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Audyssey Issue 30
Audyssey;
Games Accessible to the Blind
Issue 30: September/October, 2001
Edited by Michael Feir and Rebecca Sutton
Fun, Friendship, Knowledge, Charity
+++
Welcome
Welcome to the thirtieth issue of Audyssey. This magazine is dedicated to
the discussion of games which, through accident or design, are accessible to
the blind either with or without sighted assistance.
Note: This magazine uses plus-signs as navigation markers. Three plus-signs
are placed above any articles or sections. Within these sections, two
plus-signs denote the start of a new sub-section. Smaller divisions are
marked by a single plus-sign. This allows people to use their search
capabilities to go quickly to the next division they are interested in. For
instance, the "Letters" section is preceded by three plus-signs. Each letter
within it has two plus-signs before it. Answers to letters have a single
plus-sign before them.
+++
Distribution Information and Submission Policies
This magazine is published on a bimonthly basis, each issue
appearing no earlier than the twentieth of every other month. All
submissions to be published in an issue must be in my possession a minimum
of two days before the issue is published. I now use MS-Word to produce
Audyssey, and can therefore accept submissions in pretty much any format.
They may be sent either on a 3.5-inch floppy disk, or via e-mail
to my Sympatico address. I will give my home address and my Sympatico
address at the end of the magazine.
Please write articles and letters about games or game-related
topics which interest you. They will likely interest me, and your fellow
readers. This magazine should and can be a
highly interesting and qualitative look at accessible gaming. To insure that
high quality is maintained, I'll need your
written
contributions. I reserve the right to unilaterally make changes to
submissions if I deem it necessary to improve them
grammatically or enhance their understand ability. I will never make changes
which will alter the spirit of a submission.
All submissions must be in English. However, people need not be great
writers to have their work appear in Audyssey.
Many of our community come from different countries. Others are quite young.
Where possible, I try to preserve their
different styles of expression. The richness that this adds to the Audyssey
experience far outweighs any benefits
gained from having everything in prose so perfect as to be devoid of life.
Audyssey is a community and magazine built
on the need for blind people to have fun. There are no formal structural
requirements for submissions. Within reason,
they may be as long as necessary. Game reviews should all clearly state who
created the game being examined, where it
can be obtained, whether it can be played without sighted assistance, and
any system requirements or other critical
information. Although profanity is by no means banned, it should not be used
gratuitously. Submissions not published
in a current issue will be reserved for possible use in future issues if
appropriate. Those who are on the Audyssey
discussion list should be aware that I often put materials from the list in
the "Letters" section if I feel that they warrant it.
Anything posted to this discussion list that in some way stands out from the
common and often lively ongoing
discourse will be considered fair game for publishing unless it contains the
author's wish that it not be published. Until
now, this practice has been commonly consented to. From now on, it is now
officially a policy of the Audyssey
community.
This magazine is free in its electronic form, and will always remain so. Due
to a lack of demand, PCS Games is no longer making Audyssey available on
disk. I'm writing this magazine as much
for my own interest as for everyone else's. Your articles, reviews, and
letters, as well as any games you might care to
send me, are what I'm after. Send any games, articles, letters, or reviews
via E-mail, or on a 3.5-inch disk in a self-
addressed mailer so that I can return your disk or disks to you once I have
copied their contents onto my hard drive.
Please only send shareware or freeware games. It is illegal to send
commercial games unless you are their creator or have
obtained permission to do so. By sending me games, you will do several
things: first, and most obviously, you will earn
my gratitude. You will also insure that the games you send me are made
available to my readership as a whole. As a
further incentive, I will fill any disks you send me with games
from my collection. No disk will be returned empty. If you want
specific games, or specific types of games, send a message in ASCII format
along. If you have a particular game that you
need help with, and you are sending your questions on a disk anyhow, include
the game so that I can try and get past
your difficulty. If you can, I recommend that you send
e-mail. Thanks to my new computer, I can now send and receive attachments
with ease. This way, no money will be
wasted sending me a game I already have, and
you'll get my reply more quickly. You are responsible for shipping costs.
That means, either use a disk mailer which has
your address on it, and is either free matter for the blind, or is properly
stamped. I can and will gladly spare time to share
games and my knowledge of them, but cannot currently spare money above what
I spend hunting for new games. I
encourage all my readers to give my magazine to whoever they think will
appreciate it. Up-load it onto web pages and
bulletin board systems. Copy it on disk for people, or print it out for
sighted people who may find it of value. The larger
our community gets, the more self-sustaining it will become.
There are now several ways of obtaining Audyssey. Thanks to ESP Softworks,
there is once again a distribution list for
those who want to receive Audyssey via E-mail. To subscribe to the
distribution list so that you receive all future
issues, the direct URL to the subscription form is:
http://www.espsoftworks.com/forms/audyssey_to.asp
You may also refer a friend and pass onto them the current issue as well as
an introduction e-mail explaining the
magazine in detail. Then, if they wish to subscribe they
will be referred to this form. The form is available from the Audyssey
Magazine section of the ESP Softworks web-site.
To get there directly, go to:
http://www.espsoftworks.com/textonly/audyssey/audyssey.html
The Audyssey section also contains all back-issues of Audyssey if you want
to get caught up with events.
James North of ESP Softworks now manages the Audyssey discussion list. This
list facilitates discussion about games
accessible to the blind between the publication of issues of Audyssey. All
are welcome as long as they respect their
fellow community members and keep in mind that the topic of the list is
supposed to be games. Other topics are allowed
within reason as long as they don't begin to monopolize the list traffic for
too long. Newcomers should be advised that
traffic is frequently fairly heavy. To help those who are swamped with
E-mail cope with this, there is a digest mode
available which sends one large E-mail per day at midnight PST containing
the day's traffic. Anyone participating in the
discussion list will have issues of Audyssey automatically sent to them via
E-mail. Representatives from all major
developers of games for the blind are actively participating on the list.
All staff members of Audyssey are also
participating. If you want an active role in shaping the future of
accessible games, this is where you can dive right in. To
subscribe to this discussion list, send a message to:
listserver@espsoftworks.com with the words
'subscribe audlist' in the message body. Send a message with the word "help"
in
the message body to the above address for a list of available commands such
as
the command to switch to digest mode and receive one large E-mail per day.
To
post messages to the discussion list, send them to:
audlist@espsoftworks.com
It is important to keep the purposes of the above addresses straight. The
listserver@espsoftworks.com address is where you send commands to subscribe
or
unsubscribe and other automatically handled things to. You're sending
commands
to a server which does not have the answers to all your game-related
questions.
To communicate with live people, send a message to the
audlist@espsoftworks.com
address. Remember that these live people will not appreciate seeing commands
meant for the server as they are powerless to act upon them.
Stan Bobbitt has made Audyssey Magazine available in HTML format for easy
on-
line browsing. To take advantage of this, you are invited to visit:
http://www.concentric.net/~sbobbitt
People can easily and quickly navigate through the various articles and
reviews, and directly download or visit the sites
of the games that interest them. This will be of especial benefit for
sighted people who wish to make use of Audyssey
and/or join the growing community surrounding it. The Audyssey community
thanks Mr. Bobbitt for his continued
efforts on its behalf in this matter.
You can also find all issues of Audyssey on the Internet on Paul
Henrichsen's
web site at:
www.henrichsen.org
J.J. Meddaugh has long been famous in the Audyssey community. He has now
started
his own web-site called The Blind Community. All issues of Audyssey are
there in
zipped files in the file centre.
Another source for back-issues of Audyssey and accessible games is provided
by
Kelly Sapergia. He was our first interactive fiction expert, and has put his
Internet skills and resources to splendid use for the magazine. Visit his
site
at:
http://ksapergia.cjb.net
If you have ftp access, all issues are also available at Travis Siegel's ftp
site:
ftp://ftp.softcon.com
Look in the /magazines directory.
+++
Contents:
Welcome
Distribution Information and Submission Policies
Contents
From The Editor
Letters
"Is it only a game?"
Introducing Code Factory
Introducing Danssoft!
Contests From Danssoft
Puzzles and Games
Adam The Immortal Gamer
News From Bavisoft
News From GMA
News From ESP Softworks
News From MindsEye2
News From PCS
Chess wherever
MYRTHORN & KORIAL'S MONTHLY MUD PICKS
The 2001 Mach1 World Championship
Game Announcements and Reviews
Answers to Puzzles and Games
Contacting Us
+++
From The Editor:
Hello, everyone. We've had quite an interesting time of it these last couple
of months. Two new developers have appeared on the scene, and both of them
have offered introductions to us in this issue. At long last ESP Softworks
has released its first product. ESP Pinball has certainly bounced into our
lives. High scores, hints, and all manner of praise have livened up the
Audyssey discussion list for everyone.
The events of September eleventh captured my attention, and were also
discussed on the Audyssey list. Many of us found comfort and support in this
community, and although there was certainly some justifiable anger, members
of the discussion list have proved to be a compassionate and level-headed
bunch that I'm very proud to be a part of. Jay Pellis is going to work on an
article about how these events have effected gamers for the next issue.
Since most of our games developers are in North America or were likewise
caught up in these crucial events, it is not surprising that plans have been
thrown off a bit. Certainly, my plans have been.
Negotiations are still ongoing regarding the new arrangements for offering
free games. I hope that we'll have everything worked out by the time of our
next issue which will be published on November 17th. This will be our annual
special holiday issue, and will give developers a chance to catch up and let
us know of new games in plenty of time to order them. It also makes for an
excellent time to reflect on events of the past year.
Sadly, the game I've been working on for the past while has run into more
snags. These are due not only to the actual game, but are also a result of
the many changes that my life has gone through. Preparing for married life
is certainly proving to be both exciting and time consuming. I've already
started living skills training and will shortly be continuing with travel
skills.
Unfortunately, Joshua Loya has just informed me that he will have to step
down as an active moderator of our list. Until a new moderator is found, the
responsibility falls to our remaining moderator, David Lant. I would
appreciate anybody who wants to be an active moderator along with David Lant
to contact me as soon as possible. Joshua has surprised many in this
community with how splendidly he has handled the sometimes arduous task of
keeping order on our list. We've dealt with some extraordinary and
interesting debates which had a tendency to turn personal at times. I wish
Joshua the very best of luck in his future projects, and trust that he will
remain a member of the community he has served so well.
Finally, I'd like to offer an apology to PCS, GMA Games, and any other
Audyssey community members who were inconvenienced by my misinterpretation
of information in the last issue. PCS and GMA Games are not merging. They
are, however, going to collaborate on a game. No information about this game
has been released as of this publication. PCS is going through some changes
as you'll discover in their news section. I can certainly appreciate what
they're going through being in preparation for movement and marriage myself.
Until our next issue, I hope that everyone enjoys the many new games in this
one. Let's all play the great game of life with the honour, safety, and
excellence which are so evident in the Audyssey community.
+++
Letters:
All sorts of fascinating discussions took place on the Audyssey discussion
list over the past while. Everything from prejudice among blind gamers to
where we stand in terms of technological and economic factors have all come
up for some fairly intense debate. Thankfully, our moderators have done a
fantastic job of keeping things enjoyable and preventing the heated
discussion from starting a community melt-down. One of the topics which
aroused some interesting discussion was whether it mattered that game
developers were blind or sighted. A while into this discussion, the
following letter caught my attention:
++
From Chad Fenton
I'm not going to beat a dead horse, but this issue has become ridiculous.
If the games are of high quality, I could care less whether the developers
of accessible game software are blind or sighted. If someone only wants to
purchase a game if it's being made by a blind person, that's a pretty sad
reason. If nothing else they could easily miss out on quality games, but
that is their loss. That's like saying I will only buy American-made cars
rather than Japanese. While that is the individual's choice, if the
Japanese make a superior product to what the American car manufacturers
produce, that's where my money is going. If nothing else, that sends a
message that when American companies produce vehicles with superior
offerings, then the consumer may purchase their model. Perhaps this is
oversimplifying the issue, but it's the only comparison I could come up with
at the moment.
