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Audyssey Issue 52
Audyssey;
Games Accessible to the Blind
Issue : 52 3rd 2007
Edited by Ron Schamerhorn
Fun, Friendship, Knowledge, Charity
+++
Welcome
Welcome to the 50th 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.
In this publication I've attempted to pack in a whole bunch of great
information about gaming and the ongoing developments that are taking place.
Notenavigation 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.
+++
Contents:
Welcome
>From The Editor
Letters
RTFM online help for accessible games
Video games' new frontier: -
Accessible Multiplatform Games?
Phil's Funnies
Chatting with Creators
Are role playing games changing the way we view gaming?
News From Game Developers
Game Announcements and Reviews
Contacting Us
Distribution Information and Submission Policies
+++
>From the Editor
Firstly let me wish aHappy Holidays to one and all. I hope this seson
allows time with friends, family and wonderful times.
This issue of the magazine does have some great information. I feel the
letters section is above average with some links to various articles about
accessible gaming which provide a good read. The articles number about
three this time which discuss various points involved with gaming. The
developer has a number of recent releases aand updates. Lastly the Chatting
with creators section is in this issue, this time with Mathew of the online
game Sryth.
Also I wish everyone the best of the season, I'm going to try and keep
warm here in Canada, and Enjoy this issue of Audyysey!
+++
Letters
In this section the content is taken from the list primarily, but may also
include something I receive directly. Generally these are of course game
related, but perhaps not a review or announcement as such. Sometimes it
might just be someone's thought's about a game or genre of game. I hope
these prove interesting and informative.
++
Folks,
In my humble opinion, the blind community isn't notably different from any
other collective re entitlement attitudes,
or, for that matter, proportion of lazy thinkers, or people who behave
unwisely.
People are just people: good and less good.
As for how this affects our sales:
Most computer games end up in the bargain bin and lose money.
Most computer companies lose money.
Even EA posts losses some quarters.
Games are not as essential to potential customers as groceries.
We do it because it's fun, same as actors.
If you want to make money doing software, build financial systems.
Been there, done that, ugh!
If you want more sales, suggest you let additional markets know of your
games.
Try the Family Friendly market. Except for some of Jim's racier stuff.
Try the Seniors market. Old folks got tired eyes.
Try the Female Gamers market. You might be surprised.
Maybe even the Educational market, like VIP games does.
The Casual Games market is really competitive, but the latest issue of
Inside Gamesutra has an excellent review of that
market
http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=15955.
There's opportunities in other disabilities markets too.
Richard's Game Accessibility Project has some great pointers.
Then there are 7 large English speaking countries besides ours.
Look where Azabat and Bavisoft are on the Web.
From what I've seen these past few months,
this is a knowledgeable bunch of people who are passionate about what they
do.
Let's have some fun.
John Bannick
CTO
7-128 Software
++
Hi all,
Here's a fun article I found in today's Guardian from the UK, reliving those
wonderful sport's games, just sort of choosing the best 1980's ones.
Enjoy
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/sport/2007/11/02/joy_of_six_retro_sports_games.html
++
You mentioned "...true 3D environments are almost impossible to relate to
in an audio only format."
If you haven't seen it yet, check out the article "Playing by Ear: Creating
Blind-Accessible Games",
GamaSutra, May 20, 2002, by Gavin Andresen. It's at
www.gamasutra.com/resource_guide/20020520/andersen_pfv.htm.
He's got some specific techniques that could be coded.
Not that true 3D is easy at all, even with some good techniques.
John
++
Hi all,
I'd like to mention a problem which I think we as audio and blind gamers
should really take seriously and somehow solve. The problem is this: we must
have
some sort of central site which houses abandonware of our games. This is,
not just so that we can access them later if we need to, but also because I
think
it's a real pity that if so much effort has been put into developing an
audio game, we should be able to play it if the developer abandons the
project
or closes the site down. I'm talking about many games here, The Blind Eye,
Tarzan Junior, The Savage Gambit, Shell Shock, PCS DOS stuff, all sorts of
these games really can't be found easily if at all.
I know that people could say that people should have backed up files when
downloading, but, take my case, for example, where the problem is that
a few years ago when I was downloading them, flash sticks weren't that
cheap, and my old laptop didn't have any sort of CD writer. I only backed up
what
could fit on a wonderful floppy disk, and my new computer now doesn't have
a drive for them! And what will happen if more audio game developers who
made a game decide to close down? Just a bit
of advice here, back up all your game files you have, as you never know if,
for example, a company like Spoonbill or UA Games, or anyone for that matter
can't, or decide to abandon distribution of their games entirely. We have
now got much more choice when it comes to gaming, but I still don't think
that that allows us to forget or ignore the older stuff.
Ari
+++
RTFM: Online Help for Accessible Games
By John Bannick
As developers, a big frustration is that players don't read our online help,
yet they complain when they don't know what to do next. This is the reality.
Here's how we can deal with it, based on observations from our group's
playtesting.
Part 1. Types of Help:
All of help can be divided into the following categories:
1. The Help button and F1 key
2. Faceplate Help
3. Stealth Help
4. Help Prompts
5. Frequently Asked Questions
6. Tutorials
1. The Help Button and F1 Key:
Players expect a Help button and / or to get help from the F1 key. Our
playtesting reveals that no one uses either, ever, at all. So much for all
that work. When asked, playtesters say that their experience with other
software is that online help is useless. My experience with commercial
software development
is that the folks who write online help are given neither the time nor the
information necessary to do a decent job. This isn't likely to change.
Therefore, we can expect our players to continue to ignore the Help button
and F1 Help.
We still use the F1 key because that's what user's expect, though we still
don't see playtesters using it. However, when we renamed our Help button the
"How To" button, we saw playtesters use it.
2. Faceplate Help:
Faceplate help is a block of text displayed as part of the panel itself. It
doesn't require any action on the player's part in order to be displayed. It's
a separate block of text; not a label to a control. It tells the player what
to do next or explains the current panel.
The problems with faceplate help are:
1. Limited real-estate in a graphical user interface
2. Context ambiguity in an audio user interface
3. Information overload in either after the first time it's displayed
Still, if used judiciously, faceplate help can be useful.
3. Stealth Help:
Stealth help is what we call help that pops up the first time, and only the
first time, a player starts to play a game. It's part of the main panel, not
a separate dialog box. It is not labeled as "Help."
Stealth help tells the player what the objective of the game is and gives
simple 1, 2, 3 instructions for how to play the game.
We observe playtesters actually reading Stealth Help.
4. Help Prompts:
Players get into a game and then ask, "What do I do next?" Well, they could
press the F1 key or select the Help button. But they don't.
We use a timer to detect how long it's been since the player used the
keyboard or mouse. After 60 seconds, a dialog appears that suggests the
next thing
the player might do.
This suggestion is not specific to the content of the game; for instance:
"Ask Cecil why he was playing tennis instead of attending the ball with his
parents."
Rather we suggest: "To ask the next question, press the letter A key."
The dialog contains a checkbox that tells the program not to display any
more help prompts. This is similar to commercial file download dialogs that
say
"Close this dialog automatically after the file is downloaded."
We've observed playtesters read and use these help prompts.
BTW. We call our help prompts, "The Idle Twit", as in: when you are idle, it
twits you.
5. Frequently Asked Questions:
The format of FAQ help is to have an index at the top and the indexed
questions and answers below.
Computer users are familiar with FAQs on Web sites. Our Web statistics
indicate that people read ours.
We use the FAQ format for our "How To" help pages. We've observed
playtesters use them. The suspicion here is that the format itself breaks
the player from
their prejudice against traditional help and stimulates their prejudice in
favor of FAQs.
6. Tutorials:
We don't use them. Our objective is to make simple games that are so
intuitive that tutorials are unnecessary.
Still, some excellent games have lots of features and options just as part
of the game.
Our reading of the various gaming forums indicates that players want
tutorials for those types of games.
Part 2. Accessibility Issues:
The three things our group focuses on are:
a. Bandwidth
b. Context
c. Linearity
Even with speech speeded up, it takes longer to hear online help than it
does to read it. With Braille output this is even more the case. So help
that
is going to be spoken needs to be less verbose and have some sort of indexed
access such as the use of headers. We try to be sensitive to bandwidth.
It's important to players who are either blind or sighted that they not lose
the context of where they are. Help content needs to relate specifically to
where the player is in a game. Players who are blind need to have a way to
know that they are in a help dialog and not in the game itself. We include
specific
text to that effect in our "Idle Twit" dialog.
Linearity is the same issue in games as for Web pages. Audio or Braille
output is linear; reading is not. Accessible online help must include some
kind
of indexing for direct access. FAQs are how we do that.
Part 3. General Techniques:
1. Progressive Revelation:
Good business correspondence and news articles are built on a pyramid. Start
with the specific point you're trying to make. Follow that with the details.
Good online help uses the same technique. This makes it less likely that the
player will bail out because they can't immediately find what they want. It
also makes it easier for the player to exit after they have found what they
want.
2. Repetition
Homer (the Greek poet, not Simpson) used repeated phrases to make the Illiad
and the Odyssey more entertaining and understandable. Using consistent
phrasing,
format, and organization throughout our online help has the same benefits.
The player knows where to find things and what to expect when they get
there.
2. Verbosity Management:
A novice player needs information that an experienced player finds boring.
Our use of Stealth Help and The Idle Twit is how we address this. Another
method is to have a verbosity setting in a game's control panel.
