[games_access] Games for Health to Invest in Games Accessibility

[Ben Sawyer]

On Nov 17, 2007, at 2:01 PM, Robert Florio wrote:

> I know that I was suggesting that the best way to build the tools  
> is through
> experience which is building a game.  Have to hire the people to  
> build the
> tools also isn't that how you get things done I don't think we have
> currently any real set up that people would devote their time to build
> tools.  If they can they would be the only people because it's limited
> stumbling over people with that talent in this online group here.
>

I'm not sure what you mean but hiring isn't going to be the problem  
if people are motivated to work on these issues and have some  
semblance of how to tackle it.

> Unless there's a different way how do you get the people to build  
> the tools?
>

First they need to be defined.  Eventually if things work out I  
suspect that there are grants that will be possible to get as well as  
industry support.

> I'm not exactly sure what you mean by reducing the cost of making  
> games more
> accessible...  If what we do is create the avenue for people to  
> pick up and
> go with what we create I think we are selling ourselves short on a  
> market
> that we would be selling out on.

This is not a market - the goal here is to fix a problem not make $ 
$.  If we can define, and even prototype the tools needed to make  
games more accessible and the result is someone does this and the  
work gets put into every game then mission accomplished.

>
> Somehow collaboration with the better I think getting companies to  
> work with
> us with their teams having those companies build schools with our  
> experience
> somehow and contributing a portion of sales or a small fee to our  
> fun or
> something.  I don't know it just seems like selling out would be  
> waste a lot
> of hard work.  If it's different please explain not want to get  
> something
> wrong.
>

I think it's entirely possible if someone built a tech and it cold be  
licensed for revenue that drove the sig that's great but it seems  
overly ambitious.  If it happens it happens.  I think the better  
thing to do is build the SIG up, build up its project and research  
basis and identify exactly how games can be made more accessible and  
then once those are identified much more succinctly and with examples  
or framework toolkits (I know some of this has been done) then there  
is a better platform upon which to engage industry.

> Cool thanks for taking a look at that documentary.  As soon as I  
> have the
> complete package I can e-mail a link to it to be viewed.
>

Excellent.  Looking forward to it.