“CARRYING AND CARING“

Caring and Carrying is the guiding theme for both the game concept and the written assignment. Applicants are free to interpret and translate this motif in their own way; however, their approach should be conceptually informed and inspired by the texts linked below, engaging with them as theoretical lenses rather than fixed prescriptions.

You can find the texts by following these links:

You can find the article here:
1. Le Guin, Ursula K. “The Carrier Bag Theory of Fiction.” 1986. In Women of Vision: Essays by Women Writing Science Fiction, edited by Denise Du Pont, St. Martin’s Press. PDF accessed via communityofwriters.org. 

You can find the article here:
2. Moossdorff, Carien, and Joost M. Vervoort. “Beyond Awareness: Climate Games as Invitations to Care for the Future.” Futures 176 (2026): Article 103762. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.futures.2026.103760.

Note: It is advisable to access the web links to see the full content.

Please outline a game concept based on the 2026 theme Carrying and Caring: We encourage you to deliver your concept in a form that suits your ideas and creative abilities in the best way possible. Concepts are accepted in written form (as a pitch document, game design document, etc.), as a visualization (concept art, animation, level mockup, etc.), as a film clip (e.g., a teaser / trailer to the game), or as mixed media. Please refrain from sending us prototypes. Should you create one, please include a link to your gameplay video and/or screenshots.

All presentations should start with a working title and a short description (100 words max), including information on the game genre, platform, target group, basic mechanics, and story (if applicable). We are interested in your vision, the structure and form of the main part of your presentation are therefore up to you. Make us see what´s particularly spectacular about your concept.

A note on the use of AI: Don´t bore the jury with generative, all-the-same-sounding texts. Be authentic.

Please do not exceed five A4 pages of content in your pdf.

The committee should be able to evaluate your application in no more than 5 minutes.

In case you use materials that were not created by yourself, provide the source or credit.

Based on the 2026 theme Carrying and Caring we add the question “How Can Games Reimagine the World?”

Please write a 600-word academic essay with the theme and question as a reference point. Your essay should thoroughly refer to one or both of the two texts provided above and discuss your stance. Feel free to explore additional sources that suit your argumentation. Use any academic standard of your choice for references.

Provide us with a 2-minute max. video, in which you briefly introduce yourself and why you want to study with us. This can be recorded with a basic smartphone setup. Please consider that good lighting (e.g. daylight) and appropriate audio quality will help your message to us come across better.

Please combine both assignments into one PDF and label it as follows:

“BA2026_lastname-firstname.pdf”

This document can include links to audiovisual add-ons like external players (YouTube, Vimeo, browser games). Please make sure that the submitted formats are easily accessible.

You need to upload the PDF to the corresponding field in the online application form. The form needs to be submitted by March 31 at 23:59 CEST at the latest. Please ensure that all documents are complete before you upload your application. We do not accept duplicate applications. Once you submit it, you will receive your applicant number. Keep this number safe! It will be important for the next step of the application process.

After March 31 all applications will be evaluated. A group of selected candidates will be invited to the interview round which will take place between June 2  to June 5. The interview schedule will be posted on our website on May 14. To find out if you have been invited to an interview or not, you will need to look for your applicant number, which will be provided to you in the confirmation mail, after you submitted the application form on the CGL website.

The interviews will be conducted online. 
The interview modality is: Zoom.

Once the interviews are carried out, all accepted and rejected candidates will be informed via email at the end of  June.

Be aware that CGL does not check the formal validity of your diplomas as a formal entrance requirement to TH Köln – University of Applied Sciences. The assessment of your diplomas concerning their formal validity will be conducted by our student registration office after the aptitude assessment (in July). In case you pass our aptitude test, we will offer you more information on this matter.

International Applicants with non-German diplomas

International applicants have to submit their documents to the validation agency Uni-Assist parallel to the CGL application procedure. The deadlines for Uni-Assist submissions are March 31 (BA & MA applicants).

All application documents must be submitted to Uni-Assist as officially certified copies. If your documents are issued in a language other than English or German, you are required to submit a German or English language translation from a state certified translator.

For the winter semester 2026/27 you can apply in digital form at uni-assist, you do not have to send any documents by post. TH Köln reserves the right to check these documents during the enrollment.

We would generally recommend you to prepare and submit your Uni Assist materials early on. The evaluation process by Uni-Assist can take up to four weeks ­during peak times even longer. Your final admission, however, depends on the result of the evaluation.