4. Information Filtering
A specific category of player may need information content that other
players don't need. This help can be grouped separately so it's easy to find
and the
player doesn't have to wade through irrelevant text.
We use the F2 key to present online help that is filtered and organized
specifically for players who are blind or visually impaired.
We've observed our blind and visually impaired playtesters use this F2 help.
Final Words:
The best help is presenting a simple, intuitive user interface that requires
a minimum of online help. The practical takeaway for game developers is to
put our limited time into simplifying our user interfaces rather than using
online help as a bandaid.
+++
Video games' new frontier: The visually impaired -
sent in by Phil Vlasik
I think this article is important enough for the blind community to post it
in full:
Video games' new frontier: The visually impaired -
from CNN.com
By Steve Mollman
September 4, 2007
. Story Highlights
. New interactive music video game developed for visually impaired
. Nintendo Wii's Wiimote controller or keyboard used to play
. Developers hope game will also be played online by mainstream players
Forget shoot-em-up addicts -- video games are reaching out to the rest of
us.
The greatest symbol of this is the Wii console from Nintendo. Its innovative
wireless control -- the Wiimote -- has even non-gamers excited as they swing
it through the air to control, say, a tennis racket on the screen.
Wii's Wiimote may play a pivotal role in bringing the visually impaired into
the electronic gaming fold.
But not quite everyone has been reached. One group is still largely ignored
by video game makers: the blind.
With that in mind, a team of researchers at the Singapore-MIT GAMBIT Game
Lab in Massachusetts set out this summer to make a music-based video game
that's designed for mainstream players and also accessible to the blind.
Appropriately, perhaps, they incorporated the Wiimote into the game-play,
though it's optional.
The resulting DJ game, designed for the PC, is called AudiOdyssey. In it,
players try to lay down different tracks in a song by swinging and waving
the Wiimote in time with the beats. Or they can just use keyboard controls.
The game reminded this writer of my lack of any rhythm whatsoever. I used
the keyboard version, where you're instructed to follow the beat by hitting
an arrow key. Miss a beat and you get an ugly sound. Things sounded pretty
ugly. But I did start to get a little better after 15 minutes and was
awarded occasionally by crowd cheers. It's a fun game. And I got a kick out
of it.
So did 41-year-old Alicia Verlager. For her, though, the fun is a bit more
significant. She's visually impaired.
"Play is one of the ways in which people build relationships," she notes.
"It's fun to take on the challenge of a game and take turns encouraging and
Laughing at each other's sillier mistakes. That's the experience I am really
craving in a game -- the social aspects."
AudiOdyssey is presently single-player only, and there's no scoring system.
But a multiplayer online version will be released in a few months.
Intriguingly, players in this version won't necessarily know whether their
opponent is blind -- and it won't make a difference in the game.
"Ideally, they shouldn't even know that it is designed with the visually
impaired in mind, since we want to make a 'mainstream' game," says Eitan
Glinert, a 25-year-old grad student at GAMBIT and the lead researcher on
AudiOdyssey, which is his thesis.
That said, "after they find out that the game is designed to be accessible,
it increases awareness," he adds.
Though using the Wiimote isn't necessary, Glinert believes it's a more fun
and expressive option. From a development standpoint, getting the Wiimote to
work with a PC game (it's meant to be used only with Nintendo's Wii) was a
considerable engineering challenge.
And players who want to use the device will have to do a little extra work,
as well, including linking a Wiimote to a PC wirelessly via Bluetooth signal
(instructions on how to do this are included with the game).
Verlager believes AudiOdyssey's use of the Wiimote makes it unique among
accessible games. It's also, as far as she knows, the first accessible music
game for blind players. A startup called All inPlay offers online games,
including poker, designed to allow play between blind and sighted users.
For Verlager, it's important that games be mainstream and inclusive --
rather than "special" and for blind players.
"I really get frustrated with the way blind people are portrayed as if they
live in isolation from the rest of the world and have no sighted family or
friends," she says.
Media, which includes video games, "is something people share and
participate in together, a way of building relationships and exploring
feelings and attitudes about real life," she says.
For now, AudiOdyssey is an "early concept prototype," says Glinert. But
"ultimately, we'd love to bring the game to consoles," he adds. "If we get
the chance we'll definitely move quickly on that."
The current version of AudiOdyssey is available for free at the GAMBIT Game
Lab Web site.
http://gambit.mit.edu/loadgame/
Here is the game direct download link:
http://gambit.mit.edu/loadgame/summer2007/AudiOdysseyinstall.exe
It is 120 MB in size.
+++
Accessible Multiplatform Games?
By Thomas Ward
For many years accessible software such as games, screen readers, OCR
software, screen magnification, etc was primarily designed for the
Microsoft Dos and Windows platforms. It was rare a developer wrote
something accessible for a computer running Mac OS or Linux. However,
since the passage of Section 508 allot of companies including those who
target Mac and Linux operating systems have been developing more
accessible software for the blind as well as other handicaps. For
example, the Mac Cocoa API allows a developer to provide almost instant
accessibility out of the box. The GTK+ 2.0 API does rather the same
thing for FreeBSD, Solaris, and Linux based operating systems. Now, that
these operating systems have become more blind user friendly more and
more blind computer users are experimenting and even switching to
non-Windows based platforms. However, accessible gaming for these
platforms is still lacking.
Fortunately, for accessible game developers there are some very good
programming languages available which directly targets the specific and
often sticky issue of how to write a program that will support Windows,
Mac, Linux, Solaris, all at the same time. Two of these languages are
Python and Java. Both are generally platform independent languages and
can be designed to support a wide array of operating systems and cross
platform APIs.
Perhaps one of the easiest multiplatform programming languages to learn
and use is Python. It is an extremely powerful programming language that
has very clear, readable syntax,, strong introspection capabilities,,
intuitive object orientation,, natural expression of procedural code,,
full modularity, hierarchical packages,, exception-based error
handling,, very high level dynamic data types,, extensive standard
libraries and third party modules for virtually every task,, extensions
and modules easily written in C, C++, Java, or .NET languages.
Python can easily integrate with COM,, .NET,, and CORBA applications.
Basically, you can say, "it's in there."
Recently the Python programming language has had some growing support in
the accessible development community. For example, the NVDA screen
reader for Windows, the Orca Screen Reader for Linux, and the Sound RTS
game have all been written in Python. Which only proves that the
language is well suited for development of accessible games and products.
Another very popular multiplatform language is Java designed by Sun
Microsystems. Unlike most programming languages it was designed by Sun
specifically to address the issue of running the same application on
multiple operating systems without creating a new version of the program
for each operating system. Java is easier than C++ to learn, is fully
object oriented, and since version 1.4.2 has shipped with platform
independent libraries specifically designed for Java based gaming. Java
has been growing in support among mainstream game developers in such new
Java based titles including: Madden NFL 2008, Metal of Honor, Turbo 21,
MVP Baseball 2007, as well as a variety of card and board games. Java
has proven to be well suited for games, and can be used to create
multiplatform games. Not just for computers, but for some mobile phones
as well.
Currently, USA Games Interactive is considering the possibility of
switching to a platform independent language sometime in 2008. It is
uncertain which language we will use for our development, but recent
thoughts are that the next release of STFC, STFC 2.0, will be developed
in a platform independent language like Java or Python. No final
decisions have been reached about STFC 2 and the programming language
the engine will be designed in, but it is certain we look forward to
expanding into other operating system markets beyond Windows.
At USA Games your input is very important to us. if you have an interest
in seeing multiplatform based games write me at:
tward@usagames.us
and we will consider your opinions, suggestions, and thoughts about
multiplatform games.
+++
Games we'd like to play,
by Phil Vlasak,
Dumbledore and the Castle of Witchcraft and Wizardry
Phil jumping at the news that Dumbledore was gay, slows the voice of Sarah
down and creates a new game...
There is an intruder in the most famous Wizard castle in the land.
Late in the evening of July seven, a young female was spotted entering
Hogwwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
"She looked to be about eighteen." reported the Caretaker Filch to the
headmaster.
Dumbledore did not want to stop his great bowling game but realized that
the
girl might get into trouble.
Dumbledore knew if Filch got his hands on her, he would string her up by
the ankles in his office.
And while Albus often enjoyed an evening hanging up-side-down, he did not
think the girl would appreciate it. So Dumbledore put down his bowling
ball and strode over to his desk, and under a copy of Magical knitting
patterns magazine, picked up his Death Stick to confront the intruder.
The Castle of Witchcraft and Wizardry game transports Albus and you into a
world of fantasy filled with secret passageways and hidden chambers. He
explores the castle searching for the girl while cleaning up the loose
magical items, confronting the creepy creatures knowing at any minute,
disaster may strike and his current lover might decide to leave the bowling
alley.
So, take a trip with Albus to Hogwwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry
and pay a visit to the ghost's Deathday party in the dungeon,
pop into the kitchen for a chat with the sometimes sexy House-Elf Dobby,
walk down to Hogsmeade for a spot of Firewhisky in the Hog's Head,
try to calm down the cranky caretaker and his maniacal obsessions, ,
pick up plenty of coins to buy sweets at the sweet shop, ,
and finally, hold on tight as you fly on a broom trying to catch the
illusive teenage girl.
+++
Chatting With Creators
This section as the title infers is exactly that. An informal question
and answer with one of the game developers. The focus isn't only on the
game, but also to find out more about the person or people who create the
games we all enjoy playing! This time the chat is with Mathew Yarrows, who
many know as the man behind the popular online RPG of Sryth: The Age of
Igtheon. I hope everyone enjoys reading the interview below.
