Blind and Visually Impaired Community
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Looking for feedback on our accessible iOS interactive fiction game (self.Blind)
submitted by jplus
Hello everyone!
I'm the developer of an interactive fiction game called Timecrest which has been designed entirely with VoiceOver and accessibility in mind.
It has been popular with those at applevis.com and we're reaching out to other forums for feedback, because we're really interested in improving the product for blind players.
Even though we're sighted and we test the game with screen curtain on, nothing beats direct feedback from you, which is why we're reaching out here.
There's a long description of the many accessibility features we have $1.
You can download the game on the app store $1.
We have integrated feedback many times in the past and will continue to do so, so please tell us honestly what you think!
I'm the developer of an interactive fiction game called Timecrest which has been designed entirely with VoiceOver and accessibility in mind.
It has been popular with those at applevis.com and we're reaching out to other forums for feedback, because we're really interested in improving the product for blind players.
Even though we're sighted and we test the game with screen curtain on, nothing beats direct feedback from you, which is why we're reaching out here.
There's a long description of the many accessibility features we have $1.
You can download the game on the app store $1.
We have integrated feedback many times in the past and will continue to do so, so please tell us honestly what you think!
fastfinge 3 points 6y ago
I did try Timecrest after reading about it on Applevis, and I can say that it has the most, and the best, access features of any game of it's type. Folks who've never tried this genre of game before should give it a go, and see what you think! It's super easy to play, and doesn't require a huge investment of time or learning.
Personally, though, I'm not a fan of the game for a bunch of reasons, that have nothing to do with access, so I'll keep them to myself. But it does feel so nice to be able to not like a game entirely for reasons that have nothing to do with my blindness. Even if you read the description and thought this might not be the game for you, try it anyway. The experience of playing at least once is worth having.
Personally, though, I'm not a fan of the game for a bunch of reasons, that have nothing to do with access, so I'll keep them to myself. But it does feel so nice to be able to not like a game entirely for reasons that have nothing to do with my blindness. Even if you read the description and thought this might not be the game for you, try it anyway. The experience of playing at least once is worth having.
jplus [OP] 1 points 6y ago
Thanks for your feedback, fastfinge.
I'd love to hear what you didn't like about the game that have nothing to do with access. We've had such positive feedback that understanding why you didn't like the game really helps us understand how we can make the game better.
Any chance you'd be willing to share your thoughts?
I'd love to hear what you didn't like about the game that have nothing to do with access. We've had such positive feedback that understanding why you didn't like the game really helps us understand how we can make the game better.
Any chance you'd be willing to share your thoughts?
fastfinge 2 points 6y ago
Sure, I just didn't want to derail your thread!
My main problem with Timecrest is that I feel like the game kind of works against itself. For me, a game that already involves time travel, and let's you skip the time delays through in-app purchases, has removed most of the suspense that comes from having to wait through those time delays. When I played lifeline, for example, I always felt the tension of never knowing if the advice I gave tailor was correct. So I sat tensely for 8 hours while she slept, wondering if she'd even wake up in the morning, or would just die in the night from radiation poison. It felt real to me, because time travel wasn't a thing, and Lifeline offered me absolutely no way of skipping over the waiting. In timecrest, I'm always aware that just for a bit of money, I could skip the "realtime" gimmick. So whenever I had to wait in Lifeline, it built up the tension higher and higher. But when I had to wait in timecrest, I was so aware of the gimmick as a gimmick, that mostly what the waiting did was build the irritation higher and higher. Because in a game where I've already got time travel powers, having to wait through delays just felt, to me, like an arbitrary limitation to encourage in-app purchases, rather than something that contributed to the plot.
See, now that probably came off as insulting. I realize you've gotta make a living, and I realize you can't "fix" the "problem" I have with the game without, like, rewriting it entirely. And timecrest seems to have a good, interesting story to tell. I just don't feel like it uses the "things take place in real time" aspect of itself well at all, and even works to undermine that in some ways.
I think if I could pay a one-time upfront fee, and have the ability to skip all delays, I'd be OK with it. The Lifeline games aren't free, and I have no problem paying up-front for them. But in Timecrest I feel like the in-app purchases and the plot are working at cross purposes. Thinking "You know, I could pay and skip this delay" constantly just ruins immersion for me. That probably isn't the case for a lot of people, though.
