Outline

1
Outline

• Who am I?
• What is AudiOdyssey, why did we make it?
• What did we learn?
• Usability accessibility audience
• Tips and tricks you can take away

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Who am I?
Nerd
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What is AudiOdyssey?
Blind sighted accessible Wii Remote, keyboard
controls 2 song levels Download
gambit.mit.edu/loadgame/audiodyssey.php
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Why accessibility matters

• Who needs accessible/usable games?

Source 2000 US Census, http//www.census.gov/hhes
/www/disability/disabstat2k/table2.html
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Why make AudiOdyssey?
SO COOL

• Because it was Dec 2006, and the Wii and PS3 had
  just come out and had motion sensing

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Why make AudiOdyssey?

• Who couldnt use the new game systems?

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Making AudiOdyssey
First made audio only wrapper for fighting
battles in Final Fantasy X (Square, 2001) to test
out early ideas
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Making AudiOdyssey
Also Nerds

• Team of 8 working for two months
• Made at the Singapore MIT GAMBIT Game Lab
• 4 iterations

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Post Mortem What went well

• Considered accessibility issues from day 1
• Blind consultant helped throughout
• The game worked well for both sighted
  non-sighted users

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Post Mortem What went wrong

• Overscoping (multiplayer? Ha!)
• Eleventh hour additions
• Not as many blind testers as we would have liked

11
Outline

• Who am I?
• What is AudiOdyssey, why did we make it?
• What did we learn?
• Usability accessibility audience
• Tips and tricks you can take away

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Accessibility and Usability

• Usability and accessibility are related
• Things that are accessible tend to be highly
  usable, and vice versa

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Usability and Audience
Control Complexity
Pretty damn complex
Audience
Metal Gear Solid 3 Konami, 2004
Mostly Hardcore
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Usability and Audience
Control Complexity
Simple as Hell
Audience
Peggle PopCap, 2007
Mostly Casual, but everyone else too
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Usability and Audience
Wii Sports Nintendo, 2006
Trespasser Dreamworks, 1998
Sold like hotcakes
not so much
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Usability and Audience

• Game usability and audience are strongly
  correlated
• Games that are highly usable tend to get broader
  audiences

gt

• Disclaimer This doesnt mean that control
  complexity trumps all, it is just one of several
  critical factors

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Outline

• Who am I?
• What is AudiOdyssey, why did we make it?
• What did we learn?
• Usability accessibility audience
• Tips and tricks you can take away

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Lessons 11 General Usability Design Themes

• Simplicity is king!
• Closed Captioning
• Redundant audio/visual output
• Partial AI control where possible
• Browse and select for actions

• No mandatory timers
• Alternate and configurable control schemes
• Never rely on color alone, especially red/green
• User centric design
• Broad user testing

• BIG POINT Think about usability and the user
  interface from the outset of development!

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Usability Lesson Examples
Closed Captioning Half Life 2 Valve, 2004
No Mandatory Timers Snood David Dobson, 1996
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Lessons Potential Pitfalls

• Extra Development and
• Partial Solution Think about usability from the
  beginning!
• Complexity or special controls may preclude
  accessibility
• Partial Solution Expert vs. Novice mode

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Whats next?

• Applying some of what weve learned at a new
  start up, putting our money where our mouth is

• and playing lots of Mega Man

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Questions Answers
Eitan Glinert eitan_at_firehosegames.com www.firehose
games.com
My Thesis on Usability and Accessibility www.fir
ehosegames.com/thesis
Download AudiOdyssey gambit.mit.edu/loadgame/audi
odyssey.php