Granted, as long as the human race exists, there will always be prejudice,
bigotry, jealousy, envy, all the wonderful traits that separate us from the
lower orders of the animal kingdom. I don't believe such negative traits
will ever be erased from mankind's psyche, as emotions are one of the very
things which make us human. Unfortunately, there will always be some who,
through their ignorance or prejudice beliefs, will miss out on what life is
all about. Ok, I'll get off my philosophical soap box. So for any game
developers out there, blind or sighted, if you make high quality games, I'll
buy them.
++
At times, people who have been on the Audyssey list have grown a little
impatient when newcomers have asked questions or continued discussions which
others felt had already been dealt with. It is important for all of us to
keep in mind that newcomers are a very critical part of our community. We
were all newcomers once, and I hope that the letter below gives us all
something to think about in the months ahead. It was, in my judgement, one
of Joshua Loya's finest acts in his capacity as moderator. It illustrates
how far he has come since his days as a newcomer, and also reminds us of the
work ahead for all of us:
+
From Joshua Loya
Fellow Audysians, In light of the past couple of days, while I haven't yet
read all the posts yet, I find it necessary to remind everybody that we're
supposed to be having fun here. If you have an issue with somebody, keep it
off list.
That was in the FAQ, for those of you who missed it. As someone mentioned,
many people rarely post, or not at all. We even had a couple of members
leave in the past because of flame wars on the list. I'm not perfect, as
long time Audyssey members are aware. When I first came on the list I did
make an ass out of myself, but I am now on fairly friendly terms with the
person with whom I had the miscommunication. Before Audyssey, I was fairly
unfamiliar with games specifically designed for the blind. The most I had
ever played were old text adventures like Advent and Dungeon. The only
totally self voicing game I ever played before Audyssey, was PCS Space
Invaders. (You should try it if you're in to arcade games.) That said, I
had no knowledge of Rogue like games. The only RPGs that I had ever played
were table games, and games like Final Fantasy and Shining Force. All of us
have different strengths and weaknesses, pearls of wisdom and times of
ignorance, but that's what makes Audyssey unique and good. If the more
mature and experienced of us can't learn to be patient with annoying and/or
ignorant newbies, Audyssey will eventually disintegrate into obscurity. All
I'm asking for is common sense, and I think my co-moderator David Lant would
back me up on this. Please... please... please, if you have an issue with
somebody, please try to work it out amongst yourselves, off list. If that
doesn't work, email either me or David. We are more than glad to help.
Feel free to joke around, but be aware that not everybody is on the same
page with you, either due to lack of experience, language barriers, or even
actual cognitive disabilities. People often forget that quite a high
percentage of blind and VI people have other disabilities as well. Be
considerate, that's all I'm asking. NOW GO HAVE FUN! THAT'S AN ORDER!
*grin*
++
One of the most stimulating debates was started by David Lant when he
wondered about how capable the blind community was at keeping up with
technology. You'll find his message plus others below regarding this;:
+
From David Lant
Hi all,
I thought I'd kick off another one of those intriguing discussions on
technology and accessible games.
I've been sitting here, reflecting on how much things have changed over the
past 5 years. The most significant, apart from the number of companies
producing accessible games, appears to be the determined shift away from DOS
and text based games, into the Windows and multimedia environment.
For a long time, an argument was put forward that most blind or visually
impaired people could not afford modern, up-to-date hardware and software.
For this reason, some game writers insisted that we had to develop for the
lowest common denominator. Now, the emphasis appears to be shifting. Is it
that we now feel most blind people are more affluent than before, and can
afford to buy new machines fairly regularly, and can update their software
without difficulty? Or is it that those who have such equipment and
programs are deemed to be a more lucrative market?
Speaking as a well paid, professional blind person, I certainly notice a
difference in my own ability to acquire and improve my computer equipment.
For a long time, all I had was a second hand 286 AT PC, with a 1Gb hard
drive, and a shareware DOS screen reader. Now, I have two computers, one a
desktop machine which is soon going to be considered passé, and a new laptop
which exceeds the specifications of a few of the corporate servers at my
place of work. My gaming experience has altered in similar fashion. From
free, limited complexity text games, through the full splendour of Shades of
Doom and Lone Wolf, to the new developments from ESP Softworks.
So, as a general point of discussion, I was wondering what other people on
the list thought was the currently accepted baseline for blind gamers today.
I don't want this to degenerate into a thread where people just post the
specs of their own machines. I'm more interested in how the broad concept
of the resources available to blind gamers has changed.
+
From Bryan Smart
David,
Would you be marketing a card game to a broad audience, or going after a
niche group with something like a flight simulator or RPG game? The niche
group will spend more money on software and hardware, and will therefore
have a system that performs over average specs. For a broad blind audience,
I feel that a 166mHz CPU is all that you can ask. Most blind people that
are highly involved in technology would have at least a 400mHz system.
Of course, my belief is that, as a developer, you should always shoot for
the moon. By the time your project makes it to a release date, the average
system specs will have moved up.
Bryan
+
From Aman Singer:
David.
Your topic is certainly interesting. Let me suggest something. What if,
now that communications have become so much easier, primarily through email,
those who are, either through government programs or employment, able to
update their systems, are becoming the elite, sort of speak? They are the
ones that are heard, and their needs are the ones responded to.
Two years ago, I started training blind students on their computers for my
local school system. It surprised me that most students weren't using the
equipment to potential. They just turned the computer on in the morning,
did word processing an sometimes some scanning on it, and turned it off
again.
That's all some wanted it for, while others wanted to do different things
with it and didn't know how, while still others were afraid to break the
machine and kept to the familiar things that they had been taught to do. A
last group didn't know that other things could be done, that is, they had
heard of email and the internet, but they thought this was beyond them or
that it was difficult to learn.
What this long rambling message is leading up to is the thought that the
blind people with the older equipment, those who are still running dos or
using windows 95/98 at a basic level, have become islands. They have very
little communication on computer topics, and they're satisfied with what
they have in terms of games, or don't know how to get more, or don't know
that more exists. Those, however, who are using computers in a more
advanced way are on lists such as this one, and they're telling developers
what they want and what they want is games with a multimedia flavour.
Therefore, the baseline hasn't really changed in terms of blind gamers. The
market has, though. The gamers that want more advanced games are speaking
up and those that are using older systems aren't.
That's my $.02 (Canadian funds, $.01 American, half a UK pent, etc...).
+
From Charles Rivard:
Not sure if I'm right or not, but another reason I can see right off as to
why games for the blind are using technology that is not up to par with
today's computer technology is that, for the most part, we need to use a
screen reader, which also lags behind in today's technology. A lot of games
are self voicing now, though. My question is: How much in the way of
resources is taken up by this technology. The games for the sighted are
requiring more and more powerful systems. Can most blind people afford to
get computers that are powerful enough to fit the bill along with being able
to run what it takes to make the games accessible to us? I think the
majority of blind gamers are unemployed. This greatly limits resources.
-----
+
From Nick Adamson
Hi James.
One thing you said I Totally agree with. Fun is the over ruling factor. I
found out about the blind gamers community about 2 months ago and I didn't
believe that blind gaming could get so advanced.
1 point about the man power thing though. I'll agree with the point that
there are about 5 to 10 people working on one game. You should also take in
to consideration the fact that unlike our developers they can be working on
many games at the same time using different programmers.
Our developers can have more than one game out But they can't be working on
more than one game at any given moment. Unless they have 2 pairs of hands.
One Thing I do love about this community is the fact that we don't demand
stuff. We work as a community, gamers and developers, to make accessible
games as good as we can get them.
Nick Adamson.
++
Our old friend James Peach started another discussion which branched off
from David Lant's thread. It concerned the recycling of ideas taking place
in the accessible games market. It is no surprise to me that this line of
discourse struck quite an interesting cord. As blind gamers, we often find
ourselves in envy of our sighted counterparts and the games which have long
been available to them.
+
From James Peach:
Another issue I would like to bring to life concerning the last paragraph of
the last post: the recycling of ideas within the accessible games market.
SOD is an example (though I think they took a great classic and bastardized
it in it's name). Many of the games PCS puts out, and Games-For-The Blind
(what's their company name again?). Sure, there is creative thought going
into this, but little originality.
I'm not an IF gamer, but I get the impression that there's lots of original
ideas hiding in many piles of unoriginal rubbish. We've got to slog through
the mud to get to drinkale water -indicative of the Net itself.
ON the flip side, I think we are seeing more creativity emerging from cloudy
waters. Developers have tested the waters, and now that they have a feel
for the flow of the community, they are willing to wade in, venturing more
and more with each step forward.
I have a question for the community here: in general, do you care if an idea
is original or not, so long as it is accessible? I will use Shades of Doom
and StarFighter as examples.
After gauging the general response on list, I will attempt to inject more of
my reflections on the issue. Until then...
James Peach
+
From Nick Adamson
Hi James.
This is my opinion, I'm sure that some people will disagree with me but In
regards to coming up with original ideas I think that we have a better
situation than sited gamers. For example, there are lodes of different
versions of doom under lots of different titles for the sited gamer, they
all base on the same idea. I guess that with the accessible game developers
if one of them brings out a game like SOD the others will try to avoid
making a similar game, if they make something like it they will make enough
differences in the game so that the gamer will still be interested in the
game even if they have both games.
My brother Has GTA, "a drive around and blow stuff up game." he wont by
driver, "a drive around and blow stuff up game" because He already has
something like that.
Nick Adamson.
+
From Ron Schamerhorn
Hi
As for the recycling of older game themes. If a company tests the water and
finds a warm reception in the community for the idea then wonderful! A case
in point would be the Accessible Games, Simon. Sure the idea isn't new, but
maybe for some blind/vi user's it might have been a minor break through.
Though making the old Simon game accessible would have been possible with a
little work.
Pinball isn't new either, but it's the only way I can play the game.
Mainly because I don't have any regular sighted assistance. For me it was a
great investment!
The factors are varied concerning the accessible market. These include
though not limited to, "is it a game I would enjoy?" "can I play it over and
over?" and of course "what is the price?" [Not trying to start the price
wars again *g*]
Personally there are some games even if they are accessible, I probably
won't buy them. Even if they are free I may not want a copy. Not trying to
disagree with people, just a few thoughts.
++
It's always exciting to meet new people. Joining the discussions you've
gotten a glimpse of in the above letters were a number of newcomers to our
fine forum. Below are some of the messages they wrote to introduce
themselves. I hope that those of you who might perhaps be feeling a little
shy may find these messages helpful and encouraging. All are welcome in our
community who have an interest in games accessible to the blind.
+
From Buddy Brannan
Hi y'all,
Just dropping a note to introduce myself here.
My name is Buddy Brannan. Some people probably already know me. Briefly,
I've been on the internet for 10 years, have played at various times with
text adventures (like the Infocom games), muds, etc. I also love trivia
games, and I'd sure like to find good ones that I can play! I've been
following Audyssey on and off (unfortunately, a lot of off) since close to
its beginning. I'm sure glad to see more games that blind people can play,
especially games that are playable more than once!
I, like a lot of you, am waiting anxiously for ESP Pinball. I'm already
addicted to the pinball game and am further looking forward to trying the
Monkey Business demo. I think having games with full sound more like what
our sighted counterparts play is a great step forward for us! Believe me, I
want to waste my time just like anybody else!
(He says, with tongue firmly in cheek)
I'd also like to see more (ermm...actually...some...) games for Linux.
There are some text-based ones, like monopoly, but I'd love to see others.