Ron: All right, I think to begin we'll start with some background info about
yourself. so how about just general info about you? We'll get into gaming
shortly.
Mathew's answer: As most players know, my name is Matthew Yarrows, and I'm
the
owner, designer, writer, and gamemaster for Sryth: The Age of Igtheon. I'm
a computer hobbyist and an avid writer. I'm in my early 30s (yes let's
stress EARLY, hehe), married to the love of my life, Stacia, and the father
of an ever-inspiring 4 and a half year old daughter named Emma, whose lively
and imaginative play never ceases to produce ideas for the game -- she is to
blame for the Catamaroks, the Destroyer Crab (from the fifth Proving
Grounds),
and the Troll-Bont (all long stories!).
I live in northern Connecticut and do nearly all of the Sryth development
and writing on my trusty IBM Thinkpad, running Fedora Linux.
Ron: Next what was your first gaming experience the title, system
etc? Computer or console styles you've played over the years? Favourite
titles and so on.
Mathew's answer: My first computer gaming experience were two text
adventures on
the Tandy Color Computer: Raaka-Tu and Pyrmaid 2000 (for those who may
remember them). After that I played Dungeons of Daggorath (still on the
Tandy Color Computer) until the game brought about the ruin of my
spacebar! I thank my parents for getting the computer (the Tandy Color
Computer)
as it was my introduction to computers and the start of what has been a
lifelong
love of computer games! I was also an avid gamer on the Commodore Amiga in
the late 1980s and
enjoyed games like the Bard's Tale series. One game that I played
extensively on the Amiga that probably directly and indirectly influenced
the design of Sryth, was Beyond Zork. It took the standard text adventure
game and added some great
role-playing elements to it. I'm not sure if Beyond Zork is still available
anywhere, but if you can find it, it's definitely worth spending some time
with!
I haven't played many of the more recent computer games, with the exception
of Diablo I and Diablo II which I thought were both great fun.
Ron: What was your initial reaction when you found out your game was
accessible
to blind and visually impaired players?
Mathew's answer: I had not set out to make Sryth an accessible game, but I
was surprised and delighted to learn that by its text-based nature and some
accidents of design it was accessible to blind and visually-impaired gamers.
I created Sryth as a text-based game because those are the sorts of games I
would enjoy playing, so the fact that it's accessible to all players is
great and I'll make sure it stays that way.
Ron: Did you have to change the code for Sryth or did it work from the
beginning for blind/vi players?
Mathew's answer: It worked from the beginning for all players, so just by an
accident of design it was accessible. I've made a few changes to some
different things in the game after receiving player suggestions regarding
accessibility, but they have all been fairly small changes.
Ron: A question from AC
"I don't know how others feel about this suggestion, but I think it may be
manageable and maybe even beneficial to game play.
What about selling kepbekk leaves or kepbekk elixirs for either gold and/or
adventure tokens?
Besides, maybe Mathew could put a limit on the amount of kepbekk leaves
and/or elixirs you can buy.
Most importantly, what does Mathew think? smile"
Mathew's answer: I've received this suggestion quite a bit from players and
have it on my list for things to implement in the near future. As the player
has
suggested, there would likely be a limit to how many healing elixirs and/or
leaves a player could acquire within a given timeframe.
Ron: During combat, if you obtain a MR bonus which says something like
You execute a stroke worthy of your Master level of mastery in Weaponry:
> Slashing...
> @ +36 MR for this round.
> Why is it regardless of how much your mr increases the damage on your
> enemy
> doesn't go up accordingly? I'll hit an extra 2 or 3 points if I roll and
> get 11 or 27.
Mathew's answer: The damage you do against your opponent depends on the
number
you roll, as compared with the difference between your Melee Rating and
that of your enemy. There is a cap to the difference between the two
Melee Ratings, so it's very possible that a large increase in your Melee
Rating may not provide a similarly large increase in damage done to your
opponent, and in some cases it may not provide any increase in damage at
all (if you already had a Melee Rating much higher than your opponent's,
etc.)
Ron: How long has Sryth been around?
Mathew's answer: The first beta for Sryth was launched in late 2002 and the
game was officially live in the summer of 2003. The game didn't truly enter
into
its current version until late 2004.
Ron: For nestalgia sake, what was Sryth like in the early days?
Mathew's answer: The first few versions of Sryth were quite a bit different
in appearance and other aspects than what the game is like today. Combat had
fewer
options and the game mechanics did not work as smoothly as they do now.
Since those early days things have become more streamlined, giving the
game a more recognizable look and feel throughout.
Ron: Anything further on what got you interested in developing a text
rpg?
Mathew's answer: My friends and I played Dungeons and Dragons for a handful
of years, and I always (willingly) took on the role of the GM, since I
enjoyed coming up with adventure scenarios more than I liked playing. In
those tabletop
RPGs there aren't really any visual aids, so you have to paint the
pictures of what's going on in your own imagination -- which seems to
work out for the best, since everyone is allowed to imagine it in their
own way.
I wanted to create a game that attempted to capture the spirit of
tabletop RPGs like Dungeons and Dragons, etc., where players were
presented with written/verbal descriptions of what was going on and
could then imagine/visualize it any way they saw fit. That's what I had
always liked about other text adventure games I had played on computers.
Ron: I'm asking this out of complete curiosity. Could you list the best
of
the currently available weapons/armour? Are they findable or is it Tallys?
Mathew's answer: Probably the best weapons and armour currently in the game
are available at Tallys's, and would include the Dragongem collection. Some
items,
however, not available at Tallys, are very powerful as well and would
include things like the Runeskin items, the Shimmering Silver weapons,
and Iakor's items (also part of the Runeskin scenario).
An upcoming scenario will of course feature the chance for characters to
acquire the fabled Sword of Merzekk, which will be a very unique and
powerful weapon.
Ron: Off hand how many of the Sryth adventurer's Guild and those with free
accounts are blind/vi? If you would know that is.
Mathew's answer: I would have to guess at the number as I have no way of
truly knowing, but offhand I would say that perhaps 10 to 15 percent of the
players are blind/visually-impaired. I could be way off on that guess, but
that's the best I can estimate as I have no way to really track that.
Ron: from Mongwen
"A lot of the newer weapons have special attacks, and if you're lucky, they
can be nasty. I've seen signatures on the sryth forum with weapons doing
better than a hundred points in damage. My experience, however, is that
they most often seem to do only a couple points of damage, when the enemy's
special attacks are nearly guaranteed to be 8, 10, 15, 20, or better. Also,
you're right that the special attacks in our weapons don't happen often,
especially when compared to the enemy's attack. The enemy's attack is
guaranteed to happen at least once during a fight. Our weapons never seem
to go off when actually needed."
An interesting point. How does that get calculated?
Mathew's answer: Weapons that have special attacks have a small chance
during each round of combat to execute that special attack. Some weapons
only have a small range of damage they can do per special attack, while
others have a chance to do several different levels of damage. When the
weapon executes its special attack, the system then determines (if
necessary) what level that attack is. The chance of the weapon executing its
highest level attack (those are the ones that undoubtedly spawned the forum
signatures you mentioned) are quite rare. If you use a particular weapon all
the time, you will eventually see its entire range of special attacks.
Enemy special attacks have undergone certain revisions since they were first
introduced. They were added to bring more balance to combat, as the combat
system gives the advantage
to the player's character by design. For example, rolls of 1 or 2 during
combat have a good chance of being rerolled automatically by the system (you
won't even know you rolled a 1 or a 2 when it happens). The chance for the
reroll is increased if your character
has a high luck score. The last revision of the enemy special attacks made
it so that if you roll equal to or higher than the number you need against
your enemy, your enemy's chance of executing any special attacks they may
have is greatly reduced. In most cases a successful combat roll will
completely remove the chance for an enemy to unleash a special attack.
Ron: I'm curious as to how you manage to keep coming up with the excellent
storylines for things such as the Proving Grounds Silver Crest and
Solundor's Grand Ring of Illusion? Just to mention a couple.
Mathew's answer: I try to come up with adventures that I would enjoy playing
as a gamer. Many adventures/storylines start out as just a phrase I jot down
while I'm working on other parts of the game. My wife, Stacia, comes up with
many of the adventure ideas, usually in the form of short synopses which I
then revise, expand, and make ready for play.
Ron: from list member Casey
"I would like to know if it will ever be possible to fight other AG members
in a turn by turn fight?"
Mathew's answer: Yes, it's possible that we will see players have the
ability to challenge other players in turn-by-turn fights at some point in
the future. Such scenarios won't impact characters in any way, although
wins/losses may be recorded for bragging rights of course.
Ron: What factors decided in having Sryth become a full-time undertaking?
Mathew's answer: What really motivated the decision to take on Sryth
full-time was the positive response I received from players regarding the
game. I knew that to give the players the game they deserved (and the game I
wanted to produce) working on Sryth needed to become a full-time effort.
And, I enjoy creating the game immensely, so the thought of being able to
pursue it full-time was a great motivator!
Ron: this one being asked by Darren
"I would really like to know when the text version of the map will be
available for us to make use of? Because I find myself getting rather lost
if I want to get anywhere and it's most frustrating."
Mathew's answer: The text version of the map is on the list of things that
will be added in the very near future. It will be a text version of the
graphical map of the Kingdom of Tysa (the game's official map), and will be
broken down into the nine sectors that make up the realm. There will be an
overall description of the map, as well as a detailed description of each of
the nine sectors. The text description will flow from point to point on
whatever portion of the map it is focused on and will describe in what
direction
its moving to reach the next point -- it will be a narrative/descriptive
version of the map.
