From j.chetwynd at btinternet.com  Wed Oct  6 05:08:06 2004
From: j.chetwynd at btinternet.com (Jonathan Chetwynd)
Date: Wed, 6 Oct 2004 10:08:06 +0100
Subject: [games_access] Current Guidelines for developing accessible games:
Message-ID: <3C8D4976-1777-11D9-B0D2-000A95C7D298@btinternet.com>

These documents repeat much of the information collected in the WCAG  
guidelines, however they present it in different ways which may be more  
easily understood.
None of them is that large, and they are written in English, well the  
authors tried at least ~:"

It will be worth reviewing these documents to avoid duplication of  
effort:

Guidelines for Developing Accessible Interfaces and Interactive  
Environments
http://www.imsglobal.org/accessibility/accwpv0p6/ 
imsacc_wpv0p6.html#1280472

which links to two other resources:

Application Software Design Guidelines
http://trace.wisc.edu/docs/software_guidelines/toc.htm

Making Educational Software and Web Sites Accessible
http://ncam.wgbh.org/cdrom/guideline/

Jonathan Chetwynd
http://www.peepo.co.uk     "It's easy to use"
irc://freenode/accessibility



From kjb at it.rit.edu  Thu Oct 14 08:03:11 2004
From: kjb at it.rit.edu (Kevin J. Bierre)
Date: Thu, 14 Oct 2004 08:03:11 -0400
Subject: [games_access] Half Life 2 has closed captioning
Message-ID: <fc.004c519f0112737f004c519f0112737f.1127399@it.rit.edu>

According to the latest PC Gamer, the Half Life 2 game will have a closed captioning feature for the deaf and hard of hearing. It sounds like the multiplayer version is not closed captioned, but the single player campaign is covered.

It's nice to a highly anticipated game dealing with accessibility.

It might be interesting to find out from Valve Software exactly what they did and how difficult it was to add this feature.

Kevin Bierre,  Assistant Professor                                                       (kjb at it.rit.edu)
Information Technology,  Rochester Institute of Technology                   585-475-5358
102 Lomb Memorial Drive                                                                   Bldg 70B-2637
Rochester, NY 14623




From info at oneswitch.org.uk  Fri Oct 15 15:29:44 2004
From: info at oneswitch.org.uk (Barrie Ellis)
Date: Fri, 15 Oct 2004 20:29:44 +0100
Subject: [games_access] Subtitles and Captioning on-line petition
References: <20041014160007.E10A5571CA@seven.pairlist.net>
Message-ID: <015901c4b2ed$5373d570$1b5a4f51@Skallagrigg>

> According to the latest PC Gamer, the Half Life 2 game will have a closed 
> captioning feature for the
>deaf and hard of hearing. It sounds like the multiplayer version is not 
>closed captioned, but the single
>player campaign is covered.


That's great news! They should be applauded for this.


Thought I'd reproduce a forum entry here. There is a petition for Subtitles 
and Captioning in games, which I recommend people sign:

http://www.petitiononline.com/Captions/petition.html

As well as taking a look at the forums at www.deafgamers.com for a lot of 
discussion around this topic.


Barrie
www.OneSwitch.org.uk




----- Original Message ----- 
From: <games_access-request at igda.org>
To: <games_access at igda.org>
Sent: Thursday, October 14, 2004 5:00 PM
Subject: games_access Digest, Vol 2, Issue 2


> Send games_access mailing list submissions to
> games_access at igda.org
>
> To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit
> http://seven.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/games_access
> or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to
> games_access-request at igda.org
>
> You can reach the person managing the list at
> games_access-owner at igda.org
>
> When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific
> than "Re: Contents of games_access digest..."
>
>
> Today's Topics:
>
>   1. Half Life 2 has closed captioning (Kevin J. Bierre)
>
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Message: 1
> Date: Thu, 14 Oct 2004 08:03:11 -0400
> From: "Kevin J. Bierre" <kjb at it.rit.edu>
> Subject: [games_access] Half Life 2 has closed captioning
> To: games_access at igda.org
> Message-ID: <fc.004c519f0112737f004c519f0112737f.1127399 at it.rit.edu>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
>
> According to the latest PC Gamer, the Half Life 2 game will have a closed 
> captioning feature for the deaf and hard of hearing. It sounds like the 
> multiplayer version is not closed captioned, but the single player 
> campaign is covered.
>
> It's nice to a highly anticipated game dealing with accessibility.
>
> It might be interesting to find out from Valve Software exactly what they 
> did and how difficult it was to add this feature.
>
> Kevin Bierre,  Assistant Professor 
> (kjb at it.rit.edu)
> Information Technology,  Rochester Institute of Technology 
> 585-475-5358
> 102 Lomb Memorial Drive 
> Bldg 70B-2637
> Rochester, NY 14623
>
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
>
> _______________________________________________
> games_access mailing list
> games_access at igda.org
> http://seven.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/games_access
>
>
> End of games_access Digest, Vol 2, Issue 2
> ******************************************
> 




From jason at igda.org  Sat Oct 16 11:02:27 2004
From: jason at igda.org (Jason Della Rocca)
Date: Sat, 16 Oct 2004 11:02:27 -0400
Subject: [games_access] Half Life 2 has closed captioning
In-Reply-To: <fc.004c519f0112737f004c519f0112737f.1127399@it.rit.edu>
References: <fc.004c519f0112737f004c519f0112737f.1127399@it.rit.edu>
Message-ID: <6.0.1.1.2.20041016110141.042e8ec0@mail.igda.org>


>It might be interesting to find out from Valve Software exactly what they 
>did and how difficult it was to add this feature.

I can put you in touch with someone from Valve to get the ball rolling. 
Would make for an interesting article/case study for the SIG to write up 
for the site...

Jason

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jason Della Rocca
Program Director
International Game Developers Association

t: +1-514-426-1162
f: +1-514-426-1201
Montreal, Canada
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

http://www.realitypanic.com/

"Do or do not. There is no try."
- Yoda



From thomas at pininteractive.com  Sat Oct 16 19:15:00 2004
From: thomas at pininteractive.com (Thomas Westin)
Date: Sun, 17 Oct 2004 01:15:00 +0200
Subject: [games_access] Half Life 2 has closed captioning
In-Reply-To: <6.0.1.1.2.20041016110141.042e8ec0@mail.igda.org>
References: <fc.004c519f0112737f004c519f0112737f.1127399@it.rit.edu>
	<6.0.1.1.2.20041016110141.042e8ec0@mail.igda.org>
Message-ID: <fc.00802e9a009b4a1b004c519f0112737f.9b4a1c@eden.grace.se>

Yes definitely - it's a great example we can use when talking about GA.
Thanks,
Thomas

IGDA Games Accessibility SIG Mailing List <games_access at igda.org> writes:
>
>
>>It might be interesting to find out from Valve Software exactly what
>they 
>>did and how difficult it was to add this feature.
>
>
>I can put you in touch with someone from Valve to get the ball rolling. 
>Would make for an interesting article/case study for the SIG to write up 
>for the site...
>



Pin Interactive AB www.pininteractive.com
Online support: MSN thomas at pininteractive.com
Phone: +46 (0)70 7331475 (Time zone: GMT+1)
____________________________________________________
Award Winning 3D Game for Blind and Sighted: www.terraformers.nu 
IGDA Game Accessibility SIG www.igda.org/accessibility/ 




From jason at igda.org  Sat Oct 16 19:47:18 2004
From: jason at igda.org (Jason Della Rocca)
Date: Sat, 16 Oct 2004 19:47:18 -0400
Subject: [games_access] Half Life 2 has closed captioning
In-Reply-To: <fc.00802e9a009b4a1b004c519f0112737f.9b4a1c@eden.grace.se>
References: <fc.004c519f0112737f004c519f0112737f.1127399@it.rit.edu>
	<6.0.1.1.2.20041016110141.042e8ec0@mail.igda.org>
	<fc.00802e9a009b4a1b004c519f0112737f.9b4a1c@eden.grace.se>
Message-ID: <6.0.1.1.2.20041016194607.0214c098@mail.igda.org>


>Yes definitely - it's a great example we can use when talking about GA.