You might have noticed the "support@techabilities.com"
address. (Here's where the shameless plug comes in.) I'm starting my own
adaptive technology company to sell and support different adaptive
technology products, and among the things I want to offer are games. I
believe that there should be room for more fun in our lives, and I think a
well-rounded catalog should have games in it. So, along with the usual
screen reader, OCR, and speech synthesizer stuff (BTW, I'm sure glad to see
less expensive stuff coming out like the Scan And Read products), I plan to
carry the ESP games and have brielfy talked to James about this. I would
love to talk to other developers as well about putting their games in the
catalog, and would also like to know if people would be interested in
subscriptions (or a one-off) of the IF-Archive collection of games,
compilers, articles, and so on, on CD-ROM.
The Web page isn't up yet, so you won't see one, but after a little setback,
I'm on track again to get started with this venture.
Enough about that though...
Anyway, I'm getting a new notebook and will be trying out the pinball demo,
Monkey Business demo, and the GMA games on it. I got to play Shades of
Doom's demo a little bit before Windows stopped working on this computer,
and I'm looking forward to the registered version I now have once i get the
new machine up and running. Believe me, I'll be around pleading for help on
these games, I'm sure. If not, I'll at least be having fun with them right
along with everyone else on the list!
Happy gaming,
Buddy
+
From Robert Pires
Hi all, i just joined this list. i was amazed to find so much available for
blind/visually impaired gamers. a lot of this stuff is still new to me, i
only found out about this list and audyssey in the past week and only found
out about games created for the blind within the last couple of months. it
is comforting to know that there is an entire community of computer literate
blind people who have found ways to enjoy computer games, just as our
sighted counterparts.
i hope to learn a lot from this list.
hello again.
--- Rob
+
From Nick Adamson
hi all.
I'm new to the list and new to the idea of games for blind people. I am
currently on my summer brake and was just looking around the net and found
the GMA games site and was astounded that there was finally a game I could
play with out my brothers help. I downloaded lone wolf 3.0.2 and have now
ordered a full version.
And now the question, "about time I hear you call."
Can any one recommend a game like lone wolf for windows.
Nick Adamson.
+++
"Is it only a game?"
By Allen Maynard
I've often wondered why I sometimes get so upset when I am defeated by a
computer game. I'm sure that most, if not all of you have done as I have;
that is utter those immortal words, "It's only a game." Normally my
frustration evaporates soon after I've been trounced by one game or another,
however, I do recall one instance where I lost all my possessions do to a
sneaky trick perpetrated by the creator of a multi-user domain called
Razor's Edge. I had tried to climb up a steep mountain even after the game
warned me that it could be dangerous. And as you might have guessed, I fell
and lost everything except my life. In about two seconds I went from a
moderately powerful human fighter with a cool sword, to a weak and naked
human. Grumbling, I got up from my desk and stalked into the next room.
Without really planning to, I slammed my fist into a door. Yes, it hurt
like hell and I put a small crescent-shaped crack in the wood.
When I think of that scene and the game I was angry with, I tried to figure
out why I got so upset. I remember, just before I punched the door saying
to myself, "It's only a game so calm down." Obviously those inner-soothing
words had little effect.
But why? What mechanism causes us to rage against images produced via
cathode ray tube or text created by mindless microchips?
Some might argue that it is the same part of the brain that causes Dad to
scream at the one-inch tall football player who is dashing across a
miniature field on curved glass in the living room, but who is actually
hundreds if not thousands of miles away. That one's easy. Dad wants his
team to win. He is competing vicariously through the players on the TV
screen.
You're right. It is a very similar feeling while playing Lone Wolf, Monkey
Business, or the myriad other interactive fiction games. In our excitement
we might shout at the screen, or maybe laugh out loud, or even whoop in
triumph which, I must admit, I have done only a few times when conquering a
game. But the argument is the same--"It's only a game." In reality it
means nothing unless you are playing for money of course. But that is a
different story altogether. But "it's only a game," whether you get up from
your computer console after defeating the 17-eyed beast of the crystal skull
and walk away whistling with a spring in your step, or stomp away frowning
after being smashed by the 17-eyed beast of the crystal skull.
I believe it is more than wanting to win; more than competition; more than
wanting to achieve a higher score than before. I think the overall reason
is time. If it takes me an hour to either do well at a game or win then I
feel that it is time well spent. But if after that same hour I do poorly or
lose, it is wasted time where I could have been doing something else more
satisfying or even playing a different game where I might have succeeded.
I cracked the door with my fist after doing poorly at Razor's Edge because I
had played the game for two hours and when I lost everything I had gained,
it became two hours of wasted time from my weekend. True, it was only a
game that meant absolutely nothing, but because I failed, it was a two-hour
chunk of time taken out of my day off. I was now two hours closer to going
back to work.
Now, have you ever noticed that when you have more time to play, you aren't
nearly as frustrated when the game defeats you or you perform poorly? If
you are on vacation, for example. You have more time to burn. You might
play with more abandon or take greater risks. But as the end of your
vacation draws nearer, you begin to tense up. It becomes more important
that you do well in the game. In fact, if you are having trouble with a
game you may not even play it on the last day of your vacation so you can
savour every hour of the time remaining.
Failure is definitely a part of the frustration and anger felt when defeated
by a game. But we fail at different tasks on a daily basis. We fail to get
an A on a test. We fail to return a phone call at work. We fail to
complete all tasks on our "to do" lists. But why is it, when we fail to
conquer a game or fail to snag those bonus lives, that we shout at the
computer screen, bang the computer keys, or, yes, even put a small crack in
a wooden door? Why? Because our failure is tied to the passage of time.
The wasting of time has a greater effect on emotions because there is always
something "unfun" that has to be done in the real world so we want to make
the most of the time we have for fun stuff. Take Dad. I'd be willing to
bet that he will be grumpy for a while after the game ends if his team lost.
He's thinking that those three hours could have been spent doing something
else fun, but now those three hours are gone, wasted.
"It's only a game." We've all muttered this sentence many times to attempt
to calm ourselves; to quench the rising heat of frustration; to convince
ourselves that it isn't important. Many games mirror reality but we know
that they aren't real. "It's only a game." Most of reality involves doing
things that either we'd really rather not, or doing things we have to out of
necessity. So when we find a little time to have fun we want to spent that
time feeling good, doing well, winning. Yes, "it is only a game," but we
have all asked and will continue to ask another immortal question:
"What time is it?"
+++
Introducing Code Factory
A few months ago, Michael Fair asked us to write an article about our
company in Audyssey. We were quite happy about this opportunity and promised
to do so.
About the company
Code Factory is situated in Barcelona/Spain. The company was founded by
Eduard Sánchez Palazón and his brother Jordi in 1998. Eduard got the idea
when one of his friends became blind because of a disease. He realized that
there were only games available on the Spanish market which were made for
non visually impaired people. For most blind people it was nearly impossible
to play them.
Three years later Code Factory has grown a lot and there are many people
involved in our projects. The team consists of young-professionals with wide
experience in different fields: Eduard the executive director and main
programmer, Jordi the accounts and administration manager, Sonia who is in
charge of the sound studio and is responsible for the voices and sound
effects, Susana a graduated school teacher who supervises the writing of the
scripts and also does programming and Javier a graphic designer who also
develops the animation. But on each game, there are even more people at
work: A lot of programmers and also actors who give their voices to make
the games more interactive.
Our games are currently available in Spanish and English but in the future
we would like to do them in other languages too.
Our main objectives
You may be wondering why there is a graphic designer working at our company?
One of our main objectives is to bring blind and sighted people together so
that they can play our games.
Another reason is that our games are also suitable for deaf people or people
who regain their hearing after an operation.
Collaboration
I would like to point out that in all our games we collaborate with
ONCE-CIDAT, the most important organization for visually impaired and blind
people in Spain and one of the biggest ones in the world. For them we
produce our computer games and other accessible products. They sell them in
their outlets in Spain and through distributors in the whole world.
About our products
For all our multimedia games we ensure a high quality:
- All of our actors are native speakers.
- Lots of special effects.
- High quality graphics.
- You do not have to install the game. Just put it in your Cd Rom drive and
start playing.
- No adaptive devices needed.
Here is a list of the games which are currently available:
KM 2000 - Vol.1 (Action series)
KM 2000 is a car simulator game. There are about 25 different circuits
throughout the world and of different difficulties. The aim is to drive
around the world and complete all the circuits successfully in the shortest
time possible. You drive your car relying on your sense of sound.
Consequently there are 3D sounds and lots of sound effects. You can choose
between practicing and competition mode. Currently we are thinking about
producing Vol.2 with more graphics, more interactivity and more sound
effects. There are also additional circuits available on our homepage.
Get the demo at www.codfact.com .
Educational collection:
At the moment we are producing a collection for ONCE-CIDAT called:
"Enjoy and learn with".
There are about 6 fairy tales for children now. Each one consists of a part
in which you listen to the fairy tale that is told in the traditional way
and another part in which you take part in the story. There are two levels
with lots of different activities to train your skills. Level A is designed
for six- and seven- year-old children and level B for eight-to ten-year-
olds. According to the score you obtain in each activity, there will be a
different ending.
Each story of "Enjoy and learn with" focuses on one or two themes and fits
perfectly into the concepts, procedures and values of study programs for
children. Consequently our games are used in schools for educational
purposes as well. Of course all of our products are non-violent and
non-sexist. The main aims are to combine fun and learning and to help
develop different skills. Demos of The Hare and the Tortoise, Snow White
and the seven Dwarves, and The Pied Piper of Hamelin are available on our
website.
Here is a list of fairy tales which are currently available and their main
objectives:
- Little Red Riding Hood (to develop language and nature awareness)
- The Hare and the Tortoise (mathematics and nature awareness)
- Snow White and the Seven Dwarves (language and environment)
- The Pied Piper of Hamelin (music: to develop listening memory)
(contains a wide range of tunes and sounds of musical instruments and
a piano)
- Cinderella (language and environment)
Coming soon:
- Puss in Boots (language, typing skills, knowledge of environment)
- The Sleeping Beauty (geography, mathematics, language, orientation in
space)
Characteristics of all of these games:
- Division in a listening part and an interactive part of two levels of
difficulty
- About 50 different scenes with lots of graphics and animations
- Wide range of different voices and sound effects
- Easy Access Menus
- Screen Text (you can choose to have the text on the screen or not)
- Keyboard echo (voices repetition of the selected keys)
- Two languages : English and Spanish in one Cd
An advantage is that you do not need Jaws or Window Eyes or other adaptive
devices to play them. Each game comes with a detailed text manual in English
and Spanish and a Braille manual. We want it to be a useful guide for
parents and/or teachers.
For more information:
We invite you to visit our website at
www.codfact.com
and to download demos of our games. Under products you will find as well a
catalogue with detailed information on the games and system requirements.
You also can subscribe to our newsletter or if you have got questions or
suggestions mail to
info@codfact.com
If you want to buy a game please contact ONCE-CIDAT.
+++
Introducing Danssoft!
By Daniel Zingaro
Hello, Audyssey readers,
I would like to introduce myself. My name is Daniel Zingaro, and I run a new
company known as Danssoft which specializes in the creation of games for the
visually impaired community.
+
Background
Before I describe what I offer, some comments are in order. I have been
interested in accessible games for many years, but until recently, most of
what was available to us was interactive-fiction style games. But the gaming
scene has changed considerably because of certain companies, such as PCS and
Esp Softworks. It is my opinion that companies like these have
revolutionized the future of our games, by showing us that we can go beyond
IF with high quality, sophisticated sound environments. It is extremely
difficult to write software which works with the variety of operating
systems and screen readers on the market, but these companies have done a
superb job. Generally speaking, what these companies release is greatly
appreciated by most of the community; without their hard work, of course,
games of such high calibre would be impossible. Along with the game
producers, Mike Feir deserves credit as well for the plush state of games
for the visually impaired. Audyssey is like an
oracle to many people, and it provides a way for gamers to stay up-to-date
on the latest titles. Audyssey has made itself out to be the central station
through which almost all game discussion passes.