Ron: Lisa would like to know
"Is there any way to cut-down on the number of frames? Especially the ones
between the main and the fight frame?"
Mathew's answer: The number of frames in the game is something that will
hopefully be addressed in an update not too, too far down the road. I would
like to cut down on the number of frames and to also improve the performance
of the combat screen.
Ron: Is there anything coming up for Sryth you could give us a hint at?
Mathew's answer: As I write this, I'm preparing the final scenarios in the
current Proving Grounds event for play. Upon the completion of the fifth
Proving Grounds event, the focus will be on adventures and new places to
explore in the Kingdom of Tysa. Two areas that are
in the works include the Forest of Fogbough and the Saarngard Isle. The
Adventurer Collective will also be expanded, and will include the ability to
acquire and train familiars, which are pets that are magically bound to
their owners. Familiars will be able to aid their owners in combat and
perhaps other game situations.
Ron:I'd like to again extend my gratitude to you for taking time out to lend
a
hand with this, and answer questions that myself and others are wondering
about one very fun, challenging, and great game. All the best to you and
long live Sryth!
Mathew's answer: Thanks for taking the time to read my answers! I thank all
the Sryth players for their support, kind and encouraging words. I'm happy
to be able to bring the game to everyone!
+++
Are Roll Playing Games
Changing The Way We View Gaming
By Thomas Ward
Since the beginning of oral and written human history the art of story
telling has instructed, inspired, and inflamed the imagination of
humankind for centuries. Many of these stories still remain to this day
as old fables, myths, and legends. Such classic works as Homers'
Odyssey, Virgils' Aeneid, or Dantes' Inferno remain today as great works
of story telling and writing. They have lasted for centuries, and will
continue for centuries to come.
Story telling remains a fixation, a need, a desire for humankind for
many reasons. On one level it allows the reader to follow the heroes
quest with the fictional hero through countless adventures. We rejoice
when the fictional hero succeeds and feel genuine sorrow and perhaps
anger when the hero fails or even dies. On another level the story is
not about the heroes at all, but a quest for self discovery in the world
of imagination.
Most of all stories are a way for us to communicate our deepest fears,
thoughts and feelings disguised as characters, people, places and
things.. John Milton, in his work Paradise Lost, describes hell a
completely different way from the way we think of hell, and his version
of Satan takes on the persona of a fallen hero, a rebel, a character
humankind can easily identify with. Identifying with the character or
characters is essentially the point of writing or telling a well crafted
story.
Roll playing games have taken the art of story telling to a completely
new level. Unlike normal games where you go around the board collecting
money, blast flying saucers out of the sky with lasers blazing, play
cards, etc roll playing games allow the gamer to become an active part
in the story. Not only is the gamer a player but he or she also decides
how the story turns out based on several decisions made before, during and
after
the game gets started.
Any good roll playing game weather it is a classic paper and pen style
rpg or a computer based rpg allows for the creation of the player's
character. In a Dungeons and Dragons type rpg the player can select
class, race, and special skills for his or her character. Depending on
what was picked his or her character might end up having special magic
skills, special weapon skills, various other special skills, that will
aid him or her in completing the adventure. In team play several
different characters may provide an interesting array of unique
characters and skills with each character playing an important roll in
the game play.
For example, your party of characters may have just successfully
navigated through the black swamp, and have arrived at the tomb of the
undead where vast treasures await you and your party inside. Problem is
the lever that opens the stone door is behind a pile of rubble. Perhaps
there is a narrow space where a small person could get in and pull the
lever. It just happens one in your party is a dwarf and he can crawl in
between the rubble and the lever and pull it. Alternatively there is a
mage in your party who can change into some small creature to get inside
and pull that lever or levitate the rubble away. Either way it turns out
you find yourself playing as a team, and experiencing the adventure
together.
What I personally find satisfying in a really good roll playing game is
the character creation. Not only do you get to roll for stats such as
combat, stamina, ora, spirit, etc but you can design from scratch who
your character is and who they are in the game world. Perhaps you are a
powerful mage who is the high priest of the kingdom of Elron, a dwarf
warrior from Iron Mountain, a boarder ranger from the town of Blackwood,
etc. Adding a character's place to live, work, and other background
information allows the gamer to become closely attached to the character
and the story on a deeply personal level. Allot of your thoughts,
feelings, moral up bringing, etc will shape your game character and be
projected into the shared game experience.
For example, you and your party were walking down a lonely dirt road
when you and your party come across a group of bandits attacking a wagon
full of men and women. You and your party decide to jump in and defend
the wagon. The moral game player who dislikes killing in real life may
choose to knock out his bandit opponents, tie them up, and take them to
the nearest town for the authorities to take care of. The aggressive
gamer may choose to draw his or her sword and kill every bandit. The
more calculating gamer may kill many bandits, keep one alive, to
question to find out who was in charge of the robbery and why they were
interested in that wagon. Which would result in information the moral
and aggressive character missed.
If interactive story telling, roll playing games, have so dramatically
changed the way we think of story telling imagine how much it has
effected the way we see gaming. In traditional games side-scrollers,
first person shooters, etc all players begin at the same starting point
and end at the same ending point. The storyline, if the game has one,
unfolds for the gamers at a predictable and linear rate for everyone.
Roll playing games completely redefine the way games unfold and are
fluid rather than linear.
For example, a gamer playing an electronic roll playing game may choose
to under take the Dragon's Hollow adventure before taking on the Black
Forest adventure etc. The story unfolds at the gamers choice, and by
doing so each game will turn out different.
In addition character combat status, stamina, etc isn't as fixed as is
in typical games. In a typical game such as Shades of Doom you begin
with a rather generic character who over the course of the game collects
better weapons and armor, but the game does not offer a wider range of
choices. In a roll playing game a character might begin with poor armor
and weapons, but over the course of his or her adventures may buy,
steel, or win different classes of armor. It is possible, for example,
to have a poor piece of armor but come into possession of a well crafted
piece of armor without having to up grade through the poor, common,
sturdy, well crafted linear progression of upgrades.
One major bridge between good roll playing games and popular stories is
the quest for magical and powerful weapons which will improve your
characters stats. For example, in the tales of King Arthur Merlin placed
the sword, Excalibur, in a stone that only Arthur could pull out. In the
latest Harry Potter book, the Deathly Hallows, the plot spent allot of
time searching for the legendary Elder Wand. As with Arthur or Harry
Potter the quest for special items is all part of the fun of under
taking the imaginary adventure. Being able to use those special items
in future adventures is even more fun.
As a result of the popularity of roll playing based games video game
companies have began producing complex and interesting roll playing
games. In the late 1980's Nintendo Entertainment introduced to the NES
platform a roll playing style game called the Legend of Zelda. While not
as complex as paper and pen roll playing games it had huge success and I
found it a very fun and interesting game to play. As time went on more
and more computer based roll playing games like Heroes Might and Magic,
Final Fantasy, etc became available and prove that roll playing games
could be the most successful style of gaming yet. It is doubtful
traditional arcade, first person shooters, strategy based games will
disappear, but I do think roll playing games will continue to grow and
become a very important way to play games. With the creation of the
internet it is now possible for hundreds of eager gamers to create
characters and battle it out over electronic battle fields, and take
group quests through virtual game worlds complete with sights, sounds,
and virtual reality. undoubtedly roll playing games have a bright and
interesting future.
+++
News from Developers
++
News from 7-128
The 7-128 Software Game Book
The Engine
. The Game Book program is the ENGINE that runs all of our games.
. The Game Book allows all our games to work with the same controls.
. The Game Book makes our Easy button, BigType, High Contrast, JAWS,
self-voicing, and other accessibility features available for all games.
. The Game Book comes initially with FOUR games.
. The Game Book will store up to 100 of our games.
The Games:
Inspector Cyndi in Newport - Mysteries
Newport, Rhode Island in the 1890's is the summer home to the Astors,
Vanderbilts, and Morgans, the Worthingtons, Statelys, and the Huffingtons.
You are a Newport Police Detective. Travel around Newport questioning
witnesses. Inspector Cyndi is a world renowned detective on loan from the
Vienna Metropolitan Police, here to help you solve the mysteries!
The six currently available Inspector Cyndi in Newport games include:
Death Nell
Nell Langtree, the Worthington's Upstairs Maid has been found dead in the
Worthington library. There is no obvious cause, but Constable Duffy suspects
foul play!
Ten suspects. Was it Townsend the butler? Was it O'Brien, the Worthington
horse trainer with radical leanings? Was it a Worthington?
Lights Out
Muffy Huffington's engagement ring has been stolen, right off her finger.
What will her fiance, Royal Tarkington, do if it is not recovered? Was it
taken by one of the young ladies who were sitting with Muffy when the new
electric lights went out? Was it one of the servants? Where did it go?
When Irish Spies are Smiling
The submarine Holland 5 has vanished from the Newport Torpedo Station dock.
Have those Fenians have struck again?
Who was on that dock on the night of the twenty-third? Why did the Watch
hear singing? Where were Father MacNamara's parishioners on Sunday?
Fall from Grace
Helen Grace Stately has vanished from the steamship Plymouth, just as it
arrived in Newport from New York. A note has been found. Has Helen Grace
been abducted by Irish nationalists? Could that handsome First Mate have
gone a bit overboard? Or is her suitor, Freddy Foxworthy involved?
