GDC 2005 Roundtable Proposal
International Game Developers Association
Table of contents |
[edit] GDC 2005 Proposal
[edit] Title/ETC
Accessible Game Design: Reaching Disabled Gamers
Speaker: Michelle Hinn (Doctoral Candidate, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign)
Experience Level: All - Open to All Levels
Time/Dates:
- Roundtable 1: Wednesday (March 9, 2005) 2:30pm — 3:30pm GDC 2005 Link
- Roundtable 2: Thursday (March 10, 2005) 5:30pm — 6:30pm GDC 2005 Link
[edit] Description
The focus of the IGDA Game Accessibility Special Interest Group (SIG) has been to research how to make commercial games more accessible to persons with disabilities and to serve as an outreach to game developers interested in facing the challenges of creating accessible design. Since increasing game accessibility expands the target group of your game, it should be considered a financially important factor. It also enhances the user experience since it is focused on making the game interface easier to use and can provide all gamers with new game experiences such as relying more on sound cues as a navigation strategy. Finally, there is a social responsibility that should be taken seriously by the game industry as a whole to include all kinds of users in gaming and game development just as other entertainment sectors have, such as the movie industry. There are special games made for different groups of disabled gamers, but accessibility is something for all, not just those with disabilities. Although it is not the same problem, you can to some extent compare game accessibility with web accessibility, where an accessible design also makes the content accessible on units with low bandwidth, slow CPUs or small displays (e.g., mobiles/PDAs). Working toward creating an accessible interface does not necessarily mean that our designs will be accessible for all, but it does allow us to reach out to a greater number of gamers. Game accessibility can be hard or easy to achieve for certain combinations of games and groups of users. One small change could create a friendlier game environment for gamers with, for example, certain mobility challenges. The question is to what extent you can make your game accessible and still make a living from your game. During the past year and a half, the Game Accessibility SIG has compiled a white paper on the topic of accessible game design (available at www.igda.org/accessibility). This roundtable session will discuss the major design ideas presented in the white paper in order to open the discussion further to other ideas about the implementation of accessible design into commercial games.
[edit] Idea Takeaway
Action ideas for how your company can increase the accessibility of their game designs for all, regardless of disability.
[edit] Intended Audience and Prerequisites
Game user interface designers, usability engineers, publishers, programmers, sound designers, graphic designers, and others interested in universal game accessibility.