OK, cool. Who's going to do the follow-up, etc? Kevin Bierre?

Whoever is going to do this should pop me a quick/direct email...

Jason

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jason Della Rocca
Program Director
International Game Developers Association

t: +1-514-426-1162
f: +1-514-426-1201
Montreal, Canada
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

http://www.realitypanic.com/

"Do or do not. There is no try."
- Yoda



From hinn at uiuc.edu  Sat Oct 16 23:51:43 2004
From: hinn at uiuc.edu (d. michelle hinn)
Date: Sat, 16 Oct 2004 22:51:43 -0500
Subject: [games_access] Half Life 2 has closed captioning
In-Reply-To: <6.0.1.1.2.20041016194607.0214c098@mail.igda.org>
Message-ID: <008e01c4b3fc$9dd48e60$10ebfea9@insightbb.com>

This is great -- Kevin, you want to head up this project for the SIG?

-----Original Message-----
From: games_access-bounces at igda.org
[mailto:games_access-bounces at igda.org] On Behalf Of Jason Della Rocca
Sent: Saturday, October 16, 2004 6:47 PM
To: IGDA Games Accessibility SIG Mailing List
Subject: Re: [games_access] Half Life 2 has closed captioning


>Yes definitely - it's a great example we can use when talking about GA.

OK, cool. Who's going to do the follow-up, etc? Kevin Bierre?

Whoever is going to do this should pop me a quick/direct email...

Jason

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jason Della Rocca
Program Director
International Game Developers Association

t: +1-514-426-1162
f: +1-514-426-1201
Montreal, Canada
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

http://www.realitypanic.com/

"Do or do not. There is no try."
- Yoda

_______________________________________________
games_access mailing list
games_access at igda.org
http://seven.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/games_access




From richard at audiogames.net  Sun Oct 17 09:17:32 2004
From: richard at audiogames.net (AudioGames.net)
Date: Sun, 17 Oct 2004 15:17:32 +0200
Subject: [games_access] Game Accessibility Convention?
References: <008e01c4b3fc$9dd48e60$10ebfea9@insightbb.com>
Message-ID: <004b01c4b44b$aab12720$cdfb8418@SoundSupport>

Hello,

For some time I have been thinking about (organizing) a "Game Accessibility"
convention here in the Netherlands. I've had a talk about game accessiblity
with Jeroen van Mastrigt, who is currently the new Chapter Coordinator of
the Dutch devision of IGDA (http://www.igda.org/amsterdam) and also
coordinator of the Game Design course over at the Utrecht School of the
Arts. Jeroen also organized last years Flux event during the Level Up games
research convention, also here in Holland (maybe some of you were there) and
he thought it was a good idea.

Instead of doing the brainstorming all by myself, I thought it would be a
nice idea to have a discussion about this with all the people on this list,
to see what your opinions/ideas of such a convention are.

My initial thoughts are about a "game accessibility" convention for
researchers, designers, students (with presentations of research and
round-table conversations) combined with a "accessible games" convention,
where various designers and students get the chance to display their games
to the (disabled) public. Currently the subject is raised at conventions
about assistive technologies (like the ICCHP and recently the ICDVRAT) and
as round-table conversations at game conventions like the GDC. I propose a
convention that is specifically about game accessibily and accessible
electronic entertainment.The goals of the convention would be to raise
awareness among 'regular' game developers, share research (get to see what
everyone else is doing) and also introduce disabled people to (electronic)
games. For instance, in my experience there are still hundreds of blind
children and adults who never heard that there is something as a "game for
the blind". And I think such a convention could get worldwide attention.
Although I'm thinking mostly "computer games" here, the festival doesn't
have to not limit itsself to this. It could maybe also include accessible
(electronic) toys (as far as I know there isn't a convention for accessible
toys yet) ? There are several accessible game designs I know of here in
Holland that I would like to include, such as a breath-controller game (for
asmatic children) and an installation with a game especially tailored for a
specific individual with a mental disability. And I wouldn't mind if
companies that develope hardware which is used for accessible gaming would
display their product as well.

Parties I know that would like to be involved would be the Utrecht School of
the Arts (my academy where I occasionaly give a lecture on game audio),
IGDA, DIGRA, the Dutch Accessibility foundation (where I work part-time and
with whom I co-developed Drive, a racing game for the blind), the University
of Utrecht (who also took part in last years Level Up convention), etc. Of
course, I still have to contact various parties for this idea but I already
know that some are enthousiastic about the idea. And of course there should
be a sponsor, preferably a big name like Sony or EA Games.

I don't even know if it's possible to setup a convention solely with this
subject. Maybe it can only exist if part of a bigger (game) convention.
However, I'm very interested in what your thoughts are, what is should be
about, how much potentional it could have, etc.

so...?

Richard

http://www.audiogames.net



From j.chetwynd at btinternet.com  Sun Oct 17 10:05:01 2004
From: j.chetwynd at btinternet.com (Jonathan Chetwynd)
Date: Sun, 17 Oct 2004 15:05:01 +0100
Subject: [games_access] Game Accessibility Convention?
In-Reply-To: <004b01c4b44b$aab12720$cdfb8418@SoundSupport>
References: <008e01c4b3fc$9dd48e60$10ebfea9@insightbb.com>
	<004b01c4b44b$aab12720$cdfb8418@SoundSupport>
Message-ID: <89A63305-2045-11D9-B292-000A95C7D298@btinternet.com>

Richard,

Please book me in!

Please be sure there's an online thread.

regards

Jonathan Chetwynd
http://www.peepo.co.uk     "It's easy to use"
irc://freenode/accessibility

On 17 Oct 2004, at 14:17, AudioGames.net wrote:

Hello,

For some time I have been thinking about (organizing) a "Game 
Accessibility"
convention here in the Netherlands. I've had a talk about game 
accessiblity
with Jeroen van Mastrigt, who is currently the new Chapter Coordinator 
of
the Dutch devision of IGDA (http://www.igda.org/amsterdam) and also
coordinator of the Game Design course over at the Utrecht School of the
Arts. Jeroen also organized last years Flux event during the Level Up 
games
research convention, also here in Holland (maybe some of you were 
there) and
he thought it was a good idea.

