Indie Games Development

COURSE OVERVIEW

Learn to create engaging independent video games.

The casual game market is ever expanding, with more opportunities than ever to launch a career within the games industry or to start up as an indie game developer.

This practical part-time certificate course is for those looking to run their own games business, or want to turn their hobby into a successful career.

Over six months, you’ll explore the contemporary indie games landscape; including game design, creative business, technical development and marketing and promotion, learning how to design, build, produce and distribute your games effectively.

What our students make

screenshot of thumbnails of games available to play online

Visit our games website at https://national-film-tv-school.itch.io/ and you can download and enjoy some of the games our MFA and Certificate students have created at the School!

Turn your passion for games into a successful career

Course Outline

This fully online course will enable you to create your own video games, make you feel ready to launch your independent games business or help to progress your learning to degree level.

The course aims to help you develop and discover your own strengths and areas of interest by drawing on Industry professionals who will share their invaluable knowledge and advice. With live sessions delivered twice a week, you’ll be taught by senior tutors from across the NFTS giving you unparalleled access to some of the best game development teachers in the world. They will also give you advice on how best to move forward with your CV, your career goals or applying to the NFTS to study an MA or MFA.

You will graduate with an insight into practical game development from one of the top film schools in the world with a much more developed and well-rounded understanding of the Industry and how games are made - which will help set you up for a long and successful career in games.

If you complete this course and then successfully secure a place on an NFTS MFA or MA course, we will refund you half the paid certificate course fee on taking up your MFA/MA place at the School.

This course will help you establish your own indie games business with confidence. With 48 taught, online sessions across six months (delivered once per weekday evening and on a weekend morning), you will work both in groups and individually to learn the fundamentals of indie games development.

Over six in-depth modules, you will learn how to design, build, produce and distribute your games effectively to a global audience, whilst completing individual and group assignments.

During the course, you will be required to create games pitches and presentations, game design documents, and to use powerful game development software alongside other students to create a fully playable game.

You will also be required to showcase your completed work to industry. With insightful guidance from tutors, you will further get help on how to prepare for industry, find your creative voice and identify opportunities for building your creative business.

All software used on the course is free, publicly available, and widely used within the contemporary games development community.

This course is open to everyone. We’re looking for people who are passionate and eager to explore the vast career opportunities within indie games development. You should have a good general education, but no other specific educational requirements. You must be 18 or over to apply for the course.

If you have any questions, please email info@nfts.co.uk

Course Fee: £3,975

This is the fee for January 2026 intake.

Please note:

Fees are confirmed/updated in June each year for the following intake date.
A non-refundable deposit of £500 is required against the cost of your fees on confirmation of your place.

The following item(s) should accompany your online application:

Summarise a game idea that you want to make (300 words max.).

Applications will close at 23:59 on the day of the deadline, shown at the top of this page.

FUNDING AVAILABLE

An NFTS Humanitarian Scholarship is available for this course. Students fleeing conflict and persecution and are seeking asylum in the UK, or who hold refugee status in any country are eligible to apply.

Visit our Scholarships page