It is into this thriving community that I introduce Danssoft. Several goals
were kept in mind when developing this company. The first thing I wanted to
do was create some more high quality, Windows, Directx games. No matter what
people wish, DOS is on the ropes, and will eventually go down for the count.
I feel that Windows games are the way to go, even though DOS games have
attained a great following, and regularly work well with screen readers. The
rest of the world is moving (or should I say, has moved) to Windows, so I
feel we should be right alongside them. The next star on my list was price.
If you do a quick search of the Internet, for "regular" freeware games, you
will find hundreds in a matter of a few minutes. For the case of accessible
games, other than IF, this is not the case. I realize the work that goes
into creating accessible games, so I'm not in the position to complain about
pricing. Still, I feel that I can offer extremely low prices, for games
which are hopefully fun and enjoyable. Finally, I wanted to create a company
which was dictated to some degree by the users. By reading further, you'll
see what I mean with my first game release.
+
Winfight
What do I have available? May I unveil the curtain hiding Winfight, an
amazing fast action fighting game for Windows. Using Directx technology,
sounds are given to you with extreme accuracy and speed. Move around the
fighting arena, desperately trying to knock out your opponent before he puts
you out of commission! Listen to the sounds to determine where the enemy is,
then track him down and attack like mad! But it's not only about going
psycho on your opponent. There is also strategy involved. Miss the target
too many times, and the amount of money you win is decreased. And once you
find a way to spend your money, what do you buy? More energy? More attack
power? Super attacks? Invisibility? Some other magical weapon? Or do you
wait for the next opportunity to buy even deadlier supplies! A demo is
available but it limits you to defeating only the first three enemies.
However, purchasing the game will entitle you to fight all of the enemies,
complete all of the quests, and much more! As new updates are made to the
game, you also receive these! Finally, when you register, I will provide the
opportunity for you to create your own quests to share with every other
person who has purchased it! Visit Danssoft's website to obtain the demo or
to learn how to buy the game.
http://members.home.net/danssoft
+
Blazie Note taker games
Do you own a Braille n Speak or Braille Lite? If so, you'll be delighted
when you realize that Danssoft has a superb collection of games available.
Sure, we've got the classics, like hangman, word scramble, Minesweeper,
Ticktacktoe, and Simon. But we go beyond that! Ever think you could play
hockey, pinball, or football on your note taker? How about a stock
simulator, space invaders, or intense battle game? We've also got Gotcha,
the world's first board game for the note takers, with the ability to have
any mixture of up to four human and computer players! With a great variety
of action, strategy, and word games, you're bound to turn your note taker
into a fulltime game console. Many games have sound effects which can be
toggled on or off, and there are a substantial number of two player games.
And what's better? Purchase the games package, and get all of these games,
as well as all future updates! Version 1.0 is available as freeware on the
danssoft website, but register, and you'll be sent the current version (2.5
as of this writing), which includes a legion of new games and enhancements!
http://members.home.net/danssoft
+
Future
You may be wondering what Danssoft is up to now? Continuing enhancements
will be made to Winfight and the Blazie note taker games, as expected. I
haven't decided on my next game yet, but it will obviously be very fast
paced and fun! I'm thinking of something similar to the Mario games for the
Nintendo consoles, but I honestly can't predict what exactly I'll dream up.
Please feel free to email me at
daniel_zingaro@hotmail.com
with any suggestions.
+
Closing
Feel free to email me any time with comments, questions, problems, or
suggestions. Also be sure to visit the website to obtain game updates for a
product you have purchased, or to see what's new. Hopefully, the community
will be well served by what I have to offer. Thanks for reading, and have
fun!
Danssoft
http://members.home.net/danssoft
daniel_zingaro@hotmail.com
+++
Contests From Danssoft:
Greetings, Gamers
As you may know by now, I run a company called Danssoft which produces
accessible games. My current products include a Windows fighting game,
Winfight, and a collection of Blazie note taker games. Now, it's time to
give something away!
Ever since I began reading Audyssey, I have been impressed by PCS,
generously giving away a free game after every Audyssey issue. It's acts
like this which really keep our community going, so I have decided to try my
hand at it this month. I will have two contests running.
The first contest is for all you people with experience in creating computer
sound effects. My next game will be a spin-off of a classic game from the
80's called Paratrooper. Basically, people fall from the sky, attempting to
land and subsequently destroy you. Your mission is to move under them and
shoot them out of the air before they land. If you allow too many to land
uninjured, they will team up and put you in your place! Beyond the elements
that I will use from the original, I have no ideas of my own yet. The person
who can send me the best sound effect for the game will win a free copy of
Winfight! I have no suggestions or recommendations for sounds to send; be as
creative as you like, and also send along a note describing possible
scenarios for when the sound could be used. For instance, "this sound could
be used when you hit one of the falling parachutists". I realize this
contest is somewhat subjective, but sometimes, a bit of luck can be
rewarding! Send sounds in wav format, and keep them as small as logically
possible. Feel free to send as many sounds as you like, and realize that I
may use any sound you send in the game, even if you are not the winner.
(Yes, it is laziness on my part, I agree.) Send entries to
daniel_zingaro@hotmail.com.
For my second contest, I will be giving away a copy of my Blazie note taker
games. Since we're on the subject, why not conduct this one by use of some
Freedom Scientific note taker trivia. The first person who can send me all
of the correct answers will be the winner. Send your entries to
daniel_zingaro@hotmail.com.
1. In what year was the ability to create folders introduced?
2. In the new Millennium note takers, dot 2 and dot 5 from within the speech
parameters menu perform different functions than in older models such as the
640 and 2000 series. What is this new function?
3. You have a file which is 5 Braille n Speak pages. The room left in the
file is 1544. How many bytes is this file?
4. When flash memory was first introduced, problems existed with the memory
becoming fragmented when files were deleted and moved. How was this
counteracted by Freedom Scientific?
5. Give the method for sending the selected file to a PC which uses the
fewest keystrokes.
6. Give me a plausible suggestion for a new game which could be added to my
collection. Provide as full a description as possible.
Good luck. And don't forget to visit the website
http://members.home.net/danssoft
+++
Puzzles and Games
By David Greenwood.
The following three puzzles are based on the intrepid Sunday night D&D
adventurers.
This first puzzle was solved by Naenor during a recent exploit.
The mists clear as the group steps cautiously through the portal into a
room, where their attention is drawn to a clear dark pool. Behind the pool
stands a basin hosting a brightly burning fire, providing light to the room
and clearly illuminating two small goblets near the edge of the pool.
Slowly, a ghost rises from the pool and says, "In front of you sits two
glass goblets. The larger of the two is seven ounces, and the smaller is
five. You must use these goblets to measure out exactly one ounce to pour
on the fire to extinguish it, and obtain the sword within."
Without hesitation, Naenor, the Northman, fills, empties, and moves the
liquid from goblet to goblet. He gives a grim smile as he holds up one of
the goblets containing exactly one ounce.
Question 1: Can you figure out how he did this?
In the Mordue forest, the adventurers are confronted by a wizard. Before
any could react, the evil wizard casts a spell, and then disappears in a
puff of smoke. Cyprian, the Elf, is unaffected, but he knows that the spell
cast on the group will either make a person always tell the truth, or always
lie. As the leader of the group, he is responsible for its security, and
hence, he feels that he must know who can be trusted, and who can not.
Cyprian looks at Breene, Brik, and Muldred, and asks them as a group, "Who
can I believe?"
Brik states that not one of the three could be trusted to tell the truth,
but Muldred asserts that one of them could be believed.
Question 2: Between Brik, Breene, and Muldred, who can be believed, and who
can not.
Cyprian moved on to questioning others in the group. He looked at
Kellindyl, and decided that asking him a question directly would not assure
him a straight answer, and so he asked Kellindyl to go over and ask Trellin
if he always tells the truth. Kellindyl returned to Cyprian and said that
Trellin can be believed.
Question 3: Can Cyprian know for sure whether or not Kellindyl is telling
the truth?
+++
Adam The Immortal Gamer
Episode by Brandon Hicks
Adam was just floating there in that all too familiar black void that was
his hard drive. "Adam, this is going too be your most important lesson yet"
says the disembodied voice. Adam feels himself falling, and when he lands,
he is on a helicopter landing pad, with 2 towers too the north and south of
him. "oh boy! inheritance. I've never gotten through this one. damned
computer!" Adam goes north, and he climbs down a spiral staircase, and finds
himself in a deserted mansion. He heads south, picks up the guitar, and
heads down the stairs.
After exploring the house, he decides to go out into the court yard, and see
if he could find anything out there. He eventually gives up, and heads back
up to the landing pad. this time, he goes south, but he can't open the door
to the south tower. he tries the intercom, but he can't figure out how too
work it. After a while, he decides too try and ram the door down. but all
that happens when he hits the door with his shoulder is he gets a sharp pain
that makes him grunt.
He sits down, and tries too think. finally, he tries too hit the door with
the guitar he picked up. after a while, he steps back too rest, but when he
steps back, he finds himself falling. he shuts his eyes tight, and waits.
when he doesn't feel anything, he opens his eyes, and sees black.
"what have you learned from this experience Adam?" the computer asks him.
"that the game inheritance sucks? no, that it doesn't help too get impatient
with something. I probably should have looked harder right?"
"yes, exactly." says the computer. "you should have searched under and
behind things."
Then Adam feels himself falling again... where will he be next time?
Find out next issue.
+++
News From Bavisoft
October 4, 2001
Our next game, an exciting adventure set in and around a haunted village, is
now in the final stages of production. We would love to give a release date,
but for now can only say that we're getting close.
Also thanks for all the great emails! They've been a blast to read. Keep
them coming.
+++
News From GMA
Hi all, There are seven new Lone Wolf missions, numbered 30 to 36.
A big thanks to Stuart Foster for gathering, testing, organizing, and
writing up the summary for this new batch.
You can access the user mission page directly from:
http://www.GMAGames.com/usermiss.html
Here you can download all the user created missions as well as the new ones,
or you can download the new zipped missions directly from:
http://www.GMAGames.com/usermiss3.zip
David Greenwood.
+++
News From ESP Softworks
Greetings, Gamers!
This e-mail is being sent to help keep everyone up-to-date as to what's
going on at the ESP Softworks' website as well as to let people know of new
additions to the site. If you don't already know what it is that we do, or
haven't already been to the web site, now would be a *great* time to find
out! *grin* ESP Softworks is a game and entertainment software company that
specializes in the development of software that's completely accessible to
those with low or no vision. You can visit the website at
http://www.espsoftworks.com.
What's New at ESP Softworks' Web Site:
We've recently completely updated our entire website to bring it back up to
date as well as centralize the available information. All the playable
demos have been brought back online as well as the audio trailers, freebies,
and all issues of Audyssey Game Magazine. We have a new look and feel we
think you'll enjoy!
Since we've released the full retail version of ESP Pinball, we've created a
members' only ESP Pinball Lounge where registered users can hang out, post
their high scores using our automated web processing, take part in several
ESP Pinball-related surveys with instant results, take part in monthly
contests, download text and Braille printable versions of all six pinball
tables, and more!
ESP Pinball customers may now register their copies of ESP Pinball
automatically by using our online automated registration system. Within a
few minutes, you could have your copy registered and your own unique
username and password to log into the members' only area! Soon, members
will be able to create their own profiles and gain access to many more
features.