Instead of doing the brainstorming all by myself, I thought it would be 
a
nice idea to have a discussion about this with all the people on this 
list,
to see what your opinions/ideas of such a convention are.

My initial thoughts are about a "game accessibility" convention for
researchers, designers, students (with presentations of research and
round-table conversations) combined with a "accessible games" 
convention,
where various designers and students get the chance to display their 
games
to the (disabled) public. Currently the subject is raised at conventions
about assistive technologies (like the ICCHP and recently the ICDVRAT) 
and
as round-table conversations at game conventions like the GDC. I 
propose a
convention that is specifically about game accessibily and accessible
electronic entertainment.The goals of the convention would be to raise
awareness among 'regular' game developers, share research (get to see 
what
everyone else is doing) and also introduce disabled people to 
(electronic)
games. For instance, in my experience there are still hundreds of blind
children and adults who never heard that there is something as a "game 
for
the blind". And I think such a convention could get worldwide attention.
Although I'm thinking mostly "computer games" here, the festival doesn't
have to not limit itsself to this. It could maybe also include 
accessible
(electronic) toys (as far as I know there isn't a convention for 
accessible
toys yet) ? There are several accessible game designs I know of here in
Holland that I would like to include, such as a breath-controller game 
(for
asmatic children) and an installation with a game especially tailored 
for a
specific individual with a mental disability. And I wouldn't mind if
companies that develope hardware which is used for accessible gaming 
would
display their product as well.

Parties I know that would like to be involved would be the Utrecht 
School of
the Arts (my academy where I occasionaly give a lecture on game audio),
IGDA, DIGRA, the Dutch Accessibility foundation (where I work part-time 
and
with whom I co-developed Drive, a racing game for the blind), the 
University
of Utrecht (who also took part in last years Level Up convention), etc. 
Of
course, I still have to contact various parties for this idea but I 
already
know that some are enthousiastic about the idea. And of course there 
should
be a sponsor, preferably a big name like Sony or EA Games.

I don't even know if it's possible to setup a convention solely with 
this
subject. Maybe it can only exist if part of a bigger (game) convention.
However, I'm very interested in what your thoughts are, what is should 
be
about, how much potentional it could have, etc.

so...?

Richard

http://www.audiogames.net

_______________________________________________
games_access mailing list
games_access at igda.org
http://seven.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/games_access



From richard at audiogames.net  Sun Oct 17 10:46:17 2004
From: richard at audiogames.net (AudioGames.net)
Date: Sun, 17 Oct 2004 16:46:17 +0200
Subject: [games_access] Game Accessibility Convention?
References: <008e01c4b3fc$9dd48e60$10ebfea9@insightbb.com><004b01c4b44b$aab12720$cdfb8418@SoundSupport>
	<89A63305-2045-11D9-B292-000A95C7D298@btinternet.com>
Message-ID: <00f801c4b458$0fd8e190$cdfb8418@SoundSupport>

>>you might be interested in: http://www.svgopen.org/2005/
>>
>>There will almost certainly be an accessibility games thread....
>>and note the location.


HI Jonathan,

Thanks for your suggestion! I know several people from the University of
Twente and I'll approach them next week. Although I don't know the
convention very well, it sure is a possibility.

Thanks!

Richard

ps: Dan G?rdenfors of SITREC (www.sitrec.kth.se) recently suggested
especially adding games to the convention that use alternative interfaces.
Any other thoughts?




----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jonathan Chetwynd" <j.chetwynd at btinternet.com>
To: "IGDA Games Accessibility SIG Mailing List" <games_access at igda.org>
Sent: Sunday, October 17, 2004 4:05 PM
Subject: Re: [games_access] Game Accessibility Convention?


> Richard,
>
> Please book me in!
>
> Please be sure there's an online thread.
>
> regards
>
> Jonathan Chetwynd
> http://www.peepo.co.uk     "It's easy to use"
> irc://freenode/accessibility
>
> On 17 Oct 2004, at 14:17, AudioGames.net wrote:
>
> Hello,
>
> For some time I have been thinking about (organizing) a "Game
> Accessibility"
> convention here in the Netherlands. I've had a talk about game
> accessiblity
> with Jeroen van Mastrigt, who is currently the new Chapter Coordinator
> of
> the Dutch devision of IGDA (http://www.igda.org/amsterdam) and also
> coordinator of the Game Design course over at the Utrecht School of the
> Arts. Jeroen also organized last years Flux event during the Level Up
> games
> research convention, also here in Holland (maybe some of you were
> there) and
> he thought it was a good idea.
>
> Instead of doing the brainstorming all by myself, I thought it would be
> a
> nice idea to have a discussion about this with all the people on this
> list,
> to see what your opinions/ideas of such a convention are.
>
> My initial thoughts are about a "game accessibility" convention for
> researchers, designers, students (with presentations of research and
> round-table conversations) combined with a "accessible games"
> convention,
> where various designers and students get the chance to display their
> games
> to the (disabled) public. Currently the subject is raised at conventions
> about assistive technologies (like the ICCHP and recently the ICDVRAT)
> and
> as round-table conversations at game conventions like the GDC. I
> propose a
> convention that is specifically about game accessibily and accessible
> electronic entertainment.The goals of the convention would be to raise
> awareness among 'regular' game developers, share research (get to see
> what
> everyone else is doing) and also introduce disabled people to
> (electronic)
> games. For instance, in my experience there are still hundreds of blind
> children and adults who never heard that there is something as a "game
> for
> the blind". And I think such a convention could get worldwide attention.
> Although I'm thinking mostly "computer games" here, the festival doesn't
> have to not limit itsself to this. It could maybe also include
> accessible
> (electronic) toys (as far as I know there isn't a convention for
> accessible
> toys yet) ? There are several accessible game designs I know of here in
> Holland that I would like to include, such as a breath-controller game
> (for
> asmatic children) and an installation with a game especially tailored
> for a
> specific individual with a mental disability. And I wouldn't mind if
> companies that develope hardware which is used for accessible gaming
> would
> display their product as well.
>
> Parties I know that would like to be involved would be the Utrecht
> School of
> the Arts (my academy where I occasionaly give a lecture on game audio),
> IGDA, DIGRA, the Dutch Accessibility foundation (where I work part-time
> and
> with whom I co-developed Drive, a racing game for the blind), the
> University
> of Utrecht (who also took part in last years Level Up convention), etc.
> Of
> course, I still have to contact various parties for this idea but I
> already
> know that some are enthousiastic about the idea. And of course there
> should
> be a sponsor, preferably a big name like Sony or EA Games.
>
> I don't even know if it's possible to setup a convention solely with
> this
> subject. Maybe it can only exist if part of a bigger (game) convention.
> However, I'm very interested in what your thoughts are, what is should
> be
> about, how much potentional it could have, etc.
>
> so...?
>
> Richard
>
> http://www.audiogames.net
>
> _______________________________________________
> games_access mailing list
> games_access at igda.org
> http://seven.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/games_access
>
> _______________________________________________
> games_access mailing list
> games_access at igda.org
> http://seven.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/games_access



From hinn at uiuc.edu  Sun Oct 17 13:02:28 2004
From: hinn at uiuc.edu (d. michelle hinn)
Date: Sun, 17 Oct 2004 12:02:28 -0500
Subject: [games_access] Game Accessibility Convention?
In-Reply-To: <00f801c4b458$0fd8e190$cdfb8418@SoundSupport>
Message-ID: <00c601c4b46b$15bb18e0$10ebfea9@insightbb.com>

Hi Richard,

This sounds like a great thing for the SIG to get involved with -- can
you attend an online meeting tomorrow at 12noon (US eastern time)? If
so, email me offlist and I can give you instructions on how to join the
meeting.

