[games_access] Arcade Sticks with two+ sticks...

[Jason Price]

Barrie,

Yes, that Quasicon is extremely large I could not imagine someone using that
in a residential environment.  Does it have to be housed in an arcade
cabinet?  It seems to me there has got to be a more reasonable solution,
something more akin to arcade sticks of the past.  Also, have they not
considered making a one player version?

I have developed a new dual analog arcade stick for gamers with disabilities
in the range of mine.  However no third part accessory developer I
approached wanted any part of it.  My controller is concept/artist rendering
only, I do not have a prototype.  

I don't think any of my friends are skilled enough to build me my own
controller, so what to do?  You say that a custom built controller would use
a digital interface, will that prohibit one from playing analog movement
based games?  There are legions of gamers liked me trapped in "dual analog
stick hell!"

Jason

-----Original Message-----
From: games_access-bounces at igda.org [mailto:games_access-bounces at igda.org]
On Behalf Of Barrie Ellis
Sent: Sunday, June 04, 2006 6:22 PM
To: IGDA Games Accessibility SIG Mailing List
Subject: [games_access] Arcade Sticks with two+ sticks...

Hi Jason,

I totally agree. The amount of games relying on two analogue sticks 
simultaneously is proving to be a huge pain in the back-side for many 
gamers.

There is at least one arcade stick that has two large analogue sticks, that 
works with most modern games consoles. I would imagine it might break your 
lap though, it's a monster. It's the Quasimoto Quasicon. It probably costs 
all your money too(!):

http://www.quasimoto.com/quasicade/quasicon.php
http://www.retroblast.com/reviews/quasicade_3.html - RetroBlast review

An alternative, is to get a friend to build you your own controller. This 
should be much cheaper, provide you with as many joysticks as you want, but 
will be digital only.

More help here:

http://www.accessibility.nl/games/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=187#p187

Good luck!

Barrie
OneSwitch.org.uk





----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jason Price" <no1cwbyfan at cox.net>
To: "'IGDA Games Accessibility SIG Mailing List'" <games_access at igda.org>
Sent: Saturday, June 03, 2006 9:26 PM
Subject: RE: [games_access] appealing to developers


> Hello,
>
> Let me first introduced myself.  My name is Jason Price, 32-year-old
> lifelong gamer and lifelong person with a disability.
>
> I have severe cerebral palsy (spastic triplegia to be specific).  This 
> keeps
> me from walking and also having normal dexterity in my left hand.  I'm a
> console gamer through and through, dating back to Atari.  My left hand is
> not able to hold a standard controller but I have always been able to get 
> by
> using laptop arcade/fighting sticks.  This all changed in early 2001 when
> all games began to utilize dual analog sticks as the preferred method for
> character manipulation.
>
> I was immediately excluded from gaming because there are essentially no
> arcade sticks available featuring two analog sticks and the buttons that 
> are
> accessed by pressing the analog sticks.  Enough of my rant, there has got 
> to
> be an answer.  It is very likely that we will find the answer by appealing
> to both the moral fibers as well as the bottom line for game developers.
>
> They must realize that there is a huge untapped market out there.  Gamers
> like myself play games not only to escape life with a disability, but also
> to engage our competitive nature.  For example I'm never going to play in
> the NFL or NBA but through gaming I have in the past been able to 
> experience
> sports on some level.  Anyway, I hope I'm able positively contribute to 
> this
> group and I thank you for your time.
>
> Jason Price
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: games_access-bounces at igda.org [mailto:games_access-bounces at igda.org]
> On Behalf Of Reid Kimball
> Sent: Saturday, June 03, 2006 1:24 PM
> To: IGDA Games Accessibility SIG Mailing List
> Subject: Re: [games_access] Complaint regarding Florian Eckhardt
>
> Thanks Kelly for your reply. I too felt motivated after I read
> comments from people who didn't think games should be closed
> captioned. People telling me I can't do something tends to be a
> motivator for me.
>
> I also agree that at this time our best option is to appeal to the
> emotional side of developers if we are going to win their support for
> accessible gaming. Most developers love gaming and want to share their
> passion with the rest of the world. Why leave out those that are
> disabled?
>
> A company could also generate a lot of customer loyalty if they make
> it known they support accessible gaming. A customer who isn't disabled
> may be supportive of the idea and therefore support the company's
> efforts by being a loyal customer.
>
> -Reid

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