Sara Quenel

Graduate profile

How does it feel to be graduating?

It鈥檚 a little different for me at I鈥檓 staying on to study an MProf. I do feel a sense of achievement though. I made a game for my honours project and I鈥檓 very proud of it. It鈥檚 a VR detective game where you鈥檙e investigating a murder. I鈥檓 hoping to release it on Steam in the near future.

How challenging is it to develop a VR game?

It鈥檚 different as you don鈥檛 use the same rules as you would with a non-VR game. It鈥檚 more interactive and you can immerse the player into their role more easily than you can on a flat screen. I love VR, and I take every chance that I can to make games in that format.

Why did you decide to study at Abertay?

I鈥檓 originally from France and I鈥檇 originally been studying Computer Programming there, but I wanted to make games. I looked on the Abertay website and I found the Game Design and Production degree and I thought that it was everything that I wanted to do. I decided to leave my degree in France and just come here!

How did you find studying abroad?

When I arrived in Dundee my English wasn鈥檛 very good so I found it a little difficult to understand everyone! The university helped me improve lots of different skills and also gave me the opportunity to be very creative. The lecturers here are great. At some universities and colleges the staff feel distant to the students but that鈥檚 not the case at all here.聽

What advice do you have for other international students?

Don鈥檛 be scared! People here won鈥檛 judge you if you can鈥檛 speak perfect English. Join societies. I had trouble finding friends at first so I joined the Drama Society. It鈥檚 like one big family and everyone there is nice. There are also a lot of other international students who are members so they understand what things are like for you.

What鈥檚 your long term ambition?

I want to make games that people really like. I don鈥檛 have the ambition to work for a large company, I鈥檇 love to work for a small company where I can express my ideas and creativity.