A North Yorkshire theme park which describes itself as "the strangest place in the world" has teamed up with video game design students.

Managers at The Forbidden Corner, at Tupgill Park, near Leyburn, are working with the students at Darlington College to create a game.

It is hoped the partnership will give students experience working on a live brief with a real business, expanding their skills and enhancing their portfolios.

The partnership was formed after The Forbidden Corner bosses met with placement coaches at Darlington College to nurture young talent and collaborate through work experience and placements.

During the meeting, the idea of creating a video game with students was proposed and the idea expanded from there.

Students have been treating The Forbidden Corner as their own client, creating a game that meets its branding and quirky ethos whilst appealing to customers .

Darren Weatherill, operations manager for The Forbidden Corner, met with students to give a live brief on what the park was looking for and give them further information on the business.

The video game students were then split into five groups who pitched their designs.

Since then Darren and Leo Morris, Tupgill Park's company director, have visited the students to see how they were progressing as their ideas came to life.

Mr Weatherill said: “It was incredible to see what the students' imaginations had come up with to bring our attraction to life on screen.

“The amount of work put into the project and the level of detail within each aspect of the games blew us away and after our hands-on session, I can't wait to have another go on each game and look forward to a chance at beating the high score.”

The deadline for the project is mid-March ahead of the park’s reopening on April 1 and people can expect to see the games live on The Forbidden Corner website soon.

Video game design courses have become increasingly popular in recent years with the UK games industry's contribution to the economy doubling in the last three years to more than £5bn.

The Forbidden Corner, which started as a folly with waterfalls and unusual statues, has been open since 1994, growing in popularity and expanding over the years.