Well even if they just integrated sappy in for the extra speech for now. Lets face it sappy is already there and with vista there's even more accessability options so this should make things somewhat easier still. The technology is there, but it's a question of knowing where to look for it and making sure that people hear about it. I have said this before, this list is good. The audyssey mag is good really good. But it goes to a very small number of people. It really needs to be posted elsewhere other than blindness related sites. It's great I will say that there's all these conventions going on and people like Richard are in there doing their bit. Richard do you take any of the audyssey mags with you? That would indeed help somewhat I think. The only thing and this isn't a criticism it's just plain fact, the only real thing that's going to cause a problem with getting the points across is the fact that a lot of the blind friendly games don't have any form of graphical interface with them. Even if the graphics were added in later on somehow then that would make the idea of accessability and graphics working together a much more presentable idea. A lot of people love sound but if you can see sound with no visual content is very difficult to grasp. So put it in a context that they can understand and physically see and audibly hear for themselves, and we may just get somewhere. Even when I started to play audio games for ages I was trying to look at the screen to see where I was going. It's a very difficult concept to get to grips with. People who are totally blind cannot and won't be able to understand it. Which is fine. Why should they. But the point of this is, if we are wanting to present the idea to the mainstream gamers out there that hey we play games just like you lot do, then it needs to be done in such a way that it can be comprehended. The only real way to do that, is to have some if only limited graphics on some of these games. Like I say I loved gtc and lw. I wish they did have graphics because it would totally enhance my gaming experience. Not even because I could react quicker. But because my brain wouldn't be constantly looking for something that isn't there. In saying that though it doesn't stop me from playing them, but on the other hand I can understand why a blank screen and a speaker full of sound and speech alone just wouldn't cut it. Which is a shame because like I say there's some real programming talent here. Again it's not a criticism. It's just a fact.
-----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Dark Sent: 01 October 2007 12:13 To: Gamers Discussion list Subject: Re: [Audyssey] Electronic Arts games Hi. I totally agree about the Tts business. Another good example is the audio menue system I've recently seen on the Dr. who series 2 dvd's, which can be toggled. My only slight worry with this sort of thing in console games though, is techniclly how possible it would be and how cost effective. In a recent discussion with a friend of mine who's doing an Msc in computing, he happened to mentioned that the reason speech ssynthes and tts is so possible with windows is to do with how the text is written to the graphics driver, ----- this was in the context of a discussion about audio menues for Wii games. apparently, there are certain properties of the windows asqi text that can be exploited rather nicely in creating speech synths, which probably wouldn't happen with other operating systems, ----- not without some major investment in ocr technology anyway. As Bryan said, we are not a particularly large demographic, and I'm not quite as convinced about whether a company would see that type of technology as cost effective. Personally, I think it's far more likely that, at best, a company producing games like shen Mu, which already have large amounts of pre-recorded speech, will stick in a few recorded menue options, and maybe some audio movement and proximity indicaters. this would of course be a good thing, sinse it would expand the amount of games we have to play, but I doubt very much if it will be for more than one or two titles at first, ----- or indeed, in general. I think it'll be at least 10 or 15 years before Tts and audio navigation options become as useable in games or dvd's as they are at the moment for windows, ---- that's of course assuming that this rather worrying trend towards fully 3D movement based interfaces like the windows arrow doesn't raise too many barriers. then again though, as I've argued to several english libraries in the context of producing Sf or Fantasy books, sinse the majority of vi people are in their 60's, as time progresses, and successive generations lose their vision, things are going to have to change in terms of accessibility to accommodate them, ----- what happens when people who are now in their 40's and 50's, using computers (like a lot of my lecturers), start losing their site? Appologies for the wrant, I'm having a very productive morning Phd wise, and writing about freedome of choice, disability and desire gave me a knew perspective. Beware the Grue! (even worse than the philosopher), Dark. --- Gamers mailing list __ [email protected] If you want to leave the list, send E-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] You can make changes or update your subscription via the web, at http://audyssey.org/mailman/listinfo/gamers_audyssey.org. All messages are archived and can be searched and read at http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED] If you have any questions or concerns regarding the management of the list, please send E-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.488 / Virus Database: 269.13.35/1040 - Release Date: 30/09/2007 21:01 --- Gamers mailing list __ [email protected] If you want to leave the list, send E-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] You can make changes or update your subscription via the web, at http://audyssey.org/mailman/listinfo/gamers_audyssey.org. All messages are archived and can be searched and read at http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED] If you have any questions or concerns regarding the management of the list, please send E-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