All subscriptions hosted by ESP Softworks will soon be able to be handled
online by subscribers. You will be able to subscribe, unsubscribe, and
change your subscription settings at your own convenience.
We've also been working on posting employee biographies online so you can
learn a bit more about the people who are involved in bringing you high
quality, accessible games. Everything you've probably wondered about and
maybe even some things you've never wanted to know! Jump to the 'Contact
Us' section of the website and click on the name of the employee you'd like
to find out more about or jump here
http://www.espsoftworks.com/contact/contact.html.
ESP Pinball Full Version Available For Purchase:
ESP Softworks has released it's very first retail game title--ESP Pinball.
The game is currently shipping immediately. Information about this title
follows below:
Since the first pinball game was introduced in 1947, people the world over
have had an obsession with making a little silver ball jump all over a
table, hitting targets and flying up ramps along the way. Pinball has been
one of those true classic arcade games with ongoing appeal to generations
old and young. ESP Pinball captures the magic and fun of arcade-style
pinball and makes it accessible for everyone.
ESP Pinball features:
- Six exciting and interactive themed tables including a free bonus table,
including:
Heist, Haunted House, Safari, Soccer Star, Wild West, and Pac Man
- Great Ambient Sound Effects & Music
- Two Modes of Play: Classic and Accessible
- Two difficulty levels: Normal and Insane
- Fast-Action Game Play
ESP Pinball is priced at $24.95 plus shipping & handling. See our website
and contact details below on how to obtain more information about this
title.
Monkey Business Demo is Released:
Chase and catch monkeys and avoid obstacles in real-time through a lush 3D
audio environment while visiting more than ten completely different themed
levels. It's fun and furious action and puzzle solving at it's best! Run,
jump, climb and swim through ten themed levels of game play with fun
puzzles, great ambient sound effects, complete 3D player
freedom-of-movement, several bonus levels, and cool music! Monkey Business
is tentatively scheduled for release during Holiday Season 2001.
Changing Gears:
Keith Milbourne has decided to try his hand at the programming side of ESP
Softworks and will be trained to be a fully proficient coder. This will
effectively speed up the development time of our games which means more
games, better games, and quicker releases to you! Keith has shown great
aptitude in this arena and it will be a pleasure working with him on future
projects.
Two New ESP List Serves:
We've added two new list serves here at ESP Softworks--ESPList and PBList.
The ESPList is for general discussion regarding our games, the company, idea
suggestions, support issues amongst customers, and more. To subscribe to
ESPList, simply send an e-mail to listserver@espsoftworks.com with the words
'subscribe ESPList' in the message b
ody.
The PBList is for ESP Pinball related discussion such as high score
flaunting, questions and answers regarding game play, tips and tricks,
behind the scenes information, expansion table idea suggestions, bug
reports, and upcoming news regarding ESP Pinball. To subscribe to PBList,
simply send an e-mail to listserver@espsoftworks.com with the words
'subscribe PBList' in the message body.
For more information:
Please visit our website at http://www.espsoftworks.com, e-mail us at
info@espsoftworks.com, or call (916) 922-7808. Playable demos, audio
trailers, and free back issues of Audyssey Game Magazine are available at
our website.
+++
News From MindsEye2
Date: October 2, 2001 12:28 PM
News from MindsEye2
Note that my new email address is
RogerMyers@ab.edu
Over the Summer MindsEye2 moved from Bland, VA to Fairmont, WV and the
website got lost in the process. Anyhow; It will be up and running soon.
MindsEye2 will be making and selling some other educational products for
visually impaired children starting this Fall. Visit our website once it is
up and check for these or write for more information.
This Fall MindsEye2 will release a number of new accessible games for early
learners. Two or three will be released during October.
One is another playroom like the Christmas Playroom except this one is not
based on a Christmas theme. Almost all the keys have new pictures and
sounds and read different nursery rhymes and poems. There is some overlap
however with Christmas Playroom. A big difference is that this one is not
based on a Christmas theme and also it is part of the Early Learning
Playground group of programs. All Early Learning Playground programs are
grouped into one so the child can hop back and forth between activities
(Games) without ever leaving the main program. The new playroom game will
come with Farm Animal and Wild Animal picture books which are two other
activities in the playground group.
Another game to be released during October is a board game on the computer
in which the child helps Jumper Frog to hop across her pond to her favourite
log. This is also for preschool children and includes 300 questions on
topics the child is learning. These cover areas of learning such as
colours, shapes, counting, first/last, rhyming words (Sounds like),
biggest/smallest, starting sounds, parts of the body, holidays, recognizing
sounds, and many more fun and educational topics. The child only uses the
arrow keys and the space bar to play this game. It also will come with the
Farm and Wild Animal picture books.
Speaking of the picture books they work like this. Each time any key is
pressed another random animal is selected and its picture shown and a simple
description appropriate for young children is spoken. Also the sound of
that animal is heard. If the space bar is pressed a description of the
picture is heard. There are about
12 farm animals in the farm animal picture book and about 20 animals in the
wild animal picture book.
Besides the playroom and frog hop game we will also be releasing a money
counting game in which the child helps Barkly Puppy count change to assist
customers in buying various items. There are about 13 customers, all cute
animals, who want to buy different items costing up to 19 cents. In easy
mode the child counts only pennies by adding pennies or taking away pennies
until the amount is exactly correct. In hard mode the child has only 4
pennies, 1 nickel, and one dime to work with. He/she also adds coins and
takes coins away to reach the correct amount. This game only uses the arrow
keys, the six keys above those and the enter key.
We will be including Jungle Tic Tac Toe with this money counting game.
All the games I mention above are in the Early Learning Playground group.
So if all were installed for example the child could be playing the money
game and then with one keystroke switch to playing Frog Hop, the playroom
game or farm animal book and easily switch to Jungle Tic Tac Toe all without
ever leaving the playground program. So as one purchases additional games
in the group new areas of the playground are opened up for the child to play
in.
There will be other games in the playground group for early learners in
coming months but the ones I mention above are to be the first ones
released. Our other eight computer games are also available.
Let me know if you have any questions on any of our games or want more
information.
Roger RogerMyers@ab.edu - Roger Myers
+++
News From PCS
Date: October 3, 2001 7:58 PM
PCS Games News
PCS Games is not merging with GMA Games as reported in the last issue of
Audyssey. We are collaborating on a game using a Windows based game
creating program as its core.
Audyssey is no longer available on disk.
PCS had distributed Audyssey, as well as selected shareware and freeware
games on disk for five years.
Each year we got less and less requests for subscriptions, until the number
reached zero.
This is a good thing for it gives us at PCS more time to develop games and
also means that more people are getting the magazine directly.
Carl Mickla is working full time at IBM in New York so Phil Vlasak agreed to
take on more responsibilities of running the company. Meanwhile, Phil moved
to Michigan and on October 27, 2001 Phil will marry Betty Jo Payne.
We hope to update the web site after the wedding!
You can contact PCS at PCS Games
666 Orchard Street Temperance, MI 48182 New phone number! (734) 850-9502
E-mail Phil Vlasak pcsgames@toltbbs.com Web site (dreadfully outdated):
http://www.pcsgames.com
+++
Chess wherever
By Charles Rivard
While browsing the net, I stumbled on www.pcsgames.com
and became hooked. I noticed issues of a magazine for blind gamers and,
after being a reader for some time, have decided to try my hand at writing
an article about a way for blind people to use a "tabletop" chess opponent.
I have had some of these machines for quite some time, and find them both
stimulating and challenging, especially in the past year or so. I started
out with one that voiced all movements through electronics. It did not play
a very good game unless you set it on a level that took on average 15
minutes per move. This meant that it might make a move instantly this time,
but might "think" for half an hour on the next one! This makes for a very
long game! They've come a long, long way. I was using a specially adapted
chessboard & set of men to view my game and decide my next move. While this
method was OK, I got thinking, "Why not try modifying the board on the
machine for use by blind people. In this way, I won't have to use a
separate board." I am now using a machine from Radio Shack (there are
plenty of stores in the United States. Check out their site at
www.radioshack.com
for electronics of all sorts) that has 64 different playing levels.
Although the pieces and surface of the machine are magnetic, the magnetic
field is not strong enough. If a piece is touched, it will move very
easily. This makes playing the game impossible. The idea of the game is to
let the machine know your move by pressing on the square you move from, then
move the piece and press on the square you move to. Sound easy? The
chessboard on the machine is a smooth surface with the squares painted on
it. It is pressure sensitive. I solved this problem by obtaining a roll of
rubber "strip magnet" from a local hobby store. If you have seen those
rubber magnets that are stuck to refrigerators, you know the kind I mean.
They have adhesive on the back. I cut a piece off the roll to the
appropriate size to stick onto the bottom of each chess piece. Then, with a
brailed ruler, I measured the distance from the LED (light emitting diode)
that is along the edge of the machine in the centre of one square, to the
next LED in that column. I then measured and cut a magnet that was an
eighth of an inch shorter than that distance. I centred it over a square
along the edge and pressed it into place. I continued in this fashion until
I had the 8 squares of the first row placed. Then worked my way up until
all 64 squares had a magnet on them. The chessmen will now be securely held
in place as the board is explored. I used a small saw to cut a groove into
the top of each black piece to distinguish them from the white ones. The
machine can now be used!!! A beep is heard when you press to move from a
square. It beeps again to confirm your destination square. Then you wait
for it to respond with the same high beep as it registers that it has made
an answering move. If you hear a high beep followed by a lower beep, that
is not the right square it moved from. Press on any of its men until only
the high beep is heard. If you know that the king is the piece move, you
know where it CAN be moved to. Press on those squares until you find the
one it moved to and leave the piece there. Make your next move, and your
game progresses until someone (probably you) is checkmated. I used Open
book unbound to read the manuals to learn how to operate the functions of
the machine such as how to set your skill level and such. This machine is
now adapted very well for the blind chess player. It can be operated on
either house current or batteries, so you can take it anywhere. So if you
go on a vacation and no one will be playing chess, you can take an excellent
computer opponent along with you!
+++
MYRTHORN & KORIAL'S MONTHLY MUD PICKS
Hidy Ho, no chips and Coke this month. Instead, I've brought along my new
partner, Korial.
Didn't realize that Mike was going to introduce her as a new staff member
last month (lack of communication <bonk>). Anyway, she'll be working with
me to bring you the scoop on some fun muds. We've decided that we should
implement some sort of rating system to give you readers an idea of how we
truly think these muds rank, (and a lot of them out there really 'are' rank
<giggle>).
Well, Korial, would you like the honours in revealing our new rating
system?
Emerging from nowhere, clad in a muddy brown cloak and, of course, muddy
boots, Korial flicks some dried mud from her fingers before beginning to
type.
Although I think our ratings are self explanatory, I'll just add a brief
comment for each category of the rating system:
5 - a Muddy good time: This is our highest rating, awarded to only the most
extraordinary and enthralling of muds.
4 - Here's mud in your eye: Outstanding mud with only a few minor flaws
marring its perfection.
3 - stick in the mud: Reserved for the mud that is nothing special,
completely mundane and probably going nowhere.
2 - mired in quicksand: So bad that it's sucking you under, likely to drown
you in boredom and kill you with it's lack of creativity.
1 - pig slop: So bad that you wouldn't even send your worst enemy to it
(not even good enough to feed to your pet pig).
That's the down and dirty rating system. Let's not wallow in the meanings of
each category any longer. As you play each mud, you will most assuredly give
it your own rating (and hopefully you'll share your opinions and experiences
with us on via the "muddylist" mentioned at the end of this article.
Now, without any delay, let's burrow into the mud!
