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Thesis Statement (Revised February 7, 2007)

By conforming to industry-standard accessibility guidelines, video games can be more accessible to all players.

Thesis Abstract (Revised February 7, 2007)

Hindered largely by the game industry’s lack of accessibility standards, most video games are not accessible for all players with disabilities. Using the World Wide Web Consortium’s (W3C) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) as a basis for review, this thesis evaluates and analyzes existing video games for accessibility. It then uses the results of this investigation to draft Video Game Accessibility Guidelines (VGAG), which explain how to make games more accessible for all players. A functional prototype demonstrates these innovative guidelines in action, encouraging the consideration and implementation of universal accessibility in all video games.

Evaluation, Analysis, and Implications of Universal Accessibility in Computer Games

As the game industry gains momentum from technological advances and commercial gains, people living with disabilities are left further and further behind. If computer game designers, developers, and publishers of mainstream games are so concerned with sales figures, then why exclude millions of potential customers by making an inaccessible game? Does a “next generation” game sound the same to an unsighted player as it looks to a sighted player? Is it possible to play a first-person shooter with only one button or a real-time strategy game without using a mouse?

There are research institutions, small companies, and individual developers making accessible computer games for little or no profit. However, these games are not designed by industry-experienced, professionally-trained game designers, so they lack the (re)playability of mainstream games. Furthermore, these games are only “accessible” to people with specific disabilities, which in turn risks excluding players without that particular disability. The goal is not making a customized, accessible computer game for one type of player, but a universally accessible game for all players with all levels of ability.

Though an accessible computer game, customized for one type of player, is a step in the right direction, the design challenge is to make a universally accessible game for all players with all levels of ability. Using the World Wide Web Consortium’s Web Content Accessibility Guides and Section 508 Standards as inspiration, and potentially a basis for evaluation, this thesis will analyze and test three existing accessible computer games. The primary goal of this research is to evaluate the feasibility of universal accessibility in mainstream computer games, as well as to unearth and document any emerging best practices in universally accessible game design.

Computer games should be designed for universally accessibility, even if it is not possible to make a universally accessible computer game.

The goal of my thesis project is to design and build a universally accessible computer game.

Universal accessibility means all people, regardless of (dis)ability, can play this game. Specifically, this game is designed for people with visual, auditory, motor, and cognitive disabilities. This game is self-voicing and scalable to accommodate players with all levels of blindness. This game also provides visual cues, captioning, and volume control for players with all levels of deafness. This game only requires one button to play to accommodate players with motor disabilities. This game is completely graphical in nature, using familiar shapes with Web safe colors, to accommodate people with cognitive disabilities. In addition, no design unnecessary design elements are used to avoid distracting the player, and no flickering images or animations are used to avoid causing epileptic seizures. Finally, this game does not require the player to respond is a certain amount of time since some people take longer to make decisions than others.

Designing for universal accessibility also benefits people with situational and technological disabilities and people without disabilities. Situational disabilities are temporary disabilities that occur under normal circumstances. A person working on a computer in a noisy room is not able to hear well and has a situational hearing disability, so this game has volume control. A person using a small cell phone screen in a poorly lit environment cannot see well and has a situational visual disability, so this game is scalable. A person working their notebook computer in a moving subway car during rush hour with inadequate space to move the mouse has a situational motor disability, so this game only requires one button to play. Elderly people might have limited vision, hearing, memory, or motor skills, yet not be considered disabled. People with an old, slow computer and people connecting to the Internet through a cell phone have technological disabilities.

This game can be played over the Internet through a Web site, so it can be accessed from anywhere in the world. This game is built in Macromedia Flash 8 because of this software’s built-in accessibility features and capabilities, as well as the ability to easily integrate the game into an accessible Web site. Most computers have Macromedia’s Flash Player installed, but those who do not can download the player for free. Not only is this game universally accessible, it is free for everyone with an Internet connection. Latency is a non-issue because this is a single player game where the player’s response is not time sensitive. This game can be played using a keyboard, mouse, cell phone, or any assistive technology, as long as the input device has at least one button or switch.

