What is the best and less expensive online college 2 study video game design?

Question

What is the best and less expensive online college 2 study video game design?

Answer 1

I agree with the above poster – good and cheap usually don’t go together.  That said, there actually isn’t a “best” school when it comes to game design, so your options a bit more open.

First off, avoid any school or program with “game” in the title.  They're either 100% art and no design whatsoever, or they won't prepare you any better than a "normal" college would.  The only exceptions to this are the Masters program at Carnegie Mellon, and possibly USC's undergrad program.  Avoid everything else like the plague.  

Other than that, you can go to any good 4 year college and major in whatever you want.  Just pick a major that you enjoy and that will allow you graduate as quickly as possible.  Along with your major take math up through Calculus 1, and at least two courses in Statistics, two courses in writing, one Computer Science course, and one art course.  Math and writing are the main tools of a designer, and the CS and art courses will help you work with your programmer and artist colleagues later on.  Fill up the rest of your course requirement with a wide liberal arts education -- history, literature, mythology, sociology, psychology, etc, are all useful in game design.



If at all possible, go to school near a city with a lot of game studios, like Los Angeles, San Francisco, Austin, Seattle, etc.  Most game companies will not pay for relocation for an entry level job, and some won't even interview you if you don't live in the area, so it'll be a lot easier to find a job after college if you already live near several studios.  There's a map here: http://gamedevmap.com/ that lists every game studio by city.  Try to find a college in a city with at least 10 game companies.

Answer 2

Good and cheap are generally mutually exclusive when it comes to college.