My main problem with Timecrest is that I feel like the game kind of works against itself. For me, a game that already involves time travel, and let's you skip the time delays through in-app purchases, has removed most of the suspense that comes from having to wait through those time delays. When I played lifeline, for example, I always felt the tension of never knowing if the advice I gave tailor was correct. So I sat tensely for 8 hours while she slept, wondering if she'd even wake up in the morning, or would just die in the night from radiation poison. It felt real to me, because time travel wasn't a thing, and Lifeline offered me absolutely no way of skipping over the waiting. In timecrest, I'm always aware that just for a bit of money, I could skip the "realtime" gimmick. So whenever I had to wait in Lifeline, it built up the tension higher and higher. But when I had to wait in timecrest, I was so aware of the gimmick as a gimmick, that mostly what the waiting did was build the irritation higher and higher. Because in a game where I've already got time travel powers, having to wait through delays just felt, to me, like an arbitrary limitation to encourage in-app purchases, rather than something that contributed to the plot.
See, now that probably came off as insulting. I realize you've gotta make a living, and I realize you can't "fix" the "problem" I have with the game without, like, rewriting it entirely. And timecrest seems to have a good, interesting story to tell. I just don't feel like it uses the "things take place in real time" aspect of itself well at all, and even works to undermine that in some ways.
I think if I could pay a one-time upfront fee, and have the ability to skip all delays, I'd be OK with it. The Lifeline games aren't free, and I have no problem paying up-front for them. But in Timecrest I feel like the in-app purchases and the plot are working at cross purposes. Thinking "You know, I could pay and skip this delay" constantly just ruins immersion for me. That probably isn't the case for a lot of people, though.
jplus [OP] 1 points 6y ago
Fastfinge, thanks for your feedback! We really appreciate your thoughts.
None of it came off as insulting. We have done many passes on our timers to make them realistic and satisfying. The ultimate goal is to increase immersion, not take you out of the game. In fact, our most recent update decreased most of the timers from chapters 1 through 3 as we continued to apply feedback from our players.
A lot of how you're feeling, we addressed in a letter to Interactive Fiction guru Emily Short, in her post $1. Let me post some of the relevant sections of our letter:
**About In-App Purchase and Business Models**
> You also commented about free-to-play, and I wanted to discuss this with you. We wanted the game to be accessible to as many people as possible. We’re just a 2 person, independent game studio, without a huge marketing budget, nor connections to Apple, to build out our brand. Without a budget, it is much easier to get people to try a free game than a paid app.
> After having worked in the mobile games industry for many years, we began with some design principles to ensure that f2p did not detract from the overall quality and experience of the game. The game is never pay-to-win, and you are never blocked from progress as a free user. All timers are designed to enhance the immersion and realism of the story, that you feel this other world is moving forward and things are happening in real time. We actually believe that the free users get the best experience of the story, and we test our game balance and pacing as free users to ensure it plays smoothly without use of premium currency.
**About Interactive Fiction/Comparing to Other Games**
> We developed these writing principles as we learned the craft of writing interactive fiction:
> * Choices should feel as though they impact the story. We worked hard to create different paths and interesting choices for the characters.
> * Choices affect the story, but no path is the “wrong” path. A lot of the stories we see right now are a single character trying to survive a single scenario. It’s entertaining, but we were looking for something deeper. We wanted each choice to create a different journey through the game, where decisions you make in early chapters can dramatically change what happens in future chapters. A whole city may be destroyed, some characters may live or die early on, and this completely changes some scenes late in the story.
There should be conflict, with a clear beginning, middle and end. Story structure still matters, even if your choices are changing the story.
> * Character relationships matter. On our whiteboard we wrote, “Break a promise to save the world, and that character may betray you later. Follow through on that promise, and lose an opportunity, but make a new friend.”
We don't say any of the above to discount what you're saying or feeling, fastfinge. How you feel is valid and we take it to heart.
We wanted to explain how we thought about the problem and what principles we use as we continue to update the game. Our first version of the game had 20,000 words, and now we have 10x the content with 200,000 words, so believe us when we're prepared to keep listening to feedback and making the game better.
Thanks!
None of it came off as insulting. We have done many passes on our timers to make them realistic and satisfying. The ultimate goal is to increase immersion, not take you out of the game. In fact, our most recent update decreased most of the timers from chapters 1 through 3 as we continued to apply feedback from our players.
A lot of how you're feeling, we addressed in a letter to Interactive Fiction guru Emily Short, in her post $1. Let me post some of the relevant sections of our letter:
**About In-App Purchase and Business Models**
> You also commented about free-to-play, and I wanted to discuss this with you. We wanted the game to be accessible to as many people as possible. We’re just a 2 person, independent game studio, without a huge marketing budget, nor connections to Apple, to build out our brand. Without a budget, it is much easier to get people to try a free game than a paid app.
> After having worked in the mobile games industry for many years, we began with some design principles to ensure that f2p did not detract from the overall quality and experience of the game. The game is never pay-to-win, and you are never blocked from progress as a free user. All timers are designed to enhance the immersion and realism of the story, that you feel this other world is moving forward and things are happening in real time. We actually believe that the free users get the best experience of the story, and we test our game balance and pacing as free users to ensure it plays smoothly without use of premium currency.
