 - We're looking for people to help us test a geolocated game in Valletta between 20-23rd November 2018 Would you like to discover stories about Malta’s history, people, culture and language? Would you like to evaluate a … read more

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Insulting with Emotes in Hearthstone: Examining use of …

October 27, 2018

The Institute of Digital Games is thrilled to have Dr Jonne Arjoranta in this academic year's Game Seminar Series with his presentation Insulting with Emotes in Hearthstone: Examining use of communication in an Online Multiplayer Game - 6th November 15:00 at … read more

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Awe, terror and spreadsheets: Video game monsters as …

October 20, 2018

The Institute of Digital Games is thrilled to have Dr. Jaroslav Švelch kick-off this academic years Game Seminar Series with his presentation Awe, terror and spreadsheets: Video game monsters as computational others - 26th October 15:00 … read more

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Sept the. 21st: Game Studies and the Digital Humanities

September 4, 2018

Together with the Centre for the Digital Humanities, and as part of his visiting professorship at the University of Gothenburg, IDG's Stefano Gualeni is organizing a day-long seminar titled 'GAME STUDIES AND THE DIGITAL HUMANITIES'. This … read more

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PhD student work at FDG and CIG conferences

September 1, 2018

The work of IDG Ph.D. student Daniel Karavolos has been presented in two conferences during August 2018: "Using a Surrogate Model of Gameplay for Automated Level Design" was presented in the international conference on Computational Intelligence in Games, in … read more

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  • Staff Work