Module Journal: Competitions, Festivals, Exhibitions

So I've spent these past few months mostly reading and writing so much in terms of research, and have just realised I've made very little headway in terms of what my game actually will be like. This post will include visual references (because it's a GAME) and thus I guess won't count in the 15 posts and I'll need to make another one. Working Title I've decided to narrow down the focus of my game to just the wheelchair scenario, and thus the current working title is "Chaise La Vie", a probably not grammatically correct play on the French phrase "C'est la vie", translated as "That's life". "Chaise" means Chair, so the working title of my game is Chair Life. I don't have drafts for a logo design yet, but I want to try to incorporate a wheel into it, symbolising how the wheel of life rises and falls and people in privilege might find themselves in a situationally handicapped scenario at times. Visual Style Re...

Since the whole toolkit is actually multiple files and videos, I'll be narrowing down the focus of this blog post to the toolkit manual, which can be found here.  (the link downloads the file). The document first starts off by explaining why inclusive design is so necessary, and how diversity can be seen as a source for making better designs. Designers often use themselves as the starting point when creating their work, excluding the people who don't understand or relate to. To practice inclusive design, one of the first things to realise is that there is no such thing as a "normal" person. The document also emphasises the importance of inclusive design in lowering the barriers to entry for societal participation for more people.  In the next part, the document defines "inclusive design" as "A design methodology that enables and draws on the full range of human diversity". The most important part of inclusive design is to learn from a range...

2017 Winner -  COBALT: Fighting Crime with Design by Mark43 Okay this one is seriously super cool. Police departments have been using poorly-designed, outdated software for records management and input, and Mark43 did a complete rework of the system, greatly reducing the amount of time that police officers need to spend doing paperwork. By trailing police officers for field research and asking them questions on their day-to-day policework, the company managed to optimise the process of writing and submitting reports. COBALT is also used to help dispatchers manage police resources, and police are able to cross-check data more quickly to see past offences. The data that's collected is also organised more clearly, helping researchers find patterns and find ways to improve. Media: Cloud-based subscription of software Interaction: Police can have their paperwork burden reduced, and spend more time focusing on fighting crime Connecting: Police, researchers, beautiful data 2017...

As a part of my efforts to be sensitive about the issues people in wheelchairs face without being condescending, I reached out to a friend who shall not be named about their thoughts on the project. This person is someone who uses an electric wheelchair, who is also disability fit out specialist and interior designer, with specialisation in wayfinding. I'm trying very hard to sidestep the issue of ethics clearance, so I'll avoid any identifying characteristics of this person. Here's a rough transcript of our conversation which I've edited for clarity. Me: So for my uni project, I want to make a desktop game that focuses on letting players have some insight into how life is with different disabilities. The main scenario I'm considering is a game where the user needs to navigate some busy city streets as a wheelchair user, and come across hurdles they might not have considered as an able-bodied person. Some examples I've thought of are things like ramps that are...

As a part of the research in making this game more inclusive and accessible, I'm going to look through the Game Accessibility Guidelines and try to implement as much of it as I can in my game, taking into consideration the limited time frame and resources. What are these guidelines? The Game Accessibility Guidelines document is a living (open to updates and improvements) set of guides created by a large group of professionals in various fields of game design, technology,  and accessibility research. There are three categories - Basic, Intermediate, and Advanced. The guidelines attempt to balance Reach, Impact, and Value, and are grouped into sub-categories relating to different types of skill or impairment. For my project, I'll be looking through the Basic guidelines and see which ones I can feasibly apply to my game. 1. Motor - Remapping, or allowing users to change the game controls, is one of the most common accessibility issues. I've never tried to make a gam...

Continuing my dive into the past winners of the Connecting Category of the IxDA 2014 Winner - KonneKt: a social game for isolated children in the hospital by Delft University of Technology (Student work) KonneKt is another example of good interaction design that goes beyond a screen. By using EVA foam pieces, magnets, and suction cups, Job Jansweijer turned a glass barrier into a medium for interaction for children in hospitals who had to be isolated for their health. Job saw the issue of how children under isolation in hospitals were unable to engage in social play, and sought to create a solution that could help them interact with the outside world in a safe and fun manner.  Media: Craft foam, magnets, suction cups Interaction: Children and adults are able to use the KonneKt pieces to build on the glass, and people on both sides of the glass are able to participate.    Connecting: Children who spend extended amounts of time isolated in hospitals with...