[games_access] Thinking about GDC 08's competition
Eelke Folmer
eelke.folmer at gmail.com
Sat Jun 2 18:46:05 EDT 2007
Hi,
On Jun 1, 2007, at 1:44 AM, AudioGames.net wrote:
> Btw: I thought of this concept when I read about the idea of
> sighted users leading blind-users through Second Life, as a guide.
> Helping each other out in a co-op game could prove to be a new kind
> of game accessibility?
I was thinking about that the other day, but then in the context of
World of Warcraft. What if a blind user in WoW would automatically
start out as a level 60 wizard able to cast very powerful spells but
requiring voice input& guidance from other party members? (assuming
this player belongs to a party). Other party members would
automatically try to protect this player as its very handy to have
such a powerful wizard in your party. This way a kind of symbiotic
relationship is created which is fair.
Cheers Eelke
> What do you think?
>
> K... I'm away again, speak with you in a week...
>
> R Out
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "d. michelle hinn" <hinn at uiuc.edu>
> To: "IGDA Games Accessibility SIG Mailing List"
> <games_access at igda.org>
> Sent: Friday, June 01, 2007 3:53 AM
> Subject: Re: [games_access] Thinking about GDC 08's competition
>
>
>> Heh -- this was probably a lost in translation/bad explanation on
>> my part bit -- the "ax the reality show thing" was meant to mean
>> don't do a game show thing at all!
>>
>> We "can't" use design challenge...but that doesn't stop us from
>> coming pretty darn close to the same words...errr...Challenge:
>> Design! ;)
>>
>> Another idea I had was...design for Helen Keller...now doing
>> something accessible for the deaf AND blind...now that is a
>> challenge...and the person that can design something cool around
>> that will help solve the catch 22 issue where doing something that
>> helps the deaf might mess up something for the blind with regard
>> to accessibility. This also puts us in more competition with Eric
>> Z and his poetry/peace prize/needle and thread challenges...
>>
>> I was also thinking that the person should be able to also play it
>> with non-disabled friends...perhaps over the top? But still...the
>> social aspect of gaming is SO important.
>>
>> I *REALLY* want to give the challenge another try because I think
>> we're onto something -- we just need to rethink it! And I want our
>> sessions to be fun -- we don't have to be comedians (as we know
>> now...we're not) to create a couple hour long presentations.
>>
>> And...(now back to game shows, only different)
>>
>> I also like the "Translation: Accessibility" idea where we have a,
>> for example, what closed captioning means for the non-hearing
>> impaired. Eelke -- perhaps since you put the article out on
>> Gamasutra, you'd like to lead some kind of session on this that is
>> also SIG sponsored? Perhaps it could be more than a lecture -- did
>> you see Microsoft's "usability game show" at CHI in Austria? We
>> could toss out some fun prizes to those that come up with
>> something not on the list -- that way the audience is more
>> engaged. I can see this as a high energy and fun, engaging session.
>>
>> OK...More ideas!!!
>>
>> Michelle
>>
>>> Hi,
>>>
>>> I agree with all of the competitors advice. I would also like to
>>> add "no game show theme next time"? A theme is good, but
>>> something cool, not corny? Michelle, I like all of your
>>> suggestions so far. I would prefer to have a good, 3rd party host
>>> and Raph seems like a good person for that. And I guess fitting
>>> in his own entry is cool?
>>>
>>> But, ok, what still seems missing is:
>>>
>>> 1) theme / title of the design challenge. Can we still use
>>> "design challenge" in the title?
>>> 2) basically along with the theme, the target impaired audience?
>>> Our options are:
>>>
>>> - game for one specific game handicap
>>> - game for a game handicap of choice
>>> - game for one out of a selection of game handicaps (the list we
>>> make)
>>>
>>> But maybe we can try something completely different/less obvious
>>> instead. As I read Eelke's (excellent) Gamasutra article today, I
>>> was thinking about handicaps caused by impairments and the same
>>> handicaps not caused by impairments. Example: deaf gamers
>>> encounter the same problems as gamers in a loud environment (LAN
>>> party/mother vacuming/arcade/on the train) as gamers that play a
>>> mobile game and intentionally turn the sound off. Another one is:
>>> gamers with parkinson encounter the same problem as gamers on a
>>> plane with turbulence. Another one is: gamers trying to play with
>>> a DS or a PSP in a sunny environment (as I tried in the Dominican
>>> Republic for 2 weeks) encounter the same problem as visually
>>> impaired gamers. etc. etc. For more examples, see Eelke's article.
