Need Advice: Ryerson vs. UOIT

[Prognosis]

I've applied to three programs for September and want to know what you guys think. The programs are:
UOIT (Game Development and Entrepreneurship), Ryerson (Computer Science) and York (Computer Science).

UOIT: I applied to UOIT because I'm interested in game development and figured I would meet interesting people and enjoy this program more. On the other hand, I have searched the web extensively and have not been able to find many opinions from people who are in this program. I also looked at some of the games people have created there, and I was not impressed at all. Here is a link: http://gamedev.squarespace.com/studentprojects/ (Keep in mind this is 1-3 years into the program mostly) The projects found here seem to be mainly racers in second year and platformers in first year that seem to look like projects from my grade twelve compsci class. I am also not as interested in the art/3D/engine side of game development, I am more interested in game mechanics, design and even 2D physics and multiplayer tools and such. I could go on, but in the end it just doesn't seem like the best option.

Ryerson: This is a general computer science BSc program that has nothing at all to do with game development, in fact I don't think ryerson offers any game courses at all, which worries me. It is sometimes said that the industry looks for people with compsci degrees more as game devs because they will be better, more well rounded programmers. I also like general compsci because I have many ideas to do with websites and different programs/apps. Also, I never know what I'll want to do in later years, and this will leave options open to me. I'm only worried that I will meet many less people interested in game development, and maybe have missed an opportunity to make games, since I am not very self-motivated right now. I also haven't found many opinions on this program at ryerson, and some people just criticize this school in general, calling it 'rye high' and comparing it to an expensive high school.

York: Haven't looked into this much, because it is a massive school that will have huge classes, and I fear I will feel alienated and have a worse chance of meeting people with similar interests such as gaming and music.

If anyone has attended any of these programs, or has a computer science degree and is currently a game developer, I'd love to hear about your thoughts and experiences. Thanks!

[knowthyself]

Well, if you really want to do game development, it sounds like UOIT's program is the right fit. Mind you, I don't go there and I just skimmed the description on their website right now. But if you want to find other like-minded people who are passionate about games, then that's probably your best bet. Since it's obviously way more focused on games than general CS, and gaming companies usually want (I think) people who are passionate about games, you would likely have a better chance of getting your foot in the door at a gaming company if you are in that program.

I go to Ryerson (just finishing 2nd year). I believe you are correct in that there are no "game" specific courses available to CS students at all. I know plenty of guys here like games though, because I see them playing them in classes frequently. However, I don't think you would feel *less* alienated by coming here rather than York (or elsewhere) as Ryerson is widely known as a "commuter" school -- meaning a large proportion of students don't live downtown, and after class they head straight for home.

[Night]

I've heard UOIT includes a lot of business-y stuff as the program is called "Game Development and Entrepreneurship".

I'm kind of in the same boat as you, but entirely different schools:

UW - CompSci (Waiting)
Guelph - Soft. Eng. (Accepted)
Carleton - Game Dev (Accepted)
Carleton - Interactive Multimedia and Design (Accepted)

[SNIPERDUDE]

If you're looking more toward games I'd take also consider George Brown's game programming. More hands-on in. There's also a good program on game development, which covers more of the asset development (3D modelling, animation, art assets, concept art, some AS3, UDK & Unity).