Unfinished Symphony
Mrs. Worthington's toy symphony was going along splendidly until the trumpet
player keeled over into the potted palm. Constable Duffy suspects foul play!
Was it Miss Alice Chalmers, the French teacher? Or one of the unhappy hired
musicians. Was it the Grafin Josepha von Vogelhuber? And just what is a
Graphin,
anyway?
Puzzle and Word Games
There are four accessible puzzle and word games available now:
Kim's Game
In Rudyard Kipling's book, Kim, a boy was challenged to memorize a set of
objects, and then to pick those objects out of a larger set of objects.
Kim's Game challenges your memory.
There are ten levels, each with an increasing number of objects to remember.
Orchestra
The instruments play when you select them. But can you remember their
original order?
Orchestra challenges your spatial memory.
There are ten levels, each with an increasing number of objects to remember
and place in their original sequence.
The Definitions Game
Definitions is a word game that says a word and you select its meaning from
a menu. Not as easy as it sounds when you're racing the clock. It's a good
brain training game.
The Synonyms and Antonyms Game
Synonyms and Antonyms is another word game.
It speaks either Synonym or Antonym and a word, and then speaks a list of
words. You pick the synonym or antonym from a menu.
Its surprisingly challenging, given that you never know whether you're going
to be asked for a synonym or antonym and that you're working against the
clock.
It has 10 levels and an Easy button.
Accessibility for All
Affordable:
. The Game Book, including 4 initial games, costs $25.
. Individual games cost $5 - $10 each.
. Our games play on Windows computers available in 2000.
. The Game Book and games work with Windows 98, XP, and Vista.
Understandable:
. None of our games requires a manual.
. There is a special F2 key for help that is organized specifically for
players who are blind.
. If you are unsure of what to do next, wait a minute and the Idle Twit will
suggest your next move.
Accessible:
. The Game Book and all of the above games, and their installation programs
work with JAWS and also self-voice.
. The Game Book and all of our games use larger print.
. Neither the Game Book nor any of our games is color-dependent.
. Players with different challenges can play together. Scoring is adjusted
automatically.
The Game Book and our games are available via electronic download from our
Web site, or on CD via the US Mail.
The Game Book and all games have free downloadable demos.
John Banick
++
News from All In Play
11/26/07
Season's Greetings from All inPlay,
Whether you're warming yourself by the fire or working on your tan in
the land down under, we hope this finds you well and enjoying the start of
this holiday season.
We have some news that should further brighten your day. The All inPlay
Holiday Sale is back!
For a limited time, you can treat your friends, family, or even yourself, to
a year of All inPlay games for the reduced price of $69.95 - that is over a
26% savings from the monthly rate!
Here's how it works:
Visit the All inPlay store at:
http://allinplay.com/participate/gift_membership.php
Select a 1, 3, 6, or 12 month gift membership. When you submit your credit
card information we'll send you two e-mails. One is your receipt, the other
has
instructions on how to redeem the gift. You can forward that e-mail to the
person receiving this gift.
The recipient can then either log into an existing account or create a new
account and redeem their gift. Important: Don't redeem the gift from your
account, unless you're planning to give yourself a gift.
It's that simple.
If you have any problems during the process, you can give us a call at
(413) 585-9690 between 9:00 A.M. and 5:00 P.M. U.S. eastern time and
we'll be happy to help you.
Cheers,
The All inPlay Team
++
News from Blind Adrenelin
10/02/07
The new update to Rail Racer is here for all owners of the full version.
This update includes a new item you can purchase for your racer called the
nitro burner, which gives you ten seconds of nitro boost to use as you like.
Also, you can now use the shift a command to find out what your jump
altitude was on your last jump, helping greatly to make your jumps more
accurate.
There have been some minor bug fixes and a few new chat commands added as
well.
Check the main site page at
http://www.blindAdrenaline.com
for the new download and instructions on the new features.
Please note you will have to have this update installed to race online
after Friday Oct. 5, so hurry on over to the web site and grab it while it
is hot.
if you haven't signed up to the tournament system, you can get hooked up
while you
are there for some of the most fun competition available for the blind.
Happy racing!
Che
+
10/03/07
Hi all,
For those interested in the podcast of Sarah's Rail Racer review and
tutorial, you can get it here:
http://www.blindadrenaline.com/uploads/railRacerReview.mp3
And believe it or not, I didn't have to pay her a dime to say those nice
things about RR, grin.
Later,
Che
++
News from Draconis Entertainment
11/23/07
Greetings gamers,
We've been quiet over here at Draconis. There's been a lot going on,
and we have one major new project that will have you all very excited
soon. We hope to release details on the new title in the not-too-
distant future. In the meantime, please check out our holiday sales
that are beginning today and help support Draconis. We thank you all
for your continued loyalty. The wait for our new title will be well
worth it.
Draconis Entertainment
"Feel the power...wield the magic..."
http://www.DraconisEntertainment.com
++
News from Dreamtech Interactive
11/10/07
Okay, you fast action arcade lovers,
Wrecking ball beta 1 is out at
www.dti.us.tt
and has lots of new sound effects and bonuses. It has ten levels and two
modes of game play--classic mode, called Super Breakout, in which you start
by
hitting the ball with your paddle--not launching it as in previous versions,
and Wrecking Ball mode where you launch the ball. Nearly everything you do
in the game other than checking stats and adjusting volume can be done with
the mouse, but if you prefer the keyboard you can play too. (Personally, I
play with both keyboard and mouse.)
The newest thing, besides the modes and the fact that the bonuses actually
work in this version, is that when the ball hits the ceiling, the blocks
aren't
the only things to shrink--your mouse-controlled paddle does too.
The manual should explain everything you need to know about how to play.
Oh, the bug where the paddle caught the ball is fixed--it only makes the
ball move while it's moving so keyboard players don't have to worry about
the unwanted paddle.
If you have ideas on how to improve the game, let me know. There are more
plans in the works, such as additional bonuses, but most of what I'll be
doing
is getting the TTS stuff out and replacing it with human speech--and oh
yeah, I've decided to make it donationware--mostly because I don't have the
slightest
idea on programming licensing stuff and just don't feel like messing with
it, so have fun.
Ken Downey
President
DreamTechInteractive!
+
10/18/07
The new version of Air hockey is up and ready to go. Get it at
http://tbrn.net/modgirl/Ken's%20games
I'd like some feedback on a few points.
1. Since this is the first game where the mouse moves things both
vertically and horizontally, do you need a system letting you know that the
paddle is
in line to hit the puck? We could implement this by a few means, such as a
sound that gets louder the closer the paddle is to the puck, as in the
jousting
game, or different beeps indicating either vertical or horizontal alignment.
If you need positional assistance, what is harder--getting it lined up
horizontally
or vertically?
By the way, the mouse button functions have changed a bit. They are:
Button 1: sets your paddle to center and closest to you. Very handy!
Button 2: reports the puck's speed, x then y, then the mouse's speed--x then
y. Negative numbers mean movement left or down.
The source code is also included, so if any of u are using vb6 and want to
know how to get mouse support, go at it! Also, if you want to modify the
game,
go ahead--just remember to please send me a copy and keep my name on it
along with other credits.
While this game has a huge way to go before completion, I hope you enjoy it.
I know it's not the strategy game yall crave, but it does push the envelope
in some ways. Imagine a game where you use the mouse exclusively for
navigation, without any keyboard input. Also, I plan to incorporate mouse
support into Wrecking Ball.
By the way, if you only play with the keyboard, you might as well not
download this version--I only fixed mouse related issues. Next, I'll work
on the
AI--make him smarter and put difficulty levels in the game and so on, as
well as working to make the mouse support better.
Ken Downey
President
DreamTechInteractive!
++
News From GMA Games
11/01/07
This is not a game exactly, but we are well along in the writing and
user-testing of an accessible mud client. For those who are not familiar
with muds or mud clients here is an explanation.
A mud is normally described as a a multi-user online text based game. In
most cases, the actual game should be accessible, but the clients are either
under powered, inaccessible, or both. In most cases they require screen
reader scripts and take some time and technical knowledge to get going. The
client we are working on should allow a non-technical person to get up and
running aalmost immediately. Muds have many types of themes such as
medieval, Lord of the Rings, science fiction based, social, and so on.
There are hundreds to choose from and so it isn't hard to find something you
like. In general they are free, or nominally priced.
I can't say when it will be out, but it should be within the next two
months.
Regards,
David Greenwood
DavidGreenwood@GMAGames.com
http://www.GMAGames.com
++
News from Kitchen's Inc.
11/26/07
Hi,
I have put a new file up on my web site.
file name WinHH.exe file size 2.2 meg
You are Homer, the Harley riding motorcycle dare devil. You have brought
three of your specially modified Harley Davidson motorcycles to a small oval
race
track to try to set the record for the number of school buses you can jump.
Note* you will need to disable your screen reader to play this game.
You can find the file on my free windows sapi5 text to speech games page.
BFN
Jim
+
09/08/07
Hi,
I have put baseball version 4 up on my site. It fixes the bug where on some
computers the half inning stats were not being spoken.
The file can be found on my free windows text to speech games page.
file name winbase4.exe file size 4.1 meg
BFN
Jim
+
09/06/07
Hi,
I have put a new file up on my web site.
File name wintgf7.exe. File size 86k.
Four new trivia files, Amusement Rides, Classic Commercials
Harry Potter 2, and the Terminator Series
BFN
Jim
+
11/05/07
Hi,
As some of you may know, the new game that I am working on is named Homer on
a Harley. It is all about the first or second video game that I ever
played.