>>>
>>> Maybe we could make sort of a game-handicap list, where each
>>> problem is linked to both a bodily impairment *and* a likely
>>> situation that a non-impaired gamer can also encounter. So the
>>> parkinson/airplane disability (although there's probably also the
>>> gamer with parkinson on a plane with turbulence-disability). This
>>> is also where we could can some fun in, for instance:
>>>
>>> disability: game speed is to fast
>>> people who encounter this issue: gamers with a physical
>>> impairment that does not allow for fast reactions, hippies
>>>
>>> disability: cannot hear game audio
>>> people who encounter this issue: deaf gamers, grannies, gamers
>>> who visited Ozzfest 2007
>>>
>>> Err... ?
>>>
>>> And I guess I still want Hugh Heffner to showcase his Playboy
>>> Mansion game to see how well he handles the controls at his age.
>>> And I like celebrity handicapped people: Michael J Fox showing
>>> how he plays with the DS having Parkinson?
>>>
>>> Just some random thought. Next please!
>>>
>>> Ries
>>>
>>>
>>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "d. michelle hinn"
>>> <hinn at uiuc.edu>
>>> To: "IGDA Games Accessibility SIG Mailing List"
>>> <games_access at igda.org>
>>> Sent: Thursday, May 31, 2007 11:11 PM
>>> Subject: [games_access] Thinking about GDC 08's competition
>>>
>>>> Hey guys,
>>>>
>>>> So I'm working on next year's design challenge for GDC and I'm
>>>> taking the advise of the competitors from 07 into consideration:
>>>>
>>>> * Keep it to one hour
>>>> * No judges at all -- if judges have questions about why they
>>>> felt that way...I'll email you off-list
>>>> * Include accessibility "extra info" between the contestants or
>>>> do it all up front
>>>> * NO VIDEOS unless they are realllllllllly good and
>>>> reallllllllllly short (we left people in the dark with our video
>>>> as fun as it was to make it wasn't nearly as hilarious in real
>>>> life) :)
>>>> * Keep things more serious without being boring
>>>> * Ax the "reality show" idea
>>>> * Cut down the number of contestants to 3
>>>>
>>>> So right now I'm talking to people who might be involved -- Raph
>>>> Koster (wrote "theory of fun") is interested in either being a
>>>> contestant or being "mini" presenter on the challenges of
>>>> accessibility and fun (those of you at GDC 07 probably remember
>>>> that we were up against him so maybe if we get everyone famous
>>>> somehow involved...hehe) and then Will Wright, Dave Perry and
>>>> Keita Takahashi who said they were interested for 08 -- I'm
>>>> imagining all will not say "yes." Raph is really interested in
>>>> being involved in some manner. I'd like for them to be involved
>>>> during even the early stages so that we can present a coherent
>>>> show. So I'd to have the spirit of being a publisher with many
>>>> competing design studios and only one will get the "go" in a "go/
>>>> no go" audience vote (this was Noah's suggestion). So the
>>>> contestants would have "checking in" meetings with us as they go
>>>> (to prevent "non-game presentations...we had a few") and such.
>>>> And I'm imagining that all contestants would have "accessibility
>>>> mentors" assigned to them from the SIG to make things even more
>>>> challenging and fun for all of us and get us all involved.
>>>>
>>>> So this isn't THE proposal...I'm just still riffing on some
>>>> ideas. So YOUR opinion counts so please do give it! None of last
>>>> year's contestants said that we should drop the whole idea --
>>>> but instead change it and do it in a way that seems much more
>>>> put together.
>>>>
>>>> So let's go! Let's think about our cool street cred session that
>>>> might get people in the door for an hour and then get them to
>>>> come to the expo for more! Let's think about how we can have the
>>>> coolest, yet non-hospital inducing sessions to raise the roof!!!!
>>>>
>>>> Michelle
>>>> _______________________________________________
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>>>
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------------------------------------------------------------------------
----
Eelke Folmer Assistant
Professor
Department of Computer Science & Engineering/171
University of Nevada Reno, Nevada 89557
Game Quality usability|accessibility.eelke.com
------------------------------------------------------------------------
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