Also, anyone else who is interested in donating some of their time to
business related to the Game Accessibility SIG of the IGDA, send an
email to me at hinn at uiuc.edu and I can talk to you more about what we do
during the SIG business meetings.

Thanks!
Michelle
IGDA Game Accessibility SIG Chair

-----Original Message-----
From: games_access-bounces at igda.org
[mailto:games_access-bounces at igda.org] On Behalf Of AudioGames.net
Sent: Sunday, October 17, 2004 9:46 AM
To: IGDA Games Accessibility SIG Mailing List
Subject: Re: [games_access] Game Accessibility Convention?

>>you might be interested in: http://www.svgopen.org/2005/
>>
>>There will almost certainly be an accessibility games thread....
>>and note the location.


HI Jonathan,

Thanks for your suggestion! I know several people from the University of
Twente and I'll approach them next week. Although I don't know the
convention very well, it sure is a possibility.

Thanks!

Richard

ps: Dan G?rdenfors of SITREC (www.sitrec.kth.se) recently suggested
especially adding games to the convention that use alternative
interfaces.
Any other thoughts?




----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jonathan Chetwynd" <j.chetwynd at btinternet.com>
To: "IGDA Games Accessibility SIG Mailing List" <games_access at igda.org>
Sent: Sunday, October 17, 2004 4:05 PM
Subject: Re: [games_access] Game Accessibility Convention?


> Richard,
>
> Please book me in!
>
> Please be sure there's an online thread.
>
> regards
>
> Jonathan Chetwynd
> http://www.peepo.co.uk     "It's easy to use"
> irc://freenode/accessibility
>
> On 17 Oct 2004, at 14:17, AudioGames.net wrote:
>
> Hello,
>
> For some time I have been thinking about (organizing) a "Game
> Accessibility"
> convention here in the Netherlands. I've had a talk about game
> accessiblity
> with Jeroen van Mastrigt, who is currently the new Chapter Coordinator
> of
> the Dutch devision of IGDA (http://www.igda.org/amsterdam) and also
> coordinator of the Game Design course over at the Utrecht School of
the
> Arts. Jeroen also organized last years Flux event during the Level Up
> games
> research convention, also here in Holland (maybe some of you were
> there) and
> he thought it was a good idea.
>
> Instead of doing the brainstorming all by myself, I thought it would
be
> a
> nice idea to have a discussion about this with all the people on this
> list,
> to see what your opinions/ideas of such a convention are.
>
> My initial thoughts are about a "game accessibility" convention for
> researchers, designers, students (with presentations of research and
> round-table conversations) combined with a "accessible games"
> convention,
> where various designers and students get the chance to display their
> games
> to the (disabled) public. Currently the subject is raised at
conventions
> about assistive technologies (like the ICCHP and recently the ICDVRAT)
> and
> as round-table conversations at game conventions like the GDC. I
> propose a
> convention that is specifically about game accessibily and accessible
> electronic entertainment.The goals of the convention would be to raise
> awareness among 'regular' game developers, share research (get to see
> what
> everyone else is doing) and also introduce disabled people to
> (electronic)
> games. For instance, in my experience there are still hundreds of
blind
> children and adults who never heard that there is something as a "game
> for
> the blind". And I think such a convention could get worldwide
attention.
> Although I'm thinking mostly "computer games" here, the festival
doesn't
> have to not limit itsself to this. It could maybe also include
> accessible
> (electronic) toys (as far as I know there isn't a convention for
> accessible
> toys yet) ? There are several accessible game designs I know of here
in
> Holland that I would like to include, such as a breath-controller game
> (for
> asmatic children) and an installation with a game especially tailored
> for a
> specific individual with a mental disability. And I wouldn't mind if
> companies that develope hardware which is used for accessible gaming
> would
> display their product as well.
>
> Parties I know that would like to be involved would be the Utrecht
> School of
> the Arts (my academy where I occasionaly give a lecture on game
audio),
> IGDA, DIGRA, the Dutch Accessibility foundation (where I work
part-time
> and
> with whom I co-developed Drive, a racing game for the blind), the
> University
> of Utrecht (who also took part in last years Level Up convention),
etc.
> Of
> course, I still have to contact various parties for this idea but I
> already
> know that some are enthousiastic about the idea. And of course there
> should
> be a sponsor, preferably a big name like Sony or EA Games.
>
> I don't even know if it's possible to setup a convention solely with
> this
> subject. Maybe it can only exist if part of a bigger (game)
convention.
> However, I'm very interested in what your thoughts are, what is should
> be
> about, how much potentional it could have, etc.
>
> so...?
>
> Richard
>
> http://www.audiogames.net
>
> _______________________________________________
> games_access mailing list
> games_access at igda.org
> http://seven.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/games_access
>
> _______________________________________________
> games_access mailing list
> games_access at igda.org
> http://seven.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/games_access

_______________________________________________
games_access mailing list
games_access at igda.org
http://seven.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/games_access




From kjb at it.rit.edu  Sun Oct 17 14:40:10 2004
From: kjb at it.rit.edu (Kevin J. Bierre)
Date: Sun, 17 Oct 2004 14:40:10 -0400
Subject: [games_access] (no subject)
Message-ID: <fc.004c519f0112e2ff004c519f0112e2ff.112e308@it.rit.edu>

Michelle:

Yes, I can head up finding out more about the closed captioning. Jason, if you could send me some contact information for this project, I'd appreciate it. Thanks.

Kevin Bierre,  Assistant Professor                                                       (kjb at it.rit.edu)
Information Technology,  Rochester Institute of Technology                   585-475-5358
102 Lomb Memorial Drive                                                                   Bldg 70B-2637
Rochester, NY 14623




From info at oneswitch.org.uk  Sun Oct 17 16:04:00 2004
From: info at oneswitch.org.uk (Barrie Ellis)
Date: Sun, 17 Oct 2004 21:04:00 +0100
Subject: [games_access] Game Accessibilit Convention - alternative interfaces
References: <20041017160006.1FF4457126@seven.pairlist.net>
Message-ID: <00f701c4b484$71c25360$64784f51@Skallagrigg>

I couldn't afford to pay much for a stand (being a one day a week concern), 
but I'd be happy to bring some of my alternative interfaces for games 
consoles:

www.oneswitch.org.uk/4/games/1interface-stockists.htm
www.oneswitch.org.uk/4/DIY/index.htm

Sounds like a great idea, Richard - hope it takes off.

Barrie
www.OneSwitch.org.uk




> For some time I have been thinking about (organizing) a "Game
> Accessibility"
> convention here in the Netherlands.

