I've been slow in reposting this amazing creation that I first learnt about at The Controller Project site. It enables the user, Steve, to play PS3 games using a head-tracker and a single switch. The later iteration takes the PC screen and mixes it with the PS3 output. Brilliant! One day we'll see this as a standard console/computer option for games.
Huge thanks to Eleanor and John Bannick of 7-128.com for re-pointing me to Camera Mouse. I was aware of this back in 2007, tried it, and I think duly forgot about it as it didn't work too brilliantly for me.
Well, I'm guessing some significant updates (and me having a better computer) have turned this into an absolutely brilliant utility. So simple to use from the go and effective. I'm very curious to see how well it works on top of the likes of Alt-Controller. Free as well.
Added to the Accessible Gaming Shop: Head, Mouth and Eye Control section.
Really looking forward to the London 2012 Opening Ceremony tonight (not long now). The games have started already, and so has the SpecialEffect GameBase Video Olympicks 2012. A good clutch of one-switch, point-and-click, cause-and-effect and audio-games await.
Some of the one-switch playable games include: Boccia (will likely need assistance with aiming), Fencing, Olympics Squared (mix), Football, Sailing, Switch Skills Champions (mix), Swimming (may benefit from JoyToKey auto-fire to make easier) and Wrestling (support will likely be needed with choosing an attack).
Audio-games include: Blind Football and Tennis. The original Konami Track & Field also works for the 100m as a speed test.
Some of the point and click games include: Boccia (will need an on screen keyboard), Sailing and Wrestling.
His site presently has seven free PC games, many of which can be played using one-switch, "one-key" (aka binary one-switch input where brief taps are enough to play) or pointer controls. If you can use a point and click compatible device, hovering over the web-site's blue human symbol helps to tell you a bit about what controls are supported. Very useful, and I wish more people did this.
Some of the games are not suitable for work or the easily offended ("Droopy Dick's Blow Job" perhaps being one of them). Others, such as AMAZE-O-TRON-2000 game, are suitable for any age.
The game I've been most impressed by is Tam's latest title "City Sniper Shoot-Out". This reminds me a bit of Dirty Harry and a bit of a SEGA Virtua-Cop type game but with cartoon graphics and really brilliant accessibility features.
Rob Fearon's OW:Videogames review: "For those who prefer to stare people to death, headtrackers are supported along with mice", made me wonder about a Scanners type eye-gaze or mind-control game. I might mention that to Tam.
Finally and linked to that, Tam has made an open call for ideas for accessible games that he might then go and make. Top man.
Mark Heath has created a really nice chin mountable system for controlling Remote Control vehicles. It uses an adapted Wii nunchuk controller hacked into a standard R/C controller.This great video showcases a monster truck, where the owner has sourced a really good looking chin mount.Originally seen on the SpecialEffect GameBase. Reminds me a tiny bit of this chin-mounted Scalextric post from years ago.
Half-silvered mirrors. That could be the solution. Previously I'd been wondering about getting eye-gaze and more versatile switch control over console games, having a Heads Up Display to assist. Seems this could be easier now than I'd previously thought. Three steps...
1. Getting PC compatible controls to take control of an Xbox 360/PS3 seems possible already (via an XIM 3 or Cronus adapter). That's potentially great news. The PC has by far the largest range of compatible accessible controllers and controller utilities of any platform. How well this works needs to be proven through more testing.
2. Getting key PC graphics such as the mouse pointer on top of a games console image may be less expensive than I feared, stops your eyes having to dance between two screens rapidly, and makes eye-gaze control feasible.
I wondered about using professional HDMI video mixing technology until "Georgli" on the Accessible GameBase forum had the inspired idea of using half-silvered glass mounted at 45 degrees between a console monitor and PC monitor (see the video below). This is a slight variation on an old coin-op arcade game trick used to make basic black and white displays more appealing in the 1970s (see the Space Invaders picture above). Not sure how well this would work, but it's got to be worth a try.
Things needed? Some carpentry skills, a half-silvered (aka two-way) mirror such as from Mirror World, two identical monitors, with at least one that can reverse flip it's image across the horizontal plane (via a PC graphics card if not).
3. Test playing to see how well it works in practice. It would be great to see this become a reality for players, and maybe there's a chance that the likes of 4Noah switch utilities, anti-tremor devices, head-trackers and eye-trackers will be enabled more people to play console games. It's likely that head-tracker and eye-gaze users will need something like Alt-Controller or Mouse Raider to get greater control. Looking forward to finding out.
Sushi Cat is Pachinko, Peggle and a very hungry cat all rolled into one. Reviewed over at the Accessible GameBase, this is a great point and click game that doesn't require fast reactions (at least in the early levels I played). For a faster more action-packed version, try Sushi Cat 2. Both are fun and as cute as Uo Poko.
Potentially huge fun for alternative-mouse pointer users too with a microphone or alternative sound source. See more at Native Instruments.
Attractors, is a simple puzzle game developed by The Game Kitchen with AccessAble Games as accessibility advisor. The game has special accessibility options that include: no time limit, invincibility, quick restart, game speed controls, one switch mode, microphone control mode, high contrast and no-click mode.
You can play it for free at: www.thegamekitchen.com/attractor and read a review at the Accessible GameBase.
You can also download it and place on our own web site. Take it from here: www.thegamekitchen.com/attractor/attractor-redis01.zip
While playing, press ESC to return to main menu; you will return to the level that you have left when you click play again on main menu. Main menu and between levels menu are also accessible for one switch and no-click mode.
Info taken from Javier Mairena's post on the IGDA GASIG Blog
The latest SpecialEffect Electronic Soup Pocast has just been unleashed as part of the November 2010 Access Collective. Amongst other fascinating things, you can find an interview with SpecialEffect founder, Mick Donegan, held at the mainstream gaming event EuroGamer 2010.Should you pop over to the Accessible GameBase EuroGamer 2010 ESP post, you can read up on the accessible gaming gear we used at this fantastic show.
Earlier this year, I was invited to share some thoughts as part of SpecialEffect, with the Tuke Sprint team. To cut a short story shorter, they created six interactive experiences for PC and Mac, which you can grab and learn all about over at the Accessible GameBase."Fluids" (pictured above) is a great place to start, which can respond to the most gentle of finger-tip movements within the range of a web-cam. It's other worldly and very impressive when set-up well.I really hope the team get to develop these further, because even as they stand (unfinished), they can be wonderfully accessible and highly effective activities for people of almost all abilities.
JazzBall was written after a suggestion was made to the Accessible GameBase by Sandra Robertson. She wondered if the old Microsoft game JezzBall might suit a more accessible interface and could perhaps become a fun game that both her children could play (one being Helen of "Game for Helen" fame). Thanks to Graeme Singh taking up the challenge, they now can.The game has speed control, two excellent one-switch modes, a point and click interface and an eye-gaze aimed interface that requires no clicking at all. To blow my own tiny trumpet, I picked the photos and music for the game. Once you've got bored of the supplied photos, you can even use your own, which can be a huge grin. Have fun!
Reviewed at the Accessible GameBase and added to the OneSwitch game library.
Take a load of magnetic fridge letters, put them in a virtual world and allow dozens of people to try to make words all at the same time. Sounds like sweet fun for a few moments, but then you realise there's a few people trying to spell very rude words. Quickly, you decide to remove a few of their letters and you're in a grand scale battle to clean up the world of filth and degradation!
Or vice versa, depending on your state of mind. There's three rooms, same game, just different players. Go for the one with the least players if you want a chance of spelling a five letter word.
"Letters" is available to play over at Lunchtimers. Link via Five's Gadget Show.
