Games Research and Education (M.Sc. and Ph.D.)

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Welcome to the Institute of Digital Games, the research and education centre at the University of Malta, focusing on game design, game analysis, and game technology!

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.

Click here to read our annual report for the year 2022/2023.

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

HOMO LUDENS LUDENS (Event, Oct. 22)

October 14, 2024

As part of the XXIV edition of the ‘Settimana della Lingua Italiana’ (Week of the Italian Language ), the Institute of Italian Culture in Valletta is proud to host a panel of game scholars that will explore the theme of “play” in relation to … read more

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Science in the City 2024 - AI-powered learning and …

October 9, 2024

The annual Science and the City Festival connects research with science on the bastions of Valletta. Curious visitors were able to interact with some of the ongoing research at the Institute of Digital Games such as a recycling data-game, eye-tracking … read more

Innovative AI research by Institute of Digital Games …

October 7, 2024

IDG PhD students Nemanja Rasajski and Chintan Trivedi won the NVIDIA Best Paper Award at the 2024 European Conference on Computer Vision, where their innovative approach addressed the one of the big challenges of AI - namely having AI models understand … read more

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Research in Player Modelling presented at the ACII …

September 21, 2024

Four staff members of the Institute of Digital Games attended the 12th International Conference on Affective Computing & Intelligent Interaction, which took place in Glasgow, Scotland during September 15-18, 2024. Matthew Barthet … read more

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'The Videogame that is the World' (a NEW BOOK)

August 30, 2024

Il Videogioco del Mondo ('The Videogame that is the World', 2024) is a new book by our Prof. Stefano Gualeni! It is a philosophical essay written for a general audience (in ITALIAN) and published by the prestigious publishing house Time0 … read more

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'Night Parade of 100 Demons' in Japan - Dr. …

August 13, 2024

Kyoto, Japan: Dr. Costantino Oliva completed an extensive research visit in Kyoto, Japan. The visit involved a diverse set of activities, including participation in an art exhibition, the debut of a new game during a local game developer meet-up, partaking in … read more