New Moon
Mud Created: January, 1988
Code Base: LP, LPMud
Site: eclipse.cs.pdx.edu 7680 [131.252.208.48]
Admin Email: newmoon@cs.pdx.edu
Theme: Medieval Fantasy
Location: USA
Primary Language: English
Avg. # of Players: 25 - 49
Multi-Play: Limited
Player-Kill: Restricted
Equipment Saved
Quests Available
Character Approval Unnecessary
Role-playing Is Encouraged
Newbie friendly
Skill-Based Training System
Skill-Based Equipment System
Detailed Character Creation
World is all original
Medium World (3,000+ rooms)
Mud is fully operational
I'm a long-time mudder, visiting or playing hundreds of games over the last
eight years and I'm constantly in search of the illusive perfect mud. Of
course, there is no such thing, but I've found a mud that gives me much of
what I'm looking for, and that mud is Newmoon.
The thing that I find most attractive about Newmoon is that you can advance
fairly quickly and easily without ever killing a mob (though of course
killing is an option). This mud is heavily quest based, and you can get
anywhere from 5,000 to 50,000 experience points for one quest. (Actually,
50,000 is the most I've ever gotten, it may not be the maximum limit.)
Newmoon has four basic Guilds: League of Warriors, Hall of Acquisition
(thieves), Temple of Damara and Academy of Magi. Once you advance enough in
the base guild and meet its criteria, you are able to make other choices of
guilds, allowing you to specialize in a certain area. In the totally
original and quite creative intro to the mud, you are given a tiny taste of
how these guilds work so that you can decide in which direction you'd like
to take your character.
The intro to the mud is somewhat extensive and enjoyable, allowing you to
gain some basic skills of the four major guilds before actually entering
game play. I must admit though, that while I found it fun, different and
interesting with my first char, it becomes a bit tedious when you've
already created several. Nevertheless, it certainly beats traditional mud
school by miles, in my opinion, offering plenty of opportunities to read
help files and learn more about the mud.
This isn't the easiest mud to get started on, though the people are helpful
for the most part. There isn't a list of quests you can read with hints on
how to start them. The closest thing to such a list is in an area
highlighting the achievements of different players. If you look up a high
level person, his/her plaque or statue will show the accomplishments, which
are tiny hints to the quests real goal and location.
I've played a ranger twice now on the mud, and I must say that it is an
extremely well thought-out, diverse and rewarding guild to play. Rangers
begin as warriors then specialize to become defenders of the forests. They
have herb lore skills, gathering, collecting, drying and preparing herbs
for making potions, salves and the like. They can also summon beasts of the
forest to aid them in battle, to mention just a couple of attractions.
Once you gain experience, either through fighting, solving quests, or
actually using a skill, you can advance your skills in a wide variety of
combinations. I found this part of the mud a bit confusing, but was able to
get help from other players. The skills are laid out visually, so it is
sometimes hard to tell when listening to the list, which skill falls under
what category. I'm sure I could have fiddled around a lot with screen reader
settings to read it more easily, but I was lazy and it eventually did make
sense to me when I discovered I could list specific categories and
sub-categories by themselves.
While Newmoon has an extensive help system, I found that the files weren't
always clear and didn't always convey the essential points to the newbie
player. Explanations sometimes seem to assume that you already know certain
information, or that something is "obvious" when it isn't, etc.
The atmosphere of the mud is rich and diverse as well, with detailed room
descriptions and the ability to examine and search just about everything
you see in a room. Additionally, mobs wander the areas performing tasks,
(such as lamplighters at night in the cities moving around to light the many
lamps placed at close intervals along the roads.).
Player killing/stealing is optional, and only those players making the
choice will ever be attacked or stolen from by another player.
Unlike other muds I've played, I'm never bored on Newmoon. There's much to
explore, quests to solve, mobs to kill, and treasure to be had aplenty.
Just a couple quick comments from the peanut gallery. I was also delighted
to see the detailed descriptions on Newmoon. I Agree with Korial about the
character generation phase of Newmoon. It is quite enjoyable and is far
from anything you'd find in the typical Diku based mud school's. However,
the skill system on Newmoon is quite daunting to the newbie (regardless of
what the administration would like to think of themselves - as displayed in
their own description on TMC). It took me three characters to even get a
clue as to what I was doing. The help files could stand some revision. I
first tried to be a priest, then a hobbit/thief, and finally a (boring)
warrior. This was when things fell into place - and it was only by pure
chance. I happened to see a (obvious) veteran player starting a new
character. I was standing next to one of the trainers in a guild when the
other player came in and said some key phrase which enabled him to obtain
some training from the guild master. I would have never figured out the
command on my own. After getting these skills, and rereading the help files
over and over again, I finally ran across several words which cross matched,
and things sort of fell into place. (And BTW - my thief and priest are
still clueless newbies). I understand the skill system now, but have no
clue what the "trigger" phrases are at the various guild masters.
I'm going to give Newmoon a rating of 4 out of 5.
Hey! Boring warrior? Warriors rule! They can become rangers and rangers
truly rock!
Don't tell Brik I made that comment <cringe>. Just an offhand comment from
an old mage who was trying out a few other classes.
And now for the second review. This is another one that Korial has played
extensively in the past.
NannyMUD
Mud Created: April, 1990
Code Base: LP Very extended LPMud
Site: mud.lysator.liu.se 2000 [130.236.254.159]
Admin Email: NannyMUD@lysator.liu.se
Theme: Medieval fantasy, with magic added.
Location: Sweden
Primary Language: English
Avg. # of Players: 50 - 74
Multi-Play: No
Player-Kill: Restricted
Class-less System
Quests Available
Character Approval Unnecessary
Role-playing Is Accepted
Newbie friendly
Level-Based Training System
Clans Offered
World is all original
Huge World (15,000+ rooms)
In my search for enjoyable and challenging muds, I'm finding that most of
them seem to be LP based muds. I'm also finding that due to the flexibility
of LP code that it takes quite a bit of learning to get used to each
individual LP mud. Nannymud is no exception. I'd recommend that anyone
wishing to play a new LP mud set aside about a week to play solely that mud.
This is so you can learn that muds workings - syntax, areas and landscape,
character dynamics, and overall quality of the mud. Then judge it.
Korial sticks her nose in between the paragraphs to insert this point: While
it is true that lp muds are more complex and sometimes difficult to learn,
I've found that after playing a few of them there are many commands that are
common to most of them so they become less daunting with a bit of fun-filled
experience. Korial's nose slowly withdraws.
As mentioned, Nannymud is a huge world, so I was only able to touch the
surface of it. My overall impression ... agh, mediocre.
Nannymud does have a decent set of documents which are placed in your
inventory in order to help the newbie get used to the mud. It does have a
number of different newbie areas where you can get started and help to build
your character. When you start out you will have all of your attributes set
to 1 (that includes strength, dexterity, intelligence and constitution). So
be prepared to do a lot of rabbit hunting near the beginning of the game
<chuckle>. You'll need experience points to both raise in level and to buy
yourself advancements in your attributes. (And you will want to increase
your attributes - con will increase your HP, dex will increase your speed,
and I assume strength will help in some sort of brute force manner, and int
will most likely enable your char to deal with magic).
Their online help system is quite unique. It's set up in a tree
structure, and you basically search down through the different branches to
find the information you are seeking (if it's documented).
The world of nannymud is full of quests (more than I care for). It prides
itself on its quests -- and is always looking for feedback regarding them.
So I guess I have to give the admin. Staff a pat on the back for their
effort in this area. One newbie area I went to left me unable to do
anything at all in that area do to a stuck gate. There was a brief
description of the gate and the wall nearby. However, Nannymud seems to
like to play the game of "guess the verb". I don't.
Standard commands such as "push" and "pull", just get responses of "What?".
Quite frustrating. And, yes they do have decent descriptions of rooms --
but rarely have detailed descriptions of the objects in the rooms. And
there is no 'search' command. No way to examine an object in further
detail than just looking at it. <ding>
Nannymud also does not save equipment. This means your character needs
to sell all his/her eq before logging off - and is required to buy new eq
when logging back in. I despise this quality in a mud. <ding>
Since Nanny is such a large mud, I imagine it is quite enjoyable to get out
and explore its realms (once you get beyond newbie status). Being such a
large world, it has plenty of players on at any one single time. Some are
quite helpful - and some are down right ... ahem, well, let's just say they
are anything but helpful. The administration has clearly outlined its
policies. Unfortunately, many players don't adhere to them, and the admin.
Staff doesn't respond to reports of breaches of these policies. I spent a
good fifteen minutes this morning, fighting a wolverine over it's helmet it
was wearing - only to have another char come along and take my kill and loot
after I had spent time wearing it down. This is a very strongly emphasized
breech of Nannymud's rules (which is explained to you in the newbie docs).
When I confronted the player, he just ignored me. When I addressed some
admin. Staff - they never even bothered to acknowledge my 'tell'. That was
fine - I had a review to write and no more time to waste on this mud. <ding>
I'm only giving Nannymud a rating of 3 out of 5.
But to be fair, Korial has spent a lot more time than myself playing Nanny.
Let's get her opinion.
Tis a sad day indeed when Nannymud gets so mediocre a review, but then of
course, Myrthorn is very wrong and I'll give you the real scoop on this
excellent mud.
First of all, I beg to differ about the admins responses to rule violations.
All one needs to do is read the bulletin board in the adventurers guild to
see that they take violations very seriously. Perhaps the admin was afk, or
busy building/coding and missed your tell?
As for object descriptions, etc. I've found that most everything in the mud
has a description and while search is not a universal command, it is present
in many of the muds zones.
Nannymud has some very unique guilds as well. For example, there is the
chefs guild where you learn to prepare different types of foods which give
you increasingly more powerful skills/abilities/spells. Truly a unique and
interesting concept.
Then there are the knights. Being a knight is somewhat difficult for a blind
player though I did manage to reach level 18 with in this guild long ago. It
is tough because the knights periodically are attacked by hoards of orcs,
ghouls, ghosts and the like and all guild members must return to the grounds
to defend the honour of the knights. There is so much action and movement of
mobs that it is pretty spammy and thus very easy to be killed. Nevertheless,
it is quite a fun guild to play.
As for quests, well, I love questing so I find this aspect to be a plus.
Nannymud was the first or second mud I ever played and I probably stayed
there longer than any other mud I've encountered over my ten years or more
of mudding. For the most part I've found people to be quite friendly, though
there ar certainly exceptions.
I give this mud a 4.5. Guess the best thing you can do is play it and find
out for yourself.
Well, hopefully these reviews will give you mudders something to keep you
busy until the next issue.
And if any of you are interested in discussions regarding mudding between
issues, Korial and myself are moderating a list for mudding.
Send a message to: listserver@espsoftworks.com, with 'subscribe muddylist'
in the body of the message.
Posts to the list are sent to: muddylist@espsoftworks.com.
See you next time - Myrthorn out <phwoosh!>
Korial waves and as she slowly transforms into silvery moonbeams, her voice
echoes in the distance calling "Happy Mudding!"!
+++
The 2001 Mach1 World Championship
What is it?
The Mach1 World Championship is a friendly, but highly contestet,
competition based around Jim Kitchen's Mach1, an accessible version of that
old Formula I racing game for the Atari, Pole Position. Previously, the
competition has only been hosted in Belgium. The year 2001 marks the first
time the competition is to be held internationally with drivers from
Belgium, the United States and Australia already signed up. We are looking
for more keen racers from different countries from around the world to fill
out the full complement of 24 places in the championship so that the
competition can become as diverse as the real live counterpart on which it
is modelled.