This is a simple memory game. The player is presented with three (3) to nine (9) unique shapes in a particular order. Each shape is a different color and has a different sound attached. The player must remember the position of the shapes, colors, or sounds in the given order. Then, the player randomly shuffles the shapes into new positions. To beat each level, the player must place each shape back into the original order. Once the player completes each level, more shapes appear in order until the maximum number of shapes is reached. The player wins the game by memorizing the last nine shapes and placing them back into the correct order.

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One more thing ...

I would like the game to be playable on screens of any size. One thing I am accomplished to meet this goal is scripting the background images to dynamically redraw themselves to fill the movie no matter what size it is, which I think is a great first step and opens up the door of possibilities.

I hope to script the actors (shapes) to populate the stage in the optimal configuration for the number of actors and the screen resolution. For example, when four (4) actors populate the stage they will automatically arrange themselves in a 2x2 grid, as opposed to three (3) actors on the first line and one (1) actor on the next. It's perfectly feasible by using a multi-dimensional array.

• Download my thesis concept presentation (.PPT)
• Download a one-button, mouse-accessible experimental protoype (.SWF)
• Download the digital wireframe for a one-button, keyboard-accessible memory game (.SWF)

So I am on my way to finishing a testable prototype of the concept game shown in the above wireframe. The game will only require one button to play, probably the Space Bar, so it will also be keyboard accessible. I consider this a serious game, more specifically an educational game, so I feel that it is more important to insure the game is engaging before fun.

Each player will be presented with two or three shapes, of different colors, in a particular order. Each shape will have a sound attached to it so the player does not have to be able to see the screen in order to play the game. Once the player memorizes the position of each shape within the grid or sound in the given order, the shapes/sounds will be randomly shuffled and repositioned. Then the player must put the shapes/sounds back into the correct order.

Once the player meets this goal, they are presented with an additional shape/sound to signify their advancement to the next level. There will initially be seven (7) or eight (8) levels in the game, as it will start with two or three shapes an incriment the number of shapes by one each level, up to nine (9) shapes total. Assuming that some players reason the end of the game, they will be rewarded with something, maybe a certificate of memorization or the ability to enter their name on the list of winners.

Anyway, we'll see how it goes with just over a week to go in the quarter.

Links and Resources (partial list)

Articles

• Unified Design of Universally Accessible Games (Say What?)
• The Theory of Parallel Game Universes: A Paradigm Shift in Multiplayer Gaming and Game Accessibility
• One Button Games
• Improving Game Accessibility
• BBC - Ouch! - Close Up - Accessible Gaming
• An Accessibility Frontier: Cognitive disabilities and learning difficulties
• The Unique Design Challenge of Pinball Simulations
• GDC: Success Factors of One-Button Casual Mobile Games

Examples

• UA-Chess, a Universally Accessible (UA) Game by the Centre for Universal Access and Assistive Technologies (CUA- AT) and the Human- Computer Interaction Laboratory (HCI) of the Institute of Computer Science (ICS) of the Foundation for Research and Technology – Hellas (FORTH)
• Access Invaders, a Universally Accessible (UA) Game by the Centre for Universal Access and Assistive Technologies (CUA- AT) and the Human- Computer Interaction Laboratory (HCI) of the Institute of Computer Science (ICS) of the Foundation for Research and Technology – Hellas (FORTH)
• Terraformers by Pin Interactive AB
• Hangman 1, a keyboard accessible game by Net Systems Informatics (N-syst)
• Hangman 2, a keyboard accessible game by Net Systems Informatics (N-syst)
• RNIB Blind Date, an accessible game designed for blind people by the Royal National Institute of the Blind
• The Accessible Friends Network's (TAFN) Accessible Games
• Games and puzzles accessible to people with disabilities
• PC Games - List of Accessible Games

Organizations and Developers

• Game Accessibility Special Interest Group (SIG) of the International Game Developers Association
• Game Accessibility
• One Switch
• Games for the Blind
• USA Games
• Arcess
• WebAIM: Web Accessibility in Mind
• Guild of Accessible Web Designers

Thesis Brainstorming: Three Project Ideas