> Richard
>
> http://www.audiogames.net

>ps: Dan G?rdenfors of SITREC (www.sitrec.kth.se) recently suggested
>especially adding games to the convention that use alternative interfaces.
>Any other thoughts? 




From thomas at pininteractive.com  Sun Oct 17 16:36:35 2004
From: thomas at pininteractive.com (Thomas Westin)
Date: Sun, 17 Oct 2004 22:36:35 +0200
Subject: [games_access] GA-SIG info
Message-ID: <fc.00802e9a009b2c6000802e9a009b2c60.9b533d@eden.grace.se>

Hi all,

I'm very sorry to say that I'll be unable to attend the meeting on Monday
as well.
I simply have too many things going on. I have already skipped a few other
things, e.g my plans to finish my master degree this year. Please say
hello to everyone from me and feel free to use the Pin Meetings
application if you like - please send me feedback about features you would
like in that app since we're currently into making a new version. 

Anyway, here is a short report about the two conferences in the UK I
attended in September. Please forward it to the GA members (I don't have a
complete list of all new people, and I can't find the address to the mail
list)

DIGIPLAY 3

http://les1.man.ac.uk/cric/digi/digisems3.htm
Location: Univ. of Central Lancashire, Preston, UK

This was a nice, informal seminar session with about 15 people attending.
The presentations ranged from the emotions people attach to their cell
phones to how sport games make young people getting more into physical
activity and sports than those who don't play sport games. The overall
topic for the seminar was about "Leisure Constraints, Entitlement and
Access to Technologies of Leisure".

I presented our white paper (the presentation I sent to you recently), why
accessibility is important, how it can be done and what has been done to
date. I also discussed the topics about the future, the next steps etc.
Finally, I showed them two examples. First, Terraformers as an example of
a dedicated accessibility solution where the accessibility is provided by
custom made interface. Second, I showed the "vOICe", with a webcam I
brought with me as an example of a general accessibility solution, and
discussed the ups and downs of each approach.
http://www.seeingwithsound.com/voice.htm 

The feedback from the attendees was about how accessibility could enhance
the experience for other gamers, in creating new game experiences. Also,
they thought our goal of creating a game accessibility standard was a very
ambitious goal (which it is of course). Another topic discussed was the
fact that games are about challenges which runs counter to accessibility
aims, and what types of games could be made accessibile to whom, without
breaking the game itself.

ICDVRAT
http://www.icdvrat.reading.ac.uk/
Location: New College, Oxford

This was a three day conference with presentations from morning to
evening, including poster and demo sessions. It was held in New College,
Oxford. "New" is a bit fun: the New College was built in the 13th Century!
The building reminded me of Tomb Raider or something. Oxford Univ. is the
oldest in the UK...

The presentations ranged an even wider field than Digiplay. There were
strict researchers to wild artists, experimenting with digital tech to
make virtual reality environments accessible. Some of the coolest stuff
was presented by a Danish guy (can't remember his name at the moment, have
his card somewhere). One thing he had used for kids with ADHD and similar
issues were a combination of ultra-sound and infra-red sensors which could
detect, without any wires to the user, blinking with an eye or moving of
hips, hands etc. This was then connected to computer graphics and computer
generated sounds, making your entire body a tool for both music and
graphic art. This had also been used with great success by deaf people,
who could see the graphic art, but also produce music without actually
hearing it.

I was invited to talk about Terraformers but of course I also took the
chance of spreading the word about the GA-SIG. I got in touch with a guy
from Microsoft (Rob Haverty) about accessibility in DirectX, and a
japanese older guy in charge of the SMIL development. Then also a bunch of
others which I haven't had time to follow up yet.

I could go on a long time describing all this but there is a great website
for the conference. I also have a CD with the proceedings, I could e-mail
some PDF:s to you if you're interested. First, take a look at the website
for the conf. above so you get some idea of the presentations.

As a final note: I was invited to Techshare in Birmingham in November.
I'll go there just one day and make another presentation of our white
paper.
http://www.rnib.org.uk/xpedio/groups/public/documents/code/public_rnib004057.hcsp


Thanks for reading this long e-mail :)
Thomas

Pin Interactive AB www.pininteractive.com
Online support: MSN thomas at pininteractive.com
Phone: +46 (0)70 7331475 (Time zone: GMT+1)
____________________________________________________
Award Winning 3D Game for Blind and Sighted: www.terraformers.nu 
IGDA Game Accessibility SIG www.igda.org/accessibility/ 




From richard at audiogames.net  Sun Oct 17 17:06:37 2004
From: richard at audiogames.net (AudioGames.net)
Date: Sun, 17 Oct 2004 23:06:37 +0200
Subject: [games_access] Mediate Project
References: <20041017160006.1FF4457126@seven.pairlist.net>
	<00f701c4b484$71c25360$64784f51@Skallagrigg>
Message-ID: <00fa01c4b48d$322fac30$cdfb8418@SoundSupport>

Hi everyone,

Visiting Barrie Ellis' website reminded me of the following project, which
might be interesting for some people on this list:

http://web.port.ac.uk/mediate/

In the project a very advanced type of "SnoezelRoom" (or "SnoezelenRoom", a
multisensory interactive environment) is build in order to establish
communication with autistic children. One thing I like about it is that
"fun" is a very important factor in the design. No games are planned yet
though...

Greetings,

Richard




----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Barrie Ellis" <info at oneswitch.org.uk>
To: <games_access at igda.org>
Sent: Sunday, October 17, 2004 10:04 PM
Subject: [games_access] Game Accessibilit Convention - alternative
interfaces


I couldn't afford to pay much for a stand (being a one day a week concern),
but I'd be happy to bring some of my alternative interfaces for games
consoles:

www.oneswitch.org.uk/4/games/1interface-stockists.htm
www.oneswitch.org.uk/4/DIY/index.htm

Sounds like a great idea, Richard - hope it takes off.

Barrie
www.OneSwitch.org.uk




> For some time I have been thinking about (organizing) a "Game
> Accessibility"
> convention here in the Netherlands.

> Richard
>
> http://www.audiogames.net

>ps: Dan G?rdenfors of SITREC (www.sitrec.kth.se) recently suggested
>especially adding games to the convention that use alternative interfaces.
>Any other thoughts?


_______________________________________________
games_access mailing list
games_access at igda.org
http://seven.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/games_access



From kikihaven at hotmail.com  Sun Oct 17 17:21:43 2004
From: kikihaven at hotmail.com (kiki haven)
Date: Sun, 17 Oct 2004 22:21:43 +0100
Subject: [games_access] Game Accessibility Convention?
Message-ID: <BAY12-F42Zz02H67yRL0000b5e5@hotmail.com>

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From richard at audiogames.net  Sun Oct 17 18:43:01 2004
From: richard at audiogames.net (AudioGames.net)
Date: Mon, 18 Oct 2004 00:43:01 +0200
Subject: [games_access] Game Accessibility Convention?
References: <BAY12-F42Zz02H67yRL0000b5e5@hotmail.com>
Message-ID: <018501c4b49a$a972e8e0$cdfb8418@SoundSupport>

Hi Kiki,

Yes, I have. At this years ICCHP convention I attended a VERY impressive presentation by Paul Blenkhorn called "Using computers to support people with Specific Learning Difficulties (SpLD)". An important part of his presentation was about common misconceptions about people with learning difficulties. He showed that the worldwide group of people with learning disabilities is enormous and diverse (and therefore there are no easy solutions). Although I could easily find a few examples of edutainment for dyslexic children using Google (like http://www.dyslexia-teacher.com/t113.html), I have not yet encountered any example of research or design of pure electronic entertainment accessible for dyslexic children. 