The Rules of the Championship
1. The Grand Prix consists of 5 races, each on a different track of the
Mach1 game. These are:
Race 1: Grand Prix of Ohio (1 lap to be made on difficulty level 1)
Race 2: Grand Prix of Chardon Hill (1 lap to be made on difficulty level 1)
Race 3: Grand Prix of Snake River (1 lap to be made on difficulty level 1)
Race 4: Grand Prix of Indianapolis (Indy) (2 laps to be made on difficulty
level 2)
Race 5: Grand Prix of Maple (2 laps to be made on difficulty level 2)
2. Points for each race are awarded on the basis of time to complete the
race. The players with the best 5 times in a race will receive 25, 20, 16,
13 and 11 points respectively. The next 10 competitors in that race will be
awarded 10, 9, ..., 1 points, while the remainder receive 0 points.
3. All drivers are allowed to make as many attempts as they like on each
track between October 1 and December 31.
4. On January 1, the final result of the Championship will be published.
5. In order to participate, all competitors are required to download the
new version of the Mach1 game from Jim Kitchen's web site:
http://www.simcon.net/jkitchen/. The new version is packaged in a file
called wincar4.zip which can be found by following the "Click here for free
Windows games" link.
The new version of the game accounts for differences and speed between
different computers so that no handicapping is required in order to compare
the times of different players. The older version of the game does not do
this and the times obtained under it are not comparable with times achieved
playing the new version. For this reason, only times from the new version
will be considered valid and accepted during the championship. It is
therefore vital that all participants download and run the new version of
the game.
6. If you have been playing the new version of Mach1 prior to the
commencement of the Championship, you must delete all the .rec files in the
Mach1 directory before starting the championship.
This will zero all your previous records so you are not submitting records
made prior to the championship. Please check that you are running the
latest version of the game and that your record files have been zeroed
before starting your first race in the Grand Prix.
New personal best times for each race should be E-mailed to hugo.j@pi.be.
Simply E-mail the .rec file for each track you have made a new record on.
Be sure to either attach the file to the message, so that it's name appears
in the attachment list, or paste the .rec file into the body of the message,
being sure to indicate which track it is for. Each week, an update
summarising times for each Grand Prix will be sent out so that the
competitors can see how the Championship is progressing.
7. Together with the Individual Championship, a Team Championship will be
conducted.
The teams, each comprising two drivers, will be determined by lottery.
For the Team Championship, the points of both drivers will be added together
to obtain a team total. The team with the highest number of points for the
5 races will be declared the winner of the Team Championship, and so on.
8. In case of any disputes, the rules of the F.I.A. will be decisive.
If you wish to participate in the 2001 Mach1 World Championship, please send
a message to Janssens Hugo at hugo.j@pi.be, but you'll have to be quick as
there is only room for 24 participants in the championship.
The organiser of the Championship trust that all competitors will abide by
the rules of the Championship and wish all participants good luck. Cheating
is not encouraged. Those of such a mind are not welcome and need not apply.
+++
Game Announcements and Reviews:
Above the full reviews which appear in this section, any new games which
have not been fully reviewed yet will be announced in the hopes that readers
and/or the Audyssey staff will try out and review these games for us.
Reviews of games will not appear in any particular order. The only exception
to this will be when we have more than one review for a game. In this case,
reviews will be placed consecutively so that it is easier to compare them.
As with Anchorhead a few issues back, I may wish to interject my own
thoughts on a game should it provoke significant reaction or otherwise prove
itself especially noteworthy. When I choose to do this, you'll find my
remarks above the review or reviews for the game in question. Should a game
have more than one review, two plus-signs will be placed above the first
review and/or my remarks. This policy will hopefully encourage people to try
both the latest as well as some older games which may have been overlooked.
Just because something isn't hot off the presses doesn't mean that it is any
less worthy of a gamer's attention. Also, remember that it doesn't matter if
a game has been reviewed before. If you have a different take on the game
than has already been published, send in your review and I'll consider it
for publication. If a review fails to interest you, simply skip to the next
plus-sign. It's that simple, folks.
A new discovery for Football fans has been made thanks to the vigilance of
Andrew Hart. It appears that sports fans have something to tide them over
until Bavisoft comes out with their sports offerings in the near future. The
game is called Playmaker, and it appears to work quite well with Jaws For
Windows. Since menus and dialog boxes are apparently used quite extensively,
it should theoretically work well for all Windows screen-readers. A review
of this game from a Football enthusiast would be very much appreciated. Note
that this is American Football and not Soccer which is what British people
call Football. To get the game, go to:
http://www.playmaker.com/
Jim Kitchen has two announcements for us in this issue. We will begin with
his update for everyone's favourite racing game.
Hi, I have put a new version of my Mach 1 car racing game up on my web site.
The file name is wincar4.zip and is 4.7 meg in size.
New in this version is a navigational wall echo sound that gets louder the
closer you get to either wall and is silent when you are in the dead centre
of the track.
Also new is a universal timing scheme so that you can compare race times
regardless of the computer the game is run on.
There is also now a universal date routine and the game is now 1 executable
file rather than 6 separate ones.
My web site address is below.
Jim Lot's of bugs fixed in this version !!!
jimkitchen@simcon.net http://www.simcon.net/jkitchen
1-440-286-6920 Chardon Ohio
The other exciting creation that Jim has come out with is a new Golf game
for Windows. You'll find a review of this later in this section. Below is
the original announcement posted to the Audyssey list:
Announcing Wingolf
by Jim Kitchen
Hi,
I have put a new game up on my site.
It is a windows golf game.
The description is
wingolf.zip 4.9m bytes play 18 holes of golf on 1 or all 3 of our beautiful
courses or hone your skills on the driving range and putting practice green
hand ear coordination required to hit the ball game is self voicing so no
screen reader is required
Hope that you will stop by my web site and check it out.
BFN
Jim
Nothing increases your golf score like witnesses.
jimkitchen@simcon.net http://www.simcon.net/jkitchen
1-440-286-6920 Chardon Ohio
Kelly Sapergia was the first to inform the Audyssey community that the
latest Interactive Fiction competition is now underway. There are fifty-two
games this year, and I hope that many of you will choose to participate by
playing some or all of the games and voting on them before the competition
deadline at midnight on November 15th. While you're playing the games,
please write some reviews of your favourites for the next issue of Audyssey.
The link you want to check out is:
http://plover.net/~textfire/ifcomp
+
Braminar
Reviewed by Ron Schamerhorn
Freeware [I believe]
Fully playable without sighted assistance.
Due to the discussion on the Audyssey list about this older DOS game I was
motivated to go and seek it out on the Internet. It was quite easy to find
using the title as the search criteria.
The game objective is to overthrow the evil King of Braminar. After doing
this you will become the new leader. It is a very basic RPG styled game.
Your character begins between 7th and 9th levels. You need to build
yourself up to at least level 20, and possess the Staff of Avatar [and the
talisman helps too]. You can buy or sell slaves, fight or flee opponents,
buy weapons or food, and so on.
Playing the game doesn't get much easier then this interface. Player's
options for the most part are either a yes or no style of choosing.
Occasionally there are other options when you enter a number or other
corresponding key to the appropriate action, like units of food or medicine.
I am not even certain if RPG is the right genre to classify this game. It
can be completed in about an hour, and really lacks depth. Braminar might
have been good for it's time [can't fill in much detail due to lack of docs]
but compared to some of the other RPG's like ADOM and Nethack it is a rather
disappointing way to spend time. If you had thought of checking this one
out, my advice would be don't bother! The only reason I finished it was for
this review.
My rating for this game would be 3 out of 10. The game gives the player
virtually no opportunity to alter the course of game play, and it gets quite
dull quickly.
++
The Dunjins of Dunjin
Review by Daniel Zingaro
Game Created by Olsson
DOS Text Adventure
Fully playable without Sighted Assistance
If you remember the classic treasure hunt text games, you'll love this
one. You begin lost in a forest, and your objective is to travel
through a massive dungeon, collecting treasure. Your main and ultimate goal,
however, is to track down and return the holy grail.
The game is based on a points system, and if you manage to get 350
points, you are deemed victorious. But it won't be easy. There are many
difficult puzzles awaiting, and they include vivid enemies with intriguing
qualities. Some objects, in particular, have extraordinary value, and are
used to complete multiple puzzles throughout the game. Then, there are some
puzzles which are technically simple, but are magnified in difficulty by the
legion of objects which could potentially be used in the situation.
The different locations are expertly described, creating a plush and
astonishingly real environment. And just when you think you have the map
somewhat memorized, you could potentially find yourself in a maze, with no
indication of how to get out! It also comes with a top-notch documentation
file which should get you up and running in no time.
The game provides a nice array of features, including the ability to
save and load games, as well as to receive hints about your current
predicament. It works amazingly well with DOS screen readers, as the game
uses the BIOS for output. If you use a Windows screen reader, things may not
be so perfect, but setting screen echo to all, and using review keys as a
backup, should provide for ample access. The game is a standalone exe, which
means you don't have to download any engine to play.
The game was initially shareware, but now the author has generously
released it as freeware. Pragmatically speaking, however, this simply means
that the initial "please register" splash screen has been removed.
This is definitely my favourite text adventure. The plot is trivial,
the setting is common, but the puzzles, enemies, and overall game play are
amazing. Do yourself a favour and get this one!
http://www.ifarchive.org/if-archive/games/pc/dunjin45.zip
++
By far, one of the most hotly discussed new games these days is ESP Pinball.
James North has at last released his first commercial game to the resounding
delight of an eagerly awaiting Audyssey community. Having only received our
copies a two days ago, I will wait until the next issue to offer a more
lengthy commentary of my own. Rebecca and I have, of course, tried all of
the tables out. Both of us are thrilled with the ease of play and excellent
sound work of this game. The re-playability and expandability that James has
offered pinball enthusiasts is fantastic. Plans are already well underway to
offer more tables to expand the product. James has also made a special
web-site area for game owners which will doubtless please a lot of
customers. Ron Schamerhorn has put in some serious hours on this game, and
offers the following review:
ESP Pinball
By: ESP Softworks Co.
Type: Commercial
Reviewed by R Schamerhorn
Fully accessible without sighted assistance
Available from:
www.espsoftworks.com
For decades, countless numbers of people have enjoyed pinball. Originally
with bells, rotary scoring, and straightforward design to the more modern
unlimited sound effects, digital scores, and any theme imaginable. Now the
blind/visually impaired community can delight in this enduring pass time
thanks to the amazing debut release from ESP Softworks! ESP Pinball will
keep players tackling tables for quite some time. With six challenging
tables and optional methods of game play.
Overall game play is a little different. For example the ball doesn't roll
off your flipper, it sticks to it. This allows for the scanning process.
Various sound cues are used to locate and aim for particular objects in all
tables. All the sounds for the tables can be heard from the help menu.
Two options for accessibility have been used. The first is described above.
The second is more traditional. A rapid beep sound is played when the ball
comes close to the flipper.
The speed of the game can be set to either regular or insane.
Pac Man The arcade classic Pac Man is given new life and transformed into a
pinball table. Unlike conventional tables where a player attempts to avoid
having the ball go down the drain there is no such concern. But don't think
it's a piece of cake! You need to shoot your Pac Man [the ball] around the
table and munch all the food dots possible, keeping out of the ghost's path
unless you find a power pill to help you gobble them up. Other features
include the bonus fruit appearing randomly, points for clearing a table and
an extra ball every ten million points. The bonus ball is given on all
tables unless otherwise stated.
Soccer Star Take to the field. Prepare to play fast and hard against the
visiting team. Defend your goal when the opponent kicks the ball towards
the net. The kick is indicated by a rapidly rising tone. You need to
quickly hit the space bar to have your goalie make the save. Take aim at
the spinners to spell out "save" which will give you an automatic save, or
"goal" and face the visitor's goalie one-on-one. Hit the "Double Score" to
rack up twice the points, or pass the ball to your flippers further a-field
to line up for a goal. The game also features throw ins, yellow or red
penalty cards. Be careful about the penalties or you might loose a ball.
