These programs prepare you for more than just making games. Our alumni are the next generation of leaders, entrepreneurs, computer scientists, writers, artists, animators, engineers, and more. Get started on a pathway to college and career—through game design.
PERIOD: Summer (July 6 – August 14, 6 weeks)
SCHEDULE: Monday-Friday, 10am-5pm
LOCATION: Learning Lab or online
COST: No cost
Kickstart your enrollment in Game Academy with our accelerated summer course. Learn C# coding, pixel art, animation, music & storytelling through game development in a fun, accelerated computer science course that prepares you for creative STEM college programs. Summer students can skip ahead to the 3D course in the fall.
Applications are open: Sign-up for a virtual infosession to start your application process.
PERIOD: Summer (2 weeks)
COST: No cost
LOCATION: Online
SCHEDULE: Two options, both meeting online in three-hour sessions, M, T, W, Th, + F, for two weeks:
Get a taste of game design! In partnership with Endless Access, Urban Arts is piloting a free, two-week virtual game design sprint for high school students this summer. In StoryQuest Camp, an instructor will lead your class meetings online as you design original game levels, create your own characters, ship a completed project in Godot, and then present it in a virtual showcase. Students who complete the program earn an industry-recognized microcredential through the collaboration between Endless Access and the ASU Endless Games and Learning Lab.
PERIOD: Summer (July – Aug)
SCHEDULE: 4 Thursdays (7/16, 7/23, 7/30, or 8/6)
COMMITMENT: 10am-5pm, choose 1 or more days
LOCATION: online
COST: No cost
Advanced Game Academy students and recent alumni are invited to attend any of four day-long summer game jams, hosted in our Discord server. Each Dev Dash has a unique creative challenge to inspire teams to quickly design, develop, publish, and present a new game prototype within one day. Just choose which Dev Dash you want to join and we’ll see you there! This is a great opportunity to add more work to your digital portfolio.
PERIOD: Summer (July 6 – July 17, 2 weeks)
SCHEDULE: Monday-Friday, 10am-5pm
LOCATION: Learning Lab
COST: No cost
Leveraging AI, Founders Lab is an incubator track where students apply their skills from Game Academy to build a startup from scratch. With support from industry experts and entrepreneurial insights, you will receive access to cutting-edge tools and learn about pitching, marketing, product-market fit, and business planning. The program concludes with a Demo Day where you show the completed product you created.
PERIOD: School Year (Oct-June)
SCHEDULE: After school or Saturdays
COMMITMENT: 6 hours per week
LOCATION: Learning Lab or online
COST: No cost
Urban Arts Game Academy is an award-winning, multi-level game design and computer science program for high school students. The first level of Game Academy is 2D Game Development, where you will create the art, music, story, and code for your own 2D games with Unity3D. From there, you can choose your next adventure in the program!
Applications will open in August 2026.
PERIOD: School Year (Oct-June)
SCHEDULE: After school or Saturdays
COMMITMENT: 6 hours per week
LOCATION: Learning Lab or online
COST: No cost
After completing the 2D Game Dev course, you can level up your programming skills within the Unity3D engine, while working in small teams to create 3D games. Coursework includes advanced C# coding, art and animation with Blender, and version control with GitHub.
PERIOD: School Year (Oct-June)
SCHEDULE: Tuesdays after school
COMMITMENT: 3 hours per week
LOCATION: Learning Lab
COST: No cost
Play Lab is a year-long, college-level course challenging students to design and program four original game prototypes that grow in scope and complexity. Through creative prompts and mentorship, you will strengthen technical and project management skills while exploring your unique design voice.
PERIOD: School Year (Oct-June)
SCHEDULE: Thursdays after school + Saturdays
COMMITMENT: 9 hours per week
LOCATION: Hybrid (online and in-person)
COST: No cost
In Studio, you will take your expertise from earlier classes to develop a capstone game within your own indie game studio! Be the lead programmer, creative director, digital artist, narrative, or music designer, among many other roles needed in a game design team. Meet industry mentors, get help with college apps, and present your game at local events.
PERIOD: Varies
LOCATION: Learning Lab
COST: No cost
Rising high school seniors are invited for intensive college access workshop. You will hear from college admissions officers and build your college list, craft personal statements, resumes, and other application materials—gaining key skills for both college and career success.
PERIOD: Spring Break (3 days)
SCHEDULE: April 7 – 9, 10am-4pm
LOCATION: Learning Lab
COST: No cost
Brand new to game design? Remix your own platformer arcade game with original art, music, and characters in 3 days during spring break. Get hands-on with industry game development tools, including Unity3D.
This program is no longer accepting new applications.
In all levels of Game Academy, you will have opportunities to connect with the local and national gaming community, as well as leading tech and media companies through field trips, mentoring days, and participation in industry events.
100% of Urban Arts Game Academy seniors are accepted into college programs. Through our College Access services, including one-on-one guidance, workshops, and summer programs, we’ve helped our students earn over $46 million in college scholarships since 2017.
We are committed to reducing the barriers you may have to participating in our program.