You are Homer on a Harley Davidson motorcycle. You must build up the
correct speed to jump the successive number of school buses.
BTW Saturday evening I got to break bread and sit and talk for an hour and a
half with the producer slash writer of the Simpson's show Michael Reiss and
then listen to him give a talk to an audience. It was great! He was
hilarious. My friend Kathy, the umpire from my baseball game took me.
I don't know if I will have the game out by Christmas or not, but it is
coming along nicely.
BFN
Jim
++
News from RS Games
10/31/07
Hello Audyssey,
I am Ryan of RS Games. You may know me as the *poor* creator of Guess
The Voice. Well, I have gotten much better at programming. I had this
idea in a dream, that you would hit either left, right, or down arrow
for left, right or middle sounds. It is called Shoot Da Me and is ready
for public beta. Here is a quick list of features right now for
Public Beta 1:
Main Menu
20 Levels, gets faster each level
Unlimited Support
Using DirectInput 8
Score and Health
Sapi and Sounds
All of my beta testers have not gone up to level 20, only 12. It is very
challenging. The game will be available tonight at 11:59 PM EST,
technically October 31, 2007 or Halloween. The game is at
www.rsgames.co.nr,
Please, from now on, only use
www.rsgames.co.nr.
On that site, you may download Shoot Da Me Public Beta 1 tonight. It is
stable, and it's really fun, unlike GSV. I
highly recommend you try it, several people cannot wait for it. It will
be in .ZIP or .RAR, on SendSpace, YouSentIt and My Computer. If you want
more information on the server for my computer, please go to
www.rsgames.co.nr
and find the link about the Serve
r. This is only Public Beta and includes
all features above, so have fun.
Features in the Future:
Score Posting
Trophies
Unlockables
Mini and Bonus Games
Difficulty Levels
Dialog (Enemy Interaction)
Thank You and I hope you finally enjoy an RS Games Game!
Your Fellow Gamer,
Ryan Smith
RS Games
++
News from PCS Games
11/26/07
Sarah and the Castle of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Patch4, for version 1.0.
For those who downloaded the full game, here is a smaller patch that fixes
some bugs.
http://www.pcsgames.net/Sarah-Patch4.exe
Sarah Patch4.
It is 19.6 MB, finished November 26, 2007.
Many people did not like the objects calling out their names so I made an
attempt to limit this and replaced the name with a sound effect.
This makes the game a little more difficult as you will have to examine or
scan an object to tell what it is.
Once you recognize the sound though, the game will become easier and I hope
more enjoyable.
Object detector.
You hit O to turn this object detector on and when you walk through the
halls you will hear
suit of armor in four feet.
or trick step in two feet.
To turn this feature off hit o again.
New Spells.
I moved the apparate to the spell list. And I added two new spells,
Homenum revelio and disillusicorpus.
You can find out what they do in the full spell list.
I changed the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw common rooms to match Jo's
description in the last book and from her answers to interview questions.
I also moved some of the rooms and doors around, especially on the ground
floor and basement.
I connected the Kitchen wing with the Hufflepuff wing with an east west
corridor.
And I moved the kitchen door to the center of that corridor.
I also put an antiChamber door in the Great Hall.
There is a new object in your inventory, your Potion Making Kit.
At the beginning of the game it is empty, but when you pick up a potion it
goes right into the kit.
You can drop the kit and later pick it up.
You can check how many of the seven potions you have by hitting x on it from
your inventory.
I added new creatures in the Forbidden Forest and in the lake.
I now allow you to get on and ride the flying Motorbike, but you have to
find it first.
I also added a few new magical items and books around the castle and
especially in the Headmaster's office.
Patch 4 has all the bug fixes that were in Patch 1, 2, and 3, so I removed
them.
It is to be installed in the same folder as the full Sarah install.
Unless there are any problems, I will eventually include the patch into the
full version.
You can try out the first game chapter which includes the Ground floor, and
Basement.
You can play this chapter as many times as you wish.
A registration key will unlock all 14 chapters.
Sarah and the Castle of Witchcraft and Wizardry, is sold through a
collaboration with Draconis Entertainment.
the Draconis Entertainment home page.
The price for a registration key that unlocks the full game is $31.95 US.
If you have any questions, E-mail Phil Vlasak,
phil@pcsgames.net
We make games that tickle your ears.
++
News from Spoonbill Software
11/18/07
Hi,
This is to announce the release of a new version, BG Uno 1.1 which includes
a fix for a reported bug. In BG Uno 1.0, when you were down to 2 cards and
you played a Skip card, the next player around was not skipped. This has
been
fixed in BG Uno 1.1. In addition, you can now use the arrow keys to step
through your cards when you are deciding which color to choose for a Wild
card.
In BG Uno 1.0 this was not possible.
If you would like a copy of BG Uno 1.1, just reply to this email requesting
BG Uno 1.1. Please also state your full name to enable me to easily locate
you
in my records. Thank you.
Regards
Ian Humphreys
Spoonbill Software
Albany, Western Australia
+
Hi,
We are pleased to announce the release of BG Uno, the accessible version of
the popular card game, Uno. This is the thirteenth game in the blind gamers
series. You may read a full description of the game on Spoonbill Software's
Blind gamers page at:
http://www.omninet.net.au/~irhumph/blindgamers.htm
If you would like a copy of this game, email me with your full name and
country of residence and I will gladly send you one. This email is being
distributed
to approximately 1000 clients so please allow up to one week for delivery
from the date of ordering.
Ian Humphreys
Spoonbill Software
Albany, Western Australia
++
News from USA Games Interactive
11/25/07
Attention USA Games Customers!
Hello Gamers,
We at USA Games have started compiling our Alchemy records into a
database so we can begin shipping Monte product keys in early December.
However, since our Monte and Raceway sales records are years out of date
we wish to make sure all of the contact information is up to date. Here
is what to do.
Send an email to
info@usagames.us
with the subject contact information.
We need the following information.
1. The product or products on pre-order.
2. The name of the person who placed the order. For example if your
father, mother, or legal guardian made the payment give their name as a
point of contact.If you made your own payment your name as it shows up
on your credit card. This is required for payment varification.
3. Your current email address so product keys can be emailed to you.
4. A current phone number. This is required in case we are unable to
reach you by email.
5. A postal address. This is required if you ordered a product disk.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Thomas Ward
Owner of USA Games Interactive
Email:
info@usagames.us
Web Site:
http://www.usagames.us
+
11/23/07
Montezuma's Revenge News
Hello gamers,
USA Games Interactive would like to make our customers of Montezuma's
Revenge aware of some late breaking changes involving Montezuma's
Revenge. As of December 1, 2007 USA Games will be renaming Montezuma's
Revenge to Montezuma's Return. The new version of Monte will be very
similar to the classic Montezuma's Revenge though it will have some
differences which will allow USA Games to copyright the game as an
original work. Changes included in the new version will be as described
below.
First, we at USA Games felt the game should be given a new name. We
could site many reasons that brought us to this decision, but the one
that really stands out is the game has already been legally copyrighted
under that name in 1984.
Second, a good number of gamers really expressed interest in playing the
game using our former character Angela. We also feel this is a good
idea. Not only does it make the game a bit different from the original,
but we liked her character our selves. We have hand picked all new
effects for Angela, and she has already been placed into the game.
Third, from the beginning of its development Monte hasn't exactly been
purely designed on a one to one comparison with the classic. For
example, in our version magic potions are used rather than magic
amulets. The difference in their use is miner, but it does stand out as
a difference between the two games.
in addition when it came to building the levels into an accessible
format we at USA Games used our poetic license to alter them some to
provide maximum accessibility or added a trap here or there to make the
game more challenging or fun.
In the end I personally don't think our version of Montezuma's Revenge
has stayed true to Montezuma's Revenge. However, since this version is a
vastly updated and perhaps even improved version I think it can be built
around the idea of a sequel where the main character isn't Panama Joe
but some other hero or heroin following the same or similar adventure.
Thus Montezuma's Return.
As of Nov. 23, 2007 USA Games has finally introduced the ability to
register the game using a product key. This is a major step forward for
us as we will be able to ship product keys to pre-ordered customers
fairly soon.
We wish you all a happy holiday, and hope to have 1.0 ready with in the
month.
+
11/16/07
Hello gamers,
USA Games would like to announce the availability of Montezuma's Revenge
public beta 6. This new release of the game offers some substantial
changes since beta 5 including: initial game pad and joystick support,
the m key will announce the distance to monsters, magic potions will now
give you 20 seconds of invincibility from monster atacks, several bug
fixes, some new icons, updated manual, and more.
As always previous versions of Montezuma's Revenge should be removed
prier to installing this latest test build. To get it visit our web site at
http://www.usagames.us/games.php
Sincerely,
Thomas Ward
President of USA Games Interactive
http://www.usagames.us
+
Holiday Sales
From USA Games Interactive
Hello gamers,
It seams it is that time of year again when we begin looking for that
perfect gift for that friend or loved one, dream of Santa on his slay,
sing Jingle Bells, watch reruns of White Christmas, and generally enjoy
the holidays in our own way. This year USA Games would like to
especially extend a happy holidays to our friends and supporters around
the world. This year we have something special for all our customers and
friends. This Christmas season watch our web site
http://www.usagames.us
for details about the pending release of Montezuma's Revenge 1.0.
As of the November 15, 2007 test release of Montezuma's Revenge the
basic game engine and operation is complete. Over the course of the next
month USA Games Interactive will be scripting the remaining levels , do
final testing, and add the product key registration feature to the game.
