| This topic hits home for me and I'll tell you why. | | | | user to decide when the "page turn" happens. Just |
| My dad takes quite an interest in nearly everything I | | | | because the voice over moves onto the next |
| do. And I feel quite lucky because of that. However | | | | section shouldn't determine this. |
| the problem I have is that I will tell him about certain | | | | One of the great things about the Wii (argh, did I |
| games that he should play but I normally always | | | | mention a console?) is that you can play a heck of a |
| forget... | | | | lot with just one hand. Nintendo have always tended |
| He has Cerebral Palsy, which in his case means he | | | | to have more accessible games and it's something |
| has limited dexterity in the right side of his body. | | | | the PC needs to catch up with! |
| Because of this he cannot use a standard Xbox | | | | There are a number of things that developers can do |
| controller for a start! And any game that requires 2 | | | | to improve this situation if they choose to. Events |
| hands is out. The good news he can obviously use a | | | | that are sound driven can be removed, or at least |
| mouse very well (more accurate than most!) with his | | | | subtitled. Two handed quick time events should be |
| left hand. So games with mouse control only are fine. | | | | removed or at least have a one handed version for |
| But how many games are there that are mouse | | | | the lowest difficulty level. But most of all they should |
| control only? Not many I can tell you that much! | | | | be tested by people with a disability, since in a lot of |
| So, this is a subject that is quite rarely taken into | | | | cases a very small change to make the game more |
| consideration. And it's an awful realisation that many | | | | accessible could make a huge difference for a lot of |
| disabilities are not accounted for in most games. | | | | people! |
| I'm not saying that the chaps at epic should rebuild | | | | So what about now? |
| the unreal engine to dumb down the visuals or that | | | | Where can people with disabilities go to find out |
| any action game should be re-written to abandon the | | | | about games that they will have no difficulty playing? |
| WASD control system. However there are plenty of | | | | Luckily there are a few websites out there where |
| games out there that need to remember mouse | | | | this is the top priority. For example: |
| control only systems should be a solid option and not | | | | Game-Accessibility - A game information site that |
| an afterthought. | | | | covers most disability classifications. This has been |
| Lets look at some of the other disabilities that | | | | the best site I've seen on this subject and supplies |
| directly affect gaming: | | | | absolutely tons of information and game links. A must |
| - Loss of Limbs | | | | visit! |
| - Some games require a number of keys to be | | | | Deaf Gamers - Caters for people who are deaf |
| pressed in sequence these days, and if you can't do | | | | giving a classification for each review they do. The |
| it, playing that game can be difficult. | | | | ratings are marked A to E, A rated games giving the |
| Colour Blindness | | | | best support for deaf people with subtitles, etc... |
| - Most match-3 and casual game creators cottoned | | | | So, what does the future hold here? |
| on quite quickly about the colour-based matching. | | | | We're always going to have games on the PC that |
| However other game genres seem to have ignored | | | | have complicated control mechanisms, huge amounts |
| this (green/red laser beams just for example?) | | | | of detail on screen and sounds indicating events. |
| Deafness | | | | However there will always be some developers who |
| - I'm surprised that sound is still used to signify | | | | go the extra mile to make their game more |
| events on it's own in some games these days! There | | | | accessible for people with disabilities. |
| should always, always be subtitles as an option. | | | | I just wish they'd build a "driving" controller with a left |
| Reading difficulties | | | | handed gear-stick for my dad! |
| - If there's lots of text to read it should require the | | | | |