It would be very interesting if you could submit a list of problems that your son (Michael?) encounters while playing to this group, as a tiny case study? 

About the convention: I would love to aim at designers/researchers AND disabled gamers at the same time. Research and play. I think many conventional game designers only get in touch with a disabled person if it is a relative or a friend. It would be nice to have a, well, confrontation :). We have a lot of disabled children in the Netherlands that use computers and I think many of them would be very enthousiastic to go to such a convention. Internationally, I wouldn't know. But we could use creative solutions like field trips and competitions sponsered by local foundations or companies. And we could collaborate with an organisations like the ICC (http://www.icc-camp.info/), which is a computer camp for disabled teens. 

Greetings,

Richard

http://www.audiogames.net 




  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: kiki haven 
  To: games_access at igda.org 
  Sent: Sunday, October 17, 2004 11:21 PM
  Subject: Re: [games_access] Game Accessibility Convention?


  Hello,

  As a new-comer to this area, and this site, have any of "you" (games designers) thought about the thousands of kids 'handicapped' simply by severe dyslexia? My son (now 14) has always taken a keen interest in computer games, but due to a combination of specific learning probablems, his reading is very slow, and dependant on sounding words out (ie hearing the sounds before he knows what the words are). Most computer games 'speak' a bit, but also flash sentences, or include narratives which seem essential to success in the game. (A classic Michael quote was:" Why are they shooting at me? I thought I was on their side!")

  A festival which gave game designers a chance to see how all sorts of handicapped people interact with the games you are designing sounds great to me..How will you access them and make it affordable for them to attend? There are alot of other potential uses for the therapeutic use of games, and computer technology in the arts therapies, also.

  Hope you can make it happen.

  Nadija Corcos

  Art Therapist (nadija.corcos at awp.nhs.uk)  



   

  >From: Jonathan Chetwynd <j.chetwynd at btinternet.com> 
  >Reply-To: IGDA Games Accessibility SIG Mailing List <games_access at igda.org> 
  >To: IGDA Games Accessibility SIG Mailing List <games_access at igda.org> 
  >Subject: Re: [games_access] Game Accessibility Convention? 
  >Date: Sun, 17 Oct 2004 15:05:01 +0100 
  > 
  >Richard, 
  > 
  >Please book me in! 
  > 
  >Please be sure there's an online thread. 
  > 
  >regards 
  > 
  >Jonathan Chetwynd 
  >http://www.peepo.co.uk     "It's easy to use" 
  >irc://freenode/accessibility 
  > 
  >On 17 Oct 2004, at 14:17, AudioGames.net wrote: 
  > 
  >Hello, 
  > 
  >For some time I have been thinking about (organizing) a "Game 
  >Accessibility" 
  >convention here in the Netherlands. I've had a talk about game 
  >accessiblity 
  >with Jeroen van Mastrigt, who is currently the new Chapter 
  >Coordinator of 
  >the Dutch devision of IGDA (http://www.igda.org/amsterdam) and also 
  >coordinator of the Game Design course over at the Utrecht School of 
  >the 
  >Arts. Jeroen also organized last years Flux event during the Level 
  >Up games 
  >research convention, also here in Holland (maybe some of you were 
  >there) and 
  >he thought it was a good idea. 
  > 
  >Instead of doing the brainstorming all by myself, I thought it would 
  >be a 
  >nice idea to have a discussion about this with all the people on 
  >this list, 
  >to see what your opinions/ideas of such a convention are. 
  > 
  >My initial thoughts are about a "game accessibility" convention for 
  >researchers, designers, students (with presentations of research and 
  >round-table conversations) combined with a "accessible games" 
  >convention, 
  >where various designers and students get the chance to display their 
  >games 
  >to the (disabled) public. Currently the subject is raised at 
  >conventions 
  >about assistive technologies (like the ICCHP and recently the 
  >ICDVRAT) and 
  >as round-table conversations at game conventions like the GDC. I 
  >propose a 
  >convention that is specifically about game accessibily and 
  >accessible 
  >electronic entertainment.The goals of the convention would be to 
  >raise 
  >awareness among 'regular' game developers, share research (get to 
  >see what 
  >everyone else is doing) and also introduce disabled people to 
  >(electronic) 
  >games. For instance, in my experience there are still hundreds of 
  >blind 
  >children and adults who never heard that there is something as a 
  >"game for 
  >the blind". And I think such a convention could get worldwide 
  >attention. 
  >Although I'm thinking mostly "computer games" here, the festival 
  >doesn't 
  >have to not limit itsself to this. It could maybe also include 
  >accessible 
  >(electronic) toys (as far as I know there isn't a convention for 
  >accessible 
  >toys yet) ? There are several accessible game designs I know of here 
  >in 
  >Holland that I would like to include, such as a breath-controller 
  >game (for 
  >asmatic children) and an installation with a game especially 
  >tailored for a 
  >specific individual with a mental disability. And I wouldn't mind if 
  >companies that develope hardware which is used for accessible gaming 
  >would 
  >display their product as well. 
  > 
  >Parties I know that would like to be involved would be the Utrecht 
  >School of 
  >the Arts (my academy where I occasionaly give a lecture on game 
  >audio), 
  >IGDA, DIGRA, the Dutch Accessibility foundation (where I work 
  >part-time and 
  >with whom I co-developed Drive, a racing game for the blind), the 
  >University 
  >of Utrecht (who also took part in last years Level Up convention), 
  >etc. Of 
  >course, I still have to contact various parties for this idea but I 
  >already 
  >know that some are enthousiastic about the idea. And of course there 
  >should 
  >be a sponsor, preferably a big name like Sony or EA Games. 
  > 
  >I don't even know if it's possible to setup a convention solely with 
  >this 
  >subject. Maybe it can only exist if part of a bigger (game) 
  >convention. 
  >However, I'm very interested in what your thoughts are, what is 
  >should be 
  >about, how much potentional it could have, etc. 
  > 
  >so...? 
  > 
  >Richard 
  > 
  >http://www.audiogames.net 
  > 
  >_______________________________________________ 
  >games_access mailing list 
  >games_access at igda.org 
  >http://seven.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/games_access 
  > 
  >_______________________________________________ 
  >games_access mailing list 
  >games_access at igda.org 
  >http://seven.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/games_access 


------------------------------------------------------------------------------


  _______________________________________________
  games_access mailing list
  games_access at igda.org
  http://seven.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/games_access
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From hinn at uiuc.edu  Sun Oct 17 22:53:51 2004
From: hinn at uiuc.edu (d. michelle hinn)
Date: Sun, 17 Oct 2004 21:53:51 -0500
Subject: [games_access] Reminder: IGDA Game Accessibility SIG meeting
	tomorrow!
In-Reply-To: <018501c4b49a$a972e8e0$cdfb8418@SoundSupport>
Message-ID: <011601c4b4bd$b3e0f6a0$10ebfea9@insightbb.com>

Hi everyone,

Just a reminder that we have a meeting for the Game Accessibility SIG is
tomorrow at 9am (US pacific time)/12noon (US east coast time). Please
try to be there if you can! We'll be continuing the discussion about
paper proposals/venues that Kevin started last time and talking about
some of the outreach issues that have been addressed on the games
accessibility mailing list.

