a11yTOConf2019

The New Normal

• Speaker: Ian Hamilton
• Twitter: @ianhamilton_
• URL: http://gameaccessibilityguidelines.com/

• Email: i_h@hotmail.com

  Past year’s accessibility advances

Hardware, platforms & middleware

Hardware

New Controler Game Control Mixer new hardware for switches TrustMaster new controler fully customizable.

The Xbox adaptive controler was released this year After the hardware was release (Xbox adaptive controller) Article: Microsof’ts moving Xbox ad was the best thing about the Super Bowl, by Mark serrels [FIND URL] Super bowl is watch by ##XXX## million people, This brought many people to speak, tweet about a11y all over the world.

Super bowl ad was the first time that some people thought about a11y.

Chat Transcription (relased by PS) convert speach to text

Nintendo Switch released also new a11y funtionalities

Middleware

Yellow Subs Machine

• Unity Forums They are commited to make their games more accessible https://t.co/33Jpi7SK5v

• Screen reader support
  Find tweet by ricard Fine @superpig June 30

• Unreal also relase slate screen reader support

Information

• Desining for Disability, a youtube series (GMTK) that has an amazing viewership
• Able Gamers
• Increasing number of talks in Gaming conferences dedicating talks or days for a11y
• @TisserandDavid
  @FarCrygame 97% of players didn’t turn subtitles OFF
  @assassinscreed 95% people didn’t turn subtitles OFF
• Hundreds of people tweeting and speaking about a11y

Is there’s one thing to focus on game designing for a11y is increase the font size. The insdustry needs to make prgress on this. In the same way the web usability, the game industry nees to move to scalable UI across board.

Lots of companies are inviting people with disabilities to their offices to design & test games.

The info can also flow from developers to gamers. Both these articles were published before the game release

• a11y in Gears 5 (find url)
• Ghost recon breakpoint to launch with extensive a11y features (find url)

Google Play Games added a filter for Blind-Friendly players.

Events

• BlizzCon: they started getting into a11y for the event itselft like ASL interpreters, and captions for streams and they vae visual inclusion access wich is a dedicated safe area with no photography and filming and they have lightining talks about a11y itself

• A11y of booths, accessible booth for players

• Video: Road Trip: A11y at Events
  https://www.youtbute.com/watch?v=ilPru9k9Kbc

• Epic has a Fornite event after E3. On screen is a deaf gamer talking about how excited she is to be there. They got her as apart of the team with Ninja.

• EA donated 150 of their employes building AT.

Games

• Indy Events are greats for a11y they don’t have to fight the corporation backlog.

• Game: Sequence
  trailer talkinb about the bilith to simplify the controls and customize the colour for color blind palayer

• Eagle islands
  low vision settings to dim the backgoround to incread contrast. Turn off the lightning effects and add lines to increase the visibility against the background

Both these games were build by same person. So if one developer can do it, can you imagine what multi million dollar games can do?

• Spiderman was one of the first AAA games including a11y this 2019.

GAmes that have include a11y features include: RDR2, Fifa20, division two, Mortal combat 11, Devil May cry… etc

In 2015 Desitiny added just 1 a11y support in their game

Legislation

• CV AA fist communications and video accessibility act.
• When ADA came out in the 90s, communication only comprehended “mobile phones”
• If your game has text or voice chat the communications funcionality itself and any information or used to navigate the funcionality must be accessible.
• This new law applies to every company, regardless of their size.
• The only people that can enforce CV AA is the FCC. So if a consumer is facing an issue they need to register as communication proviers with the FCC.

I was skeptical about this, because all that has been done in a11y in game, was done by the people’s passion. I was worried that this legislation was going to replace the desire to five people a good experience with resentment of being forced to.

More about the legislation CV AA http://tinyurl.com/ih-dmcvaa

Accessibility is the new normal, is not feasable to be launcing a game in 2019 or 2020 without thinking about #a11y

Common a11y issues in games

4 most common a11y issues are not being address by one single game today

• Control remapping
• Text size
• Mapping Colour Blindiness
• Quick Time Events

a11y is a viable career path and the needs for someone with a11y expertise is going to be needed.