The scoring for this table has two parts. The first is the points from
spinners, and bumpers. The other is the goals each team has scored. The
crowd will react accordingly depending on if the game is won or lost.
Heist
Who says crime doesn't pay? In this game it pays off in some pretty big
points. On this table the word is "jobs". Then you get a call to carry out
a job for the boss for bonus points if you hit the secret letter. You have
about 15 seconds after getting the phone call. If you don't hit the letter
your chance to do that job is gone. The police are doing everything they
can to catch you. Roadblocks have been set up and after a job is completed
they come out in force. If you are brave enough to try a second job while
they search for you the points are worth the risk. Bonus balls every twenty
million points.
Safari Time to hunt for the big game. This jungle like table is full of
danger. Avoid the raging river, or if your ball ends up taking the plunge,
do your best and swim for shore by repeatedly hitting the space bar. A
cougar is on the prowl. If this little kitty comes after you just run using
the shift keys. With the spinner spell out "safari" and go hunting for five
different animals.
Haunted House Every city or town seems to have one. Let's go investigate!
Breaking out the windows, wrecking stuff in the lab, and spelling "grave"
are some of the ways to earn points in this seasonally appropriate table.
The spinners will take you to the graveyard, where you need to knock down as
many tombstones as you can. After leaving the lab you aren't alone in the
house! A monster has been created, and it's roaming around seeking to get
its creator. Behind the letter 'A' is the fireplace, stay away from it
after it's been lit or you'll be burned. Smashing all the windows can put
out the fire, but you might accidentally fall out of one if it's already
broken.
Wild West Enter the tiny town of Silver Dollar. You are a horse thief even
if there are only four horses to be had. If the sheriff finds you he might
give you a chance with a gunfight or just hang you. Visiting the saloon you
might have a relaxing beer, or end up in an all out brawl. Be fast to
defend yourself and throw punches with the shift keys. If it's a little
speed you want then head over to the blacksmith's for a little fire. No
western setting would be complete without a general store. Being a bad guy,
naturally you rob it.
I could go on about this game for quite a while! With the selection of
tables how could anyone get bored of this excellent release from ESP! I
love it! With the possibility of other tables being added the potential is
outstanding! The CD has lots of items of interest on it but, I didn't want
to let it all out of the bag smile I commend James, Keith, and who ever else
might have been involved in bringing this phenomenal game to the community.
I'm hoping [patiently waiting] to see such quality work in the future. I
rate this game a 10 out of 10, great job!!
++
The Windows Golf Game
By Jim Kitchen
reviewed by Graham Pearce
accessible without sighted assistance
available at:
www.simcon.net/jkitchen
Remember in audyssey issue 27, where I was raving about how good Jim's
casino game was? Now, I think I've found a game that rivals the casino. The
windows golf game! It starts with a title theme, then the sound of you
hitting a ball, then something funny happens, which can vary from game to
game. After a prompt asking you if you want special key instructions, you
are given the opportunity to select either a golf course, a practice driving
range or a practice putting green. Both of the practice courses are good,
because they allow you to try at getting a particular distance for the real
golf course. Oh by the way, you also have a choice of 3 golf courses, from
the easy to the devilishly hard.
The game mechanics are very simple. You hear a rising scale of beeps, and
you must press a key when the beeps reach a particular pitch. The higher the
pitch of the beep when you press that key, the more power is in your shot.
On the driving range, there are obstacles hindering your path like a pond
and a lake. It takes a few games to master the subtleties of play, but once
you have, getting that ball into the hole is a breeze!
On a scale of 1 to 10, I rate Jim's golf game a 10 out of 10! I think Jim
has done an excellent job of making it really feel like you're at a golf
course. The game is self-voicing and it's free, so there are no excuses for
not trying it! Of course, unless you're not running windows.
+
Star Mule by Jim Kitchen:
Review by Joshua Loya
Can be played without sighted assistance
Ever wonder what degenerate life will be like in the future? Ever wondered
what it would be like to break intergalactic law? In Star Mule by Jim
Kitchen, you'll get that chance. Fuel her up Cap'in, and let's get us some
good stuff.
A game about selling hashish, bootleg whiskey, heroin, and acid would be
fun enough, but add a little intergalactic travel... now that's the sh**
right there! In Star Mule, you are the captain of a rogue ship traveling
from planet to planet, buying elicit substances for the lowest price
possible, and selling it to the next unlucky sucker who's willing to fork
out top dollar in exchange for the murder of a few hundred more brain cells.
It is recommended that you not be to wasted at the time of your voyage
because you will have to pay attention to whether pot can be bought at a
lower price on a mining planet or a cultural planet. You'll also have to
pay attention to whether brown and clears will sell better on an industrial
or agricultural planet. Don't forget that your crew gets there dibs too;
you have to pay them and still have enough for fuel. And be aware, drug
dealing is still illegal, so you might get your stash confiscated by the
space pigs.
Star Mule runs on DOS, though I've played it with no problem in Windows '98
Second Edition with Jaws for Windows. I'm not very familiar with Window
Eyes, Window Bridge, or any other Windows screen reader, so I don't know how
well they will work with the game. If you are running in DOS, however, any
decent quality DOS screen reader should do the trick.
The game is free and is available for download at the Kitchen's Inc. web
site at:
http://www.simcon.net/jkitchen/
Be sure to check out some of Jim's other free games while you're there; you
will not be disappointed!
+
Editor's note: Although this isn't a formal review, I thought it best to put
it here. Charles does a fine job of describing this accessible slot machine
game from Radio Shack which may be of particular value to travellers in need
of portable amusement.
If you are looking for a battery operated handheld slot machine game that is
accessible, there is one at Radio Shack for around $15. It operates on 1
AAA battery. You can bet from 1 to 5 lines, each line costing you 10
points. Payoffs are 20, 50, 300, 3000 and 6000 and can be differentiated by
the length of time it takes them to be added to your total. You can keep
track of your total any way you like, an abacus, calculator, or in your
head. It starts you off with 500 points. Sighted people can use it with
the sound turned off. If you don't play for a few minutes, it turns itself
off, but retains your current total. You can start a new game with the "new
game" button, but will be reset to 500. Check it out at
www.radioshack.com
or your local store. The battery will last for a very long time. It
doesn't take much power to run.. Have fun!
++
Winfight
Game by Danssoft
Reviewed by Michael Feir
Fully playable without sighted assistance
Available at:
http://members.home.net/danssoft
Dan Zingaro has plunged head first into the Audyssey community. He has sent
me a copy of his first game Winfight. The game requires the use of a
screen-reader in order to read dialogs to the player. Everything else is
entirely sound-based. The concept is an interesting and fairly successful
attempt at making a blind-accessible fighting game. It comes with three
quests, and Mr. Zingaro is planning to make more for it in the near future.
Each quest involves numerous fights with enemies.
The fighting method is quite intuitive and uses tones to indicate when you
are near your opponent. The left and right arrow keys move your character
left and right along a row of squares. The enemy moves along a similar row
of squares. When you are directly facing your enemy, you can use the space
bar to attack. Thus, you have the basics of game play. Bonus advantages may
be gained or purchased for the money which you earn for defeating your
enemies. These include super hits, invisibility, energy, extra strength, and
so-on.
The only serious drawback of the game is that it doesn't work all that well
while a screen-reader is loaded during a fight. Since the game is mostly
about combat, it would, in my opinion, work far better if it were
self-voicing. It was a slight nuisance having to unload and reload the
screen-reader to read dialogs which were there simply to add atmosphere for
the most part.
On the whole, Winfight is a good first attempt from Mr. Zingaro. I look
forward to seeing what games he produces in the future. He is eager to learn
and eager for input. Such readiness to interact with the knowledgeable
Audyssey community will doubtless result in a win-win situation for all
parties. The price of $7 US is quite reasonable for this game.
+++
Answers to Puzzles and Games
1. Naenor fills the five ounce goblet with water from the pool and pours it
into the seven ounce goblet. Again, he fills the five ounce goblet, and
tops up the seven ounce glass, leaving three ounces in the smaller glass.
Naenor then dumps the larger glass, and pours the three ounces from the
smaller glass into the larger one. Again he fills the five ounce glass and
tops up the seven ounce glass, leaving one ounce in the smaller glass. He
walks over to the fire and pours the contents of the glass onto the fire,
immediately extinguishing it. Brik then reaches into the stone basin and
takes the sword.
2. Only Muldred can be believed.
3. Cyprian determines Kellindyl can be believed. Whether or not Trellin
can be believed is not important since Trellin would say he told the truth
regardless of how the spell affected him. What is important is that
Kellindyl reported accurately what Trellin said.
+++
Contacting Us
I can be reached in three ways. The easiest is via my Sympatico E-mail
address.
My e-mail address is as follows:
mikefeir@sympatico.ca
You can also call me via telephone. I have voicemail, so you can leave a
message if you fail to catch me at home and off-line. I'll do my best to
return calls, but won't accept collect calls. My number is as follows:
(905)-814-0608
Alternatively, you may correspond with me on 3.5-inch disks,
provided you be sure to send them in returnable disk-mailers. I don't have
the money to pay for postage. My mailing address is:
5787 Montevideo Road
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
Postal code: L5N 2L5
Adam Taylor, star of Adam, The Immortal Gamer, and our resident ADOM guru,
can be reached three ways. You can send him e-mail at:
blade@ican.net
Or, you can check out his homepage on the web:
Blade's Armoury
http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Arcade/9111
His page is dedicated to providing help, cheats and solutions to many games.
Send him a request, and he'll do his best to find what you need. He also has
sections on ADOM and Nethack available. Also,
you can download the magazine from his page.
Finally, if you wish to contact him at home, his address is: 3082
Bartholomew Crescent
Mississauga, Ontario
Canada L5N 3L1
Jay Pellis is an avid fan of graphical adventures and console games. For
those of you wondering which Sega or Nintendo games are at all enjoyable to
the blind, he's the one to turn to. He can be contacted at:
jalucard@icontech.com
Justin Fegel has resigned his official position as an interactive fiction
staff member. As such, he will be sorely missed. However, Justin plans to
remain active in the Audyssey community. Therefore, those who need guidance
with interactive fiction may still benefit from his experience. He can be
contacted at:
Jfegel@earthlink.net
Kelly Sapergia is our expert in interactive fiction. He is a
well-established reviewer of games for Audyssey, and has an
interest in developing interactive fiction as well as playing it.
He can be contacted at:
k.sapergia@dlcwest.com
James Peach is responsible for maintaining our new official homepage. Your
feedback will help him make our site a better place to be on the Web. He can
be contacted at:
jamespeach@hotmail.com
Randy Hammer conducts an ongoing search for worth-while mainstream games
that can be enjoyed by blind players with sighted assistance. He will also
review commercial games and shareware produced specifically for the blind,
such as that from ESP Softworks, PCS, and eventually, Zform. He can be
contacted at:
RHammer@illuminet.com
Justin Ekis is our new web-based games expert. He will search for and report
on on-line games like Utopia and Archmage. He is also going to keep a close
eye on the re-emerging BBS scene. You can contact him at:
j_ekis@onebox.com
Dave Sherman has become well-known on the Audyssey list and has now joined
the Audyssey staff as our multi-user-dungeon expert. Interest in muds has
popped up again and again in the Audyssey community and elsewhere among the
growing net-savvy blind community. Thanks to Dave's efforts, newcomers will
have another expert to turn to for guidance. Dave will also report on the
various different MUDs out there and steer us to the more blind-friendly
ones. You can contact him at:
drsherm@earthlink.net
David Lant has long been an active member of the Audyssey community. He is
now one of our two moderators keeping things pleasant and orderly on the
Audyssey discussion list. He can be contacted at:
DLant@btinternet.com
