I wouldn’t say it’s a SCAM, but I would say it’s of limited usefulness. A degree is not really necessary to work in games biz. You just have to demonstrate the skills. And a game focused degree won’t go far outside if the industry. I do agree that a more general degree in programming, user experience design, digital art, etc (or many other things) is the way to go because your son may not end up in games. Or if he does he will want to move on to another industry someday. Games biz is generally long hours, low pay, and unstable. Which can be okay when you’re young but you are going to want to move on. Take it from a guy who worked in games for 12 years (without any degree) then went back to school and pivoted to user experience where I can now work at stable companies that pay much better. Check out gamasutra.com a game industry news site, by reading articles you will get a sense of the good, bad, ups and downs of the business.