IMPORTANT (how to get to the meeting): If you aren't already on MSN
Messenger, please sign up for an account as soon as possible. Then add
me, vrgrrl at hotmail.com (that's right, vrgrrl), to your contacts list.
I'll make sure that you are added to the conference room when I see you
online right before the meeting. Email me at hinn at uiuc.edu if you have
any problems.

If this is your first time to the GAC online meetings, you might want to
try and be online and signed into your messenger account a few minutes
before the meeting starts just to get settled. But no worries for those
of you that emailed me and said that you might be a few minutes late --
I'll look for you! We'll also talk about possible other meeting times
since I know that there are some conflicts for some.

Also, please continue to spread the word about this list to colleagues
and others who might be interested in discussing ways to create more
accessible games. This is our newest outreach project! The mailing list
sign up is at http://seven.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/games_access 

Questions? Just email me at hinn at uiuc.edu

Hope to see you all tomorrow!
Michelle
IGDA Game Accessibility Committee Chair





From gramenos at ics.forth.gr  Mon Oct 18 11:45:55 2004
From: gramenos at ics.forth.gr (Dimitris Grammenos)
Date: Mon, 18 Oct 2004 17:45:55 +0200
Subject: [games_access] "When Computer Games meet Universal Access" in UAHCI
	2005
Message-ID: <200410181452.i9IEqY60021186@mailhost.ics.forth.gr>

Hello everyone,

 

My name is Dimitris Grammenos and I work as an interaction engineer at the
Centre for Universal Access and Assistive Technologies and the
Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory of the Foundation for Research and
Technology - Hellas (FORTH), in Crete, Greece. Part of my research work has
to do with developing universally accessible games (I will e-mail soon more
details about it).

 

Since you are interested in a Game Accessibility Convention, you might be
also interested in the following announcement:

 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------

 

You are cordially invited to consider submitting a paper and participating
in the parallel session entitled "When Computer Games meet Universal
Access", organized in the context of the 3rd International Conference on
Universal Access in Human-Computer Interaction (UAHCI 2005) that will be
held in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, 22-27 July 2005, in cooperation with the
11th International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction, the Symposium
on Human Interface (Japan) 2005, the 6th International Conference on
Engineering Psychology & Cognitive Ergonomics, the 1st International
Conference on Virtual Reality, the 1st International Conference on Usability
and Internationalization, the 1st International Conference on Online
Communities and Social Computing and the 1st International Conference on
Augmented Cognition.

 

http://www.hci-international.org/ 

 

This session will be one of the parallel sessions of UAHCI 2005 and will
address issues related to the development of universally accessible games,
i.e. computer games that allow people to have fun and compete on an equal
basis, while interacting easily, safely and effectively, irrespective of
individual abilities, skills and preferences. Due to a serious lack of
related published material (requirements, methods, tools, guidelines,
tutorials, case studies, etc.) the main goal of this session is to
contribute towards the formation of a corpus of tangible knowledge on the
creation of games that are highly usable and accessible by all. 

 

Your paper will appear in the Conference Proceedings along with the other
regular submissions that will be accepted for oral presentations, following
a peer-review process.

 

In addition to the papers appearing in the conference proceedings,
participants will be invited to submit an extended version to a special
issue of the Springer journal "Universal Access in
<http://www.springeronline.com/east/journal/10209/>  the Information
Society".

 

If you want to submit a paper, please send to gramenos at ics.forth.gr an
extended abstract before 30 October 2004. Based on the comments that you
will receive on your submission by the 20th of December 2004, you will be
required to submit the camera-ready version of your full paper for inclusion
in the conference proceedings by the 10th of February 2005.

 

You, or one of the co-authors, will be required to register and give an oral
presentation during the Conference. Kindly note that individuals can appear
as co-authors in several papers in HCI International 2005 and the affiliated
Conferences, but can only present one paper.

 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------

 

Thank you very much for your consideration in this matter.

 

I look forward to hearing from you shortly.

Foundation for Research and Technology - Hellas (FORTH)
Institute of Computer Science (ICS)
Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory
Centre for Universal Access and Assistive Technologies
Heraklion, Crete
GR - 70013 Greece

email:  <mailto:gramenos at ics.forth.gr> gramenos at ics.forth.gr
Tel: +30-2810-391755
Fax: +30-2810-391740 

 

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From jason at igda.org  Mon Oct 18 11:16:35 2004
From: jason at igda.org (Jason Della Rocca)
Date: Mon, 18 Oct 2004 11:16:35 -0400
Subject: [games_access] GA-SIG info
In-Reply-To: <fc.00802e9a009b2c6000802e9a009b2c60.9b533d@eden.grace.se>
References: <fc.00802e9a009b2c6000802e9a009b2c60.9b533d@eden.grace.se>
Message-ID: <6.0.1.1.2.20041018111606.0220aec0@mail.igda.org>


>Anyway, here is a short report about the two conferences in the UK I

These are great summary reports. They should go up on the SIG site as a log 
of SIG activity :)

Jason

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jason Della Rocca
Program Director
International Game Developers Association

t: +1-514-426-1162
f: +1-514-426-1201
Montreal, Canada
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

http://www.realitypanic.com/

"Do or do not. There is no try."
- Yoda



From j.chetwynd at btinternet.com  Mon Oct 18 17:29:27 2004
From: j.chetwynd at btinternet.com (Jonathan Chetwynd)
Date: Mon, 18 Oct 2004 22:29:27 +0100
Subject: [games_access] apologies & online games
Message-ID: <CA377B5F-214C-11D9-ADD7-000A95C7D298@btinternet.com>

apologies for missing call, my daughter has a cold...

