Game changer: accessible audio and tactile guidance for board and card games

Abstract

While board games are a popular social activity, their reliance on visual information can create accessibility problems for blind and visually impaired players. Because some players cannot easily read cards or locate pieces, they may be at a disadvantage or may be unable to play a game without sighted help. We present Game Changer, an augmented workspace that provides both audio descriptions and tactile additions to make the state of the board game accessible to blind and visually impaired players. In this paper, we describe the design of Game Changer and present findings from a user study in which seven blind participants used Game Changer to play against a sighted partner. Most players stated the game was more accessible with the additions from Game Changer and felt that Game Changer could be used to augment other games.