As of the time of this writing USA Games Interactive is also in the
process of designing our online store powered by Paypal.com's instant
payment notification system. Once the store is completed simply go to
our web site
http://www.usagames.us
and click on the store or buy now options on the site. You will be able
to select Montezuma's Revenge from a list, and simply select the Buy Now
option from the store page. You will be redirected to paypal.com for
credit card payment and verification. After payment is complete you will
be redirected to a download page where you may download the full release
of the game, and should receive a product key by email with in 1 to 7
business days.
Montezuma's Revenge 1.0 is currently scheduled to go on sale sometime in
December 2007, and will sell for $35.00 USD. So check the USA Games
Interactive site often, and happy holidays to all of you.
+
What's Ahead In 2008
From USA Games Interactive
Greetings gamers,
As 2007 comes to an end USA Games has began preparing for even bigger
and better game projects for 2008. In this article we hope to shed some
light on what 2008 holds in store.
Genesis 3D
For many years now most audio based games have been restricted to a
completely 2 dimensional environment. Even good first person games such
as Sarah, Shades of Doom, and Monkey Business remain fixed in a 2d
environment though they may fake 3d in some instances. The Genesis 3D
engine is an all new engine from USA Games which will emerge the audio
based gamer in a truly 3d environment.
Unlike many other accessible audio games designed for the blind Genesis
3D offers an entire range of player movements such as: climbing, walking
running, jumping, doing flips, crawling, swimming, using safety drops,
etc all in a virtual 3d environment. The Genesis 3D engine also allows
the player to carry and use a variety of tools and weapons such as:
guns, swords, laser sights, torches, keys, etc. Future additions of the
engine will allow the player to acquire and drive a variety of vehicles
such as motor cycles, boats, planes, and other vehicles the player
acquires during the course of the game.
Why is Genesis 3D so important to audio gamers? Genesis 3D is planned to
be the engine that drives an entire new generation of 3d audio based
first person games that are equal to or based on games like: Tomb
Raider, Star Wars, Halo, Resident Evil, Gear Wars, and so on. Frankly,
there is currently nothing like it in the audio games market today.
For example, imagine yourself in a castle trapped in a room. You find a
switch along the wall, you pull it, and a trap door opens a few feet
away you need to safety drop through, to find a hidden chamber below the
room you are in to continue your quest.
In another example imagine yourself in a truly 3D Star Wars game aboard
an Imperial Star Destroyer. You might not be able to access a control
room via the door because it is locked, but you might be able to climb
an access ladder near by, crawl through an air duct, cut a hole through
a grate with your light saber, and safety drop into the control room
taking some Imperial storm troopers by surprise.
Bottom line the Genesis 3D game engine offers more complex puzzles,
navigation, and options for expanding audio games beyond a simple 2d
first person or shoot-m-up game.
Accessible Tomb Raider
In 2007 Edos Interactive released it's 8th Tomb Raider game named Tomb
Raider Anniversary. Tomb Raider Anniversary is a retelling and complete
remake of Edos original Tomb raider game written in 1996 for MS Dos,
Windows 3.1, and Windows 95. Unlike it's predecessor Anniversary offers
superior graphics design, additional moves, sound effects, and
unfortunately is more unaccessible for the blind gamer.
However, USA Games Interactive has plans sometime in 2008 of releasing
our own accessible version of Tomb Raider driven by the Genesis 3D
engine. Like Tomb Raider Anniversary our version will be fixed in a true
3D environment, offer several different combat and physical moves,
several different styles of weapons, a training level with Lara Croft at
her house, 15 standard levels of game play, and more.
For those of you who never played the original Tomb Raider or
Anniversary version here is the basic story of the game that started it
all.
Thousands of years ago when Atlantice was destroyed the four rulers of
Atlantice fled to safety in Egypt, Peru, and Greece taking with them the
pieces of the Scion. Centuries later Jaclin Natla hires British
treasure hunter, Lara Croft, to locate and find the lost pieces of the
Scion. Lara travels the world Rome, Greece, Peru, Egypt, and eventually
Atlantice to find the pieces of the Scion. Once she reaches Atlantice
she soon discovers Jaclin Natla, once the former queen of Atlantice,
wants the pieces of the Scion in an attempt to take over the world. Only
Lara Croft has the ability to defeat Jaclin Natla and her army of
genetic mutants before it is too late for mankind.
Throughout Lara's adventure she must face such enemies as wolves, lions,
mummies, bears, bats, and even a T-Rex. In addition she must locate and
learn to use a pistil, 357 Magnum, shotgun, Uzi, laser sight, keys,
special artifacts, medipacks, and more.
If the game play and sound effects of Tomb Raider wasn't enough the
music has always been great in all of the Tomb Raider games. The music
is almost a legend in of itself.
USA Raceway
As many of you may know USA Games has big plans for USA Raceway this
coming year. Raceway is probably going to be the most involving and
exciting racing game of its kind. The game is based on games such as EA
Sports Nascar Thunder 2006 complete with a full season mode, ten game
race for the USA Raceway champion ship, several official Nascar tracks,
sponsors, drivers, and more. There never has been a game like this
produced with a true Nascar racing theme to it for the blind. Raceway
will especially target Nascar fans who want to feel what it is like to
get out there on the track and race at 215 MPH against 41 other cars on
the track.
We have been asked quite a bit about an online playing mode similar to
Rail Racer. Unfortunately, do to time and budget constraints we have
elected not to include an online racing feature in version 1.0 of
Raceway. However, we do feel it's single player mode, season based
racing schedule, realistic Nascar scoring, upgrades, etc will more than
make up for online racing.
Keep an eye out for USA raceway this up and coming year. We hope to see
you out there on the track.
+
11/05/07
Hi everyone,
I have just posted an all new Raceway trailer. New in this trailer is an
improved car engine with more mustle and speed sound to it, engine
accelleration as it builds speed, and I dropped in a racing song from an
80's rock band, Vixon, called Rev It Up. I also show off such things as
speed announcements, fuel announcements, lap announcements, lap time,
etc so you can here that as well. I have disabled the other AI cars on
the track so you can focus on the car I am driving. Basically, there is
nothing fancier in this trailer right now than me driving around the
demo track, but it is a nice demo of what is to come. Without further
ramble here is the trailer.
http://www.usagames.us/trailers.php
Let me know your thoughts of this trailer.
Cheers.
++
News from X-site Interactive
11/21/07
some of you may already know, but some not.
recently we've just released chopper challenge on x-sight-interactive.net.
we are now on 1.1, fixing a few minor issues in 1.0. not sure if anyone has
mentioned cc on here, as i've only just resubscribed today.
*snip*
X-Sight has an amazing new game out!
Chopper Challenge. It's a super fun real time shoot-'em-up style game.
You are faceing the intimous Copter Man, a ruthless half-man,
half-machine, hired to finish you off. Fire at the Copter Man with your
laser gun, avoid bombs, pick up items and attempt to last the entire 10
minute battle, racking up as many points as possible! Go on to the
X-Sight Website, so you can download and play this amazing game!
*snip*
thanks.
Regards,
Damien Sadler
+++
Game announcements and reviews
Game Announcements and Reviews:
Below are some of the new games available. Though an old treasure or
two may be discussed also. It's noteworthy that in some cases it's only
an announcement of a game, taken from the email list, and may not be a
full review, or an official notice from the developer. 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.
++
Hi all.
They braught you Hattrick. They braught you Popomundo. Now here comes
another one. BasketSim.
As the name suggests, this game puts you in control of a basketball team, of
at the start, 12 players, as you buy players you get more and sell it
decreases
but by default you get 12.
The reason I say that it's the hattrick team again is because the forums
look exactly the same as Popomundos and Hattricks. The match reports are
detailed,
similar to their flagship product. Though I might add that this is the most
detailed they're ever gonna get I think.
The matches do have a few typos, but you can easally know what they mean,
and there's a new match engine coming next season, and I think the
off-season
is now so any players who want to start managing a team should start now.
This game's got a big playerbase and is bound to grow, especially with how
fast popomundo whent up the ranks.
If you want to have a friendly with me, my team name is OAS. Also, I'll add
that this is probably one of the teams best games for screen readers.
Everything
is labled with heading, which is almost the same as hattrick but better
here.
Here's the link:
http://www.basketsim.com
Enjoy. Hope to see ya on the court.
++
Hi,
I found something pretty cool while browsing the
rec.games.roguelike.announce newsgroup.
It's a role-playing game similar to games like Nethack and ADOM but based
on the Castlevania gameworld. In adition to the features commonly found in
such games there is also sound and music!
Bundled in the game download are MIDI arrangments of various tunes from
the Castlevania series that are used throughout the game as well ass very
decent sound effects. It's all very atmospheric and original.
The game features a good story and several game modes such as a prologue,
a prelude and a training mode in a dition to the main story mode.
The game requires a Java engine and has both a graphical and a text-based
interface. The text (console) mode worke dwell for me in Linux, so I
suppose it would work pretty well with Windows screen readers too.
Now, this is what I'd call a real Halloween treat! :-)
+
Hi,
This game requires a Java installation. You can grab one from
www.java.com.
The game itself is a .jar-file, but to start it you can use
the .bat-files found in the game folder. For those who don't know,
.bat-files are a sort of script-files that were common in the DOS
operating system and that can be used in Windows too. They are simple text
files containing commands in the command line environment.
The game itself is a roguelike game, meaning it's similar to Rogue, an
ancient predecessor to Nethack.