I'm wondering if we could create a list of online games designed for 
particular users:

http://www.deafsign.com/ds/index.cfm?scn=games

http://www.nomensa.com/news/2003/0214_rnib_blind_date.html

I don't think comments are necessarily that helpful, but leave that to 
contributors.

regards

Jonathan Chetwynd
http://www.peepo.co.uk     "It's easy to use"
irc://freenode/accessibility



From info at oneswitch.org.uk  Mon Oct 18 18:24:30 2004
From: info at oneswitch.org.uk (Barrie Ellis)
Date: Mon, 18 Oct 2004 23:24:30 +0100
Subject: [games_access] Namco - "Human Services" and Hustle-Club
References: <20041018150627.CCA0857189@seven.pairlist.net>
Message-ID: <017601c4b561$3c896930$0ae34f51@Skallagrigg>

Thinking about a sponsor, are people aware of some of the 'welfare' work 
Namco do in Japan?

http://www.namco.co.jp/eg/operations.html - then scroll down to Human 
Services.

http://hustle-club.com - is the Japanese site, and you can translate it into 
pigeon English via www.babelfish.altavista.com

"Namco believes in using the world of play to create a space for elderly and 
the handicapped that removes the feeling of weakness of body or the 
hindrance of a handicap, and is free of any uncomfortable feelings regarding 
their physical limitations. That is the idea behind Namco's proposed 
"Barrier Free Entertainment" concept.
Since 1985, Namco has been developing and marketing communication devices 
for severely handicapped children and adults such as TalkingAid and PasoPal 
Maruchi (Multi). These devices have been designated as covered benefits by 
the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, and have helped bring huge 
successes in this field. Many people are using these devices to express 
their thoughts and feelings by speaking on the telephone, holding a 
conversation, or even publishing collections of essays, greatly expanding 
the world around them.
In anticipation of the aging society that is almost upon us, Namco is 
promoting its "Namco Hustle Club Plan," which consists of the marketing of a 
"Rehabilitainment" (rehabilitation + entertainment) machine to be used for 
rehabilitation, but also renders the facility in which the machine is 
installed as an entertainment space.
Through these efforts, Namco is working to create places where the elderly 
and the young are able to cross the generation gap to enjoy the experience 
of play, and make a rich life full of meaning a reality."

Regards

Barrie
www.OneSwitch.org.uk




> Re: games_access Digest, Vol 2, Issue 6

>My initial thoughts are about a "game accessibility" convention for
>researchers, designers, students (with presentations of research and
>round-table conversations) combined with a "accessible games"
>convention, where various designers and students get the chance to display 
>their
>games to the (disabled) public.

>And of course there should be a sponsor, preferably a big name like Sony or 
>EA Games.   >
>Richard
>
>http://www.audiogames.net 




From jason at igda.org  Mon Oct 18 21:05:22 2004
From: jason at igda.org (Jason Della Rocca)
Date: Mon, 18 Oct 2004 21:05:22 -0400
Subject: [games_access] Namco - "Human Services" and Hustle-Club
In-Reply-To: <017601c4b561$3c896930$0ae34f51@Skallagrigg>
References: <20041018150627.CCA0857189@seven.pairlist.net>
	<017601c4b561$3c896930$0ae34f51@Skallagrigg>
Message-ID: <6.0.1.1.2.20041018210409.022d7cc0@mail.igda.org>


>are people aware of some of the 'welfare' work Namco do in Japan?

Someone should send an email to the IGDA's Japanese chapter to get some 
contact info for Namco's access group...

Rumiko HOSHINO <r_hoshino at igda.jp>


Jason

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jason Della Rocca
Program Director
International Game Developers Association

t: +1-514-426-1162
f: +1-514-426-1201
Montreal, Canada
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

http://www.realitypanic.com/

"Do or do not. There is no try."
- Yoda



From kikihaven at hotmail.com  Tue Oct 19 18:16:18 2004
From: kikihaven at hotmail.com (kiki haven)
Date: Tue, 19 Oct 2004 23:16:18 +0100
Subject: [games_access] Game Accessibility Convention?
Message-ID: <BAY12-F7pT8vWyu9kst0000d22c@hotmail.com>

An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://pairlist7.pair.net/pipermail/games_access/attachments/20041019/417b36de/attachment.htm>

From jason at igda.org  Thu Oct 21 12:38:08 2004
From: jason at igda.org (Jason Della Rocca)
Date: Thu, 21 Oct 2004 12:38:08 -0400
Subject: [games_access] Current State of Captioning in Video Games
Message-ID: <6.0.1.1.2.20041021115840.054ffec0@mail.igda.org>

Hi all,

By chance, came across this lecture:
http://cgc.sgda.org/presentations.php?p_id=72

Encouraging to see something like that presented by a very mainstream 
developer.

We should this/him to the Valve article effort :)

Jason

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jason Della Rocca
Program Director
International Game Developers Association

t: +1-514-426-1162
f: +1-514-426-1201
Montreal, Canada
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

http://www.realitypanic.com/

"Do or do not. There is no try."
- Yoda



From hinn at uiuc.edu  Thu Oct 21 19:14:14 2004
From: hinn at uiuc.edu (d. michelle hinn)
Date: Thu, 21 Oct 2004 18:14:14 -0500
Subject: [games_access] FW: About government promotion policies of game
	industry
Message-ID: <047e01c4b7c3$b1496720$10ebfea9@insightbb.com>

Hi,

Anyone have an ideas about this? Thanks!

Michelle

-----Original Message-----
From: ... ... [mailto:gaga_hoya at hotmail.com] 
Sent: Thursday, October 21, 2004 4:36 PM
To: accessibility at igda.org
Subject: About government promotion policies of game industry

To whom it may concern:

My name is In Sohn from Korea Trade Center, which is a Koren government 
agency.  Now, we are researching on US game industry.  I went to your 
website and it indicate tax incentive  in the Game Accessibility
Program.

Can you tell me more detail on this issue?  This tax incentive is
applicable 
in US too?

In Korea, the government promote game industry with aids, supports and
etc.  
Also, Japan and some of EU countires are doing.   Is there any promotion

policies led by US government?  If you know beside of tax incentives,
then 
please inform me.

Thank you

In Sohn





From jason at igda.org  Fri Oct 22 09:36:30 2004
From: jason at igda.org (Jason Della Rocca)
Date: Fri, 22 Oct 2004 09:36:30 -0400
Subject: [games_access] FW: About government promotion policies of
	game industry
In-Reply-To: <047e01c4b7c3$b1496720$10ebfea9@insightbb.com>
References: <047e01c4b7c3$b1496720$10ebfea9@insightbb.com>
Message-ID: <6.0.1.1.2.20041022093539.055a10c0@mail.igda.org>


>Anyone have an ideas about this? Thanks!

How about the article that Ben Sawyer wrote?

It was part of the whitepaper at first, but then it was decided to remove 
it from the whitepaper and provide it as a stand-alone piece. Did that 
never go up?

Jason

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jason Della Rocca
Program Director
International Game Developers Association

t: +1-514-426-1162
f: +1-514-426-1201
Montreal, Canada
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

http://www.realitypanic.com/

"Do or do not. There is no try."
- Yoda



From info at oneswitch.org.uk  Wed Oct 27 06:54:42 2004
From: info at oneswitch.org.uk (Barrie Ellis)
Date: Wed, 27 Oct 2004 11:54:42 +0100
Subject: [games_access] NAMCO access group information
References: <20041019160007.D3BFA570DB@seven.pairlist.net>
Message-ID: <18da01c4bc13$5d36f5e0$14024c51@Skallagrigg>

Sorry for the delay - Have just e-mailed Rumiko HOSHINO requesting help 
obtaining this information.

Barrie
www.OneSwitch.org.uk



>are people aware of some of the 'welfare' work Namco do in Japan?

Someone should send an email to the IGDA's Japanese chapter to get some
contact info for Namco's access group...

Rumiko HOSHINO <r_hoshino at igda.jp>


Jason

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jason Della Rocca
Program Director
International Game Developers Association