Computer designers, developers and programmers who are interested in creating computer games can use this list of open courseware classes to improve their knowledge of C++ and other computer, technological and mathematical tools. Students also learn about the industry in general by exploring how their targeted audience responds to different games and designs, participates in the industry as consumers, and utilizes different medium to play games. Courses cover game and design theory, modeling, applications, game culture and the future of game art design.

These courses are offered for free from MIT, Utah State University and The University of Southern Queensland. Many of the course pages also direct students to online resources that will supplement their studies. Some of these links include Ecobeaker, Beer Game Online, Stock Market Game, Educational Object Economy, Riverdeep, ExploreScience and others. Certain courses challenge students to participate in class projects that require them to design and create their own games and study other games.

• Media Industries and Systems [MIT] - MIT’s Media Industries and Systems course covers all types of contemporary media systems, and challenges students to understand how marketing, distribution, production, art and technology combine to produce successful, aesthetically pleasing games and designs. Assignments may include readings from books like The Art of Computer Game Design, A Theory of Fun for Game Design, What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy, and others.
• Instructional Games [Utah State University] - Students explore instructional game theory, practice and technology in this course.
• Object-Oriented Programming in C++ [The University of Southern Queensland] - This course introduces C++ to design, development and programming students.
• Game Theory and Mechanism Design [MIT] - Students in this course cover topics like educational games, equilibrium cooperative game theory, network games and more.
• Computer Games and Simulations for Investigation and Education [MIT] - Students learn about modeling, simulation, and how players respond to and benefit from educational games.