**About Interactive Fiction/Comparing to Other Games**
> We developed these writing principles as we learned the craft of writing interactive fiction:
> * Choices should feel as though they impact the story. We worked hard to create different paths and interesting choices for the characters.
> * Choices affect the story, but no path is the “wrong” path. A lot of the stories we see right now are a single character trying to survive a single scenario. It’s entertaining, but we were looking for something deeper. We wanted each choice to create a different journey through the game, where decisions you make in early chapters can dramatically change what happens in future chapters. A whole city may be destroyed, some characters may live or die early on, and this completely changes some scenes late in the story.
There should be conflict, with a clear beginning, middle and end. Story structure still matters, even if your choices are changing the story.
> * Character relationships matter. On our whiteboard we wrote, “Break a promise to save the world, and that character may betray you later. Follow through on that promise, and lose an opportunity, but make a new friend.”
We don't say any of the above to discount what you're saying or feeling, fastfinge. How you feel is valid and we take it to heart.
We wanted to explain how we thought about the problem and what principles we use as we continue to update the game. Our first version of the game had 20,000 words, and now we have 10x the content with 200,000 words, so believe us when we're prepared to keep listening to feedback and making the game better.
Thanks!
fastfinge 1 points 6y ago
> Choices affect the story, but no path is the “wrong” path.
It's actually really interesting that you say that. Because on my first play of lifeline, I got to the best ending, right off. Whereas I've died multiple times in timecrest, and gave up before actually finishing it. And yet, everyone I've talked to about both games tells me they found Timecrest far easier and more forgiving than Lifeline! So I really don't know. Perhaps it's because me and Tailor live in the same world, so my knowledge and skills can be applied to helping her. Whereas in Timecrest I sometimes feel like I'm choosing randomly, or at least like I don't have all the information I need to make the "best" choice. Sure, next time I play timecrest, I know not to do the thing that got me killed last time. But I don't find learning from previous plays nearly as satisfying as thinking through someone's situation, and being able to think it through and pick the best option available the first time.
> We actually believe that the free users get the best experience of the story,
You know what might actually help here? An in-game item for, say, $4.99 that, when activated, would disable the ability to use time crystals at all, until the game has been completed at least once without them. I know that sounds a little odd! I mean, an in-app purchase to *remove* features? But it would show you're serious about making the game fun without the in-app purchases, it would let those of us who just don't like purchasing in-game currency support you, and it would help players feel more immersed in the game, because we wouldn't constantly have the "purchase or don't purchase" decision in our minds.
It's actually really interesting that you say that. Because on my first play of lifeline, I got to the best ending, right off. Whereas I've died multiple times in timecrest, and gave up before actually finishing it. And yet, everyone I've talked to about both games tells me they found Timecrest far easier and more forgiving than Lifeline! So I really don't know. Perhaps it's because me and Tailor live in the same world, so my knowledge and skills can be applied to helping her. Whereas in Timecrest I sometimes feel like I'm choosing randomly, or at least like I don't have all the information I need to make the "best" choice. Sure, next time I play timecrest, I know not to do the thing that got me killed last time. But I don't find learning from previous plays nearly as satisfying as thinking through someone's situation, and being able to think it through and pick the best option available the first time.
> We actually believe that the free users get the best experience of the story,
You know what might actually help here? An in-game item for, say, $4.99 that, when activated, would disable the ability to use time crystals at all, until the game has been completed at least once without them. I know that sounds a little odd! I mean, an in-app purchase to *remove* features? But it would show you're serious about making the game fun without the in-app purchases, it would let those of us who just don't like purchasing in-game currency support you, and it would help players feel more immersed in the game, because we wouldn't constantly have the "purchase or don't purchase" decision in our minds.
Nighthawk321 2 points 6y ago
Thank you for this! It's always great to have developers take VoiceOver into consideration.
jplus [OP] 1 points 6y ago
Thank you! If you try the game, please tell us what you think. We're very interested in your feedback.
jplus [OP] 1 points 6y ago
I wanted to thank everyone for the ideas and feedback. We've gotten a lot of response from audiogames.net, thanks so much.
ianhamilton__ 1 points 6y ago
You already mentioned applevis, have you tried audiogames.net forums / audyssey mailing list too?
jplus [OP] 1 points 6y ago
Great idea. We'll ask for feedback there too.
Are there any other forums or sites you frequent?
Are there any other forums or sites you frequent?
ianhamilton__ 1 points 6y ago
no, although apparently this is worth a try if you fancy some german translating http://www.blindzeln.net/mailman/listinfo/gameport
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