Monsters, items and geography in the gameworld are represented by
characters onn the screen. In modern roguelike games the characters are
often replaced by graphical tiles. I don't know if i.e. Jaws can be used
to label these tiles, but what I do know is that this particular game
(CastlevaniaRL) has a console mode, which in plain English means a text
mode.
I've found it to work in the Linux text console. Given that Nethack and
similar games seem to work with Jaws, I thought it might be possible even
for this game to work with Windows screen readers.
Happy gaming,
Tobias
++
Hi! I didn't see the start of this thread, so if this has already been
mentioned, I apologize. I just would like to recommend Discworld. It is by
far my favorite mud right now. There aren't any race choices, everyone is
human, but the game itself, to me at least is highly enjoyable, especially
if you're a fan of the discworld novels. Being familiar with the novels
definitely isn't manditory, and you can roleplay as much or as little as
you like. A google search will provide you with tons of resources for
making your play time on discworld as enjoyable as possible, and there are
a lot of really friendly people there.
Anyway, for anyone who might be interested in checking this mud out, the
address is discworld.imaginary.com, port 23.
My character is Eponine, and I'm more than happy to help any newbies out if
I can. In fact, I'm getting ready to go to a friend's house tomorrow so
that I can try to teach her how to play.
I hope this recommendation helps somebody find a new game to enjoy, and
that everyone is having a wonderful day.
Missy
++
Hi all,
For those of you who are interested in creating gamebooks, this is the
place. There isn't many people signed up, or maybe they are, just aren't
online,
but there's lots of new stories coming. It's got a nice rating system, it's
got a wizard to help you create stories, and you can duel each other online
for some fun.
I would, if you're into modern adventure, recommend you play "Mommy, can I
go out and kill tonight?" which is a crime-related gamebook. You've also got
Ground Zero, which is a long sci-fi interactive novel.
Keep in mind that you'll also find some stories that simply aren't worth
your time, people make different quizzes and stuff. I'm there for action and
adventure.
I'll be making stories soon; join me at
http://www.ChooseYourStory.com
Enjoy!
++
Hi friends!
I don't know if some of you already know this game! I have played it
For some months now and it's really great!
In this game, you control an F1 team from your virtual office and then you
must choose your suppliers, driver, designer and commercial director and set
up the car and race strategies!
It's completely accessible and really addictive!
You follow the practice, warmup and qualifications and obviously watch the
race live!
Check it out because we are in the start of a 29th season!
You can play it at:
www.f1time.com
Have fun,
Jorge
++
Hi.
http://if.illuminion.de/index.html
has most of the infocom games including Hitchhiker's available for download,
all you need to play them is a copy of win frotz. for copywrite issues, just
see their policy.
++
Judgement Day Trophies
Okay this is an email from liam:
game trophys:
tenderfoot
Given to the user after they beat the game for the first time on easy.
Marksman
have at least 65% accuracy and complete the game on easy
marksman plus
complete the game with 55% accuracy or higher on normal or hard
Renegade
have any thing lower than 15% accuracy and complete the game on any
difficulty
untouchable
complete game with out losing any health on easy.
untouchable plus
complete the game with letting 3 or fewer enemies land on normal or hard
modes.
average Joe
Beat the normal difficulty level.
Metal Marine
complete hard difficulty level
lead lovers
complete easy with out using any rockets or nukes
lead lovers plus
complete normal or hard with out using any rockets or nukes
close call
complete the game with less than 15 percent health
quick draw
beat commander ather with in 15 seconds on easy
Quick Draw Plus
beat Commander Ather with in 30 seconds on normal or hard.
imposible feat
Manage to complete ultra Mode
Confused Gunner
Play the game, and then lose with out shooting down a single enemy.
ather's lucky day
get destroyed with only one ship left in level 10
ather's really lucky day
get destroyed when commander ather's hover craft has five or less health
points left.
self-destruct
accidently find the feature of the base that wasn't mentioned to you.
cheater
use cheat codes and beat the game
total loser
use cheat codes, but manage to get destroyed
gamer's paradise
collect all 20 in game trophys
bonus games:
Rocket Blaster
Shoot down at least 330 rockets
Rocket Blaster Plus
Shoot down more than 390 rockets
Super paratrooper
Collect at least 6 bonus bags
Ultra Paratrooper
Collect all 10 bonus bags, and land safely with 320 points or more
sticky fingers:
collect at least 20 weapons, and make it out of the warehouse with in 105
seconds.
Super Sticky fingers
Collect 30 weapons and make it out of the warehouse before the warehouse
explodes.
it takes a thief
earned by beating weapon search with out getting any weapons.
great number guesser
guess at least 8 numbers
super guesser. yes sir.
guess at least 12 numbers
beep
get bored enough to play beep
bonus round
collect all 10 bonus trophys
extra trophys:
oh boy a lobster
earned by typing "oh boy a lobster" in the cheat consoll
Jingle Bells
Play the game on Christmas
Independence Day
play the game on July fourth
12 13:
play the game at 12 13 AM or PM
1 20
start the game at 1 20 PM.
bored to death
let the game sit at the main menu for five minutes
number one
place first on any board
extra credit
collect all 7 extra trophys
Hope it helps.
++
Hi guys,
I have at last found Under The Ice, a strategic submarine text adventure,
together with four other text adventures on this site, including the fantasy
game
Braminor, and the Quest for this unpronounceable name. These were the first
TA's I ever played in the typing class, before that I never knew games for
the
blind ever existed. Torpedo away! here's the link
http://www.nostalgia8.org/disk826.htm
Ari
++
Hi all,
A new online turn based roleplaying game has just came onto the scene due
to an inspired KoL player. He made this game where you have to be a hero and
save twilight. It's like KoL superhero style.
Yes, there's quests, just like in KoL. And yes, he attempted to make the
combat screen look the same, even the frames. But gagetears are cool, they
can
make computers. What exactly we can do with these computers, I am unsure. I
play KoL allot, and Jick was talking about this game on the show because
since
he was a tester he can talk about it now; it's in public beta.
Check it out at:
http://www.twilightheroes.com
Enjoy, still trying to figure out where a mode of transportation is...
++
Hi all, if yu want rts with a save option and avility to creat maps and much
more its out now.
get it here:
http://jlpo.free.fr/soundrts
++
Hello there,
I belong to a web site that deals with programming code.
it is called
http://www.planet-source-code.com
one of the most interesting files I downloaded frm this site a short time
back was a visual basic 6 version of deal or no deal.
It was more geared to a sighted person in its interface, and the code was
for a british version of deal or no deal.
The money amounts were in british pounds.
but it did work quite nice, and will work better with a blind person
tweaking the code.
It would really shine if we can get some audio bits from the real show to
mix into the game.
Robert
++
Hi all,
There are more text-based mobile phone games through wap. Just go to
wap.kalador.com and then you click Home, and then on Games. There are about
12 of them, all playable.
+
Hi all,
Am quite excited about this one. There are three accessible Wap games
available at the following site
wap.worddial.com
They are: Top Gun, a game where you play against other users at war trying
to shoot down their planes, a Kungfu game, and another one where you are a
merchant.
Sorry if this posts sounds vague, have not really looked closely at these,
but my friend who is also totally blind has been playing them successfully
without
any problems with Mobilespeak for weeks, and I haven't tried them properly,
but friend says, and on first looks it seems as if they are absolutely 100%
accessible.
Enjoy!
Ari
++
Hi,
For those of you who still enjoy Interactive Fiction, aka text
adventures, just a quick note to let you know that the Interactive
Fiction Compitition started yesterday. What better excuse to play and
vote on over 20 free accessible text adventures? You can find all the
information you'll need at:
http://www.ifcomp.org
Enjoy!
Note: Though you can no longer vote on the entries for this year, the
results and other information are available.
+++
Contacting Us
All material for inclusion in upcoming issues of Audyssey should be sent
to me at the following snail or email address:
Ron Schamerhorn
1180 Dorval Dr. #303
Oakville On L6M 3G1
[905]-842-1933
blindwonder@cogeco.ca
or
editor@audyssey.org
and to chat find me at
rschamerhorn@hotmail.com
for Windows/MSN messenger no email to this one please.
+++
Distribution Information and Submission Policies
This magazine is published on a quarterly basis, each issue appearing
no earlier than the fifteenth of the publication month for its quarter.
All submissions to be published in an issue must be in my possession a
minimum of two days before the issue is published. I 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.
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. From now on, this is official policy
of the Audyssey community.
This magazine is free in its electronic form, and will always remain
so. 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 cd or 3.5-inch disk in a self- addressed mailer if you want your
media returned to you. 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. If you can, I recommend that you send e-mail.
I can 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.
Those who want to receive issues of Audyssey as they are published
should go to the following website and follow the available link.
http://www.audyssey.org
The Audyssey discussion 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. 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. There are two moderators
keeping things civil and orderly. Be certain to read the Audyssey
Community Charter as all list members are expected to follow its rules.
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, as said above go to
http://www.audyssey.org
and follow the links on the page.
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 our home-page. 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.
Darren Duff also provides a home for Audyssey.
http://www.angelfire.com/music4/duffstuff/audyssey.html
Where the issues can be read, downloaded individually or one zip file
of all the issues. Thanks Darren!
Another location to find Audyssey current and back issues is
http://www.audiogames.net/page.php?pagefile=audyssey
Thanks to Richard and those at Audio-games!
We extend our gratitude to Kelly Sapergia who has provided a place for all
the issues of the magazine. . You can find them at
www.ksapergia.net/audyssey.html
---
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