Presentation at IEEE GEM 2018 (IEEE Games Entertainment & Media conference) of the paper "Collaborative Accessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces" by D. Bulgarelli, F. Corno. L. De Russis

1. Collaborative
Accessible
Gameplay with
One-Switch
Interfaces
Daniela Bulgarelli
Università degli Studi diTorino
Dept. Psychology
Fulvio Corno, Luigi De Russis
Politecnico diTorino
Dept. Computer Engineering

2. Goal
• Enable children with severe motor disorders to access dynamic
videogames
• Colorful, fun, action-filled, captivating, dynamic, …
• Accessible with one-switch control interface
• Enable multi-player games
• Socialization
• Have fun with family, siblings, parents
• Inclusive activities at school
• Enable collaborative gameplay
• Fight isolation
• Avoid unfair competitive relationships
2 2018-08-16 IEEE GEM 2018 - Collaborative Accessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces - D. Bulgarelli, F. Corno. L. De Russis - http://elite.polito.it

3. Outline
• Motivation
• Background (GNomon)
• Game Design
• Evaluation
• Conclusions
3 2018-08-16 IEEE GEM 2018 - Collaborative Accessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces - D. Bulgarelli, F. Corno. L. De Russis - http://elite.polito.it

4. Motivation
CollaborativeAccessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces

5. Accessible games
• Playing games is essential for the development of
cognitive, motivational, emotional, and social competence
• Most off-the-shelf video games do not meet the needs of
children with sensory, cognitive, or motor disabilities
• Traditional inputs (keyboard, mouse, controller) are not
usable by users with motor impairments
• One-switch inputs are used
• In previous research, we developed GNomon as an
accessible one-switch interaction modality for dynamic
video games
5 2018-08-16 IEEE GEM 2018 - Collaborative Accessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces - D. Bulgarelli, F. Corno. L. De Russis - http://elite.polito.it

6. Industry awareness is increasing
6 2018-08-16 IEEE GEM 2018 - Collaborative Accessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces - D. Bulgarelli, F. Corno. L. De Russis - http://elite.polito.it
Controllers Game makers Devices

7. Multiplayer & accessible games
• Playing with peers or family improves social &
communication abilities
• When one of the players has disabilities:
• Ensure both players are having fun
• Ensure the experience is challenging (not too easy, not too hard) for
both players
• Collaborative games are a viable option
• The contribution of both players is needed to reach the objective
• Communication and coordination between the players is required
• The split of game responsibility can be adapted to players’ abilities
7 2018-08-16 IEEE GEM 2018 - Collaborative Accessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces - D. Bulgarelli, F. Corno. L. De Russis - http://elite.polito.it

8. Background
(GNomon)
CollaborativeAccessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces

9. GNomon ACMTransactions on Accessible
Computing, 2017
Design and Development of One-
SwitchVideo Games for Children
with Severe Motor Disabilities

10. Game Design
CollaborativeAccessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces

11. Requirements elicitation
• Participatory design method, multidisciplinary team
• Focus group for game design
• HCI researchers, game programmers, psychology researchers, speech therapists
• Identification of target group
• Children able to use a one-switch interface
• Minimum mental age 5-6 years
• Identification of game type
• Collaborative
• Two-players
• Single computer
• One player using the accessible switch
12 2018-08-16 IEEE GEM 2018 - Collaborative Accessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces - D. Bulgarelli, F. Corno. L. De Russis - http://elite.polito.it

12. Gameplay – Monster’s Labyrinth (1/2)
• 2-player, 1-computer game
• Multi-level labyrinth
• 6 stages of 10 levels each  60 levels
• Each player is associated to a character
(monster) in the game
• The two monsters are present at the same
time in the level
• Each monster must reach an ending position
(marked by the monster’s color)
• The level is completed when both monsters
reach their ending spot
14 2018-08-16 IEEE GEM 2018 - Collaborative Accessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces - D. Bulgarelli, F. Corno. L. De Russis - http://elite.polito.it

13. Gameplay – Monster’s Labyrinth (2/2)
• There are no turns, each player moves freely
when he/she wants
• In each move a direction (NSEW) is selected
• The monster moves all the way in that
direction, until it reaches a wall, an obstacle,
another monster, …
• Levels contain points to be collected (bananas)
• Levels contain special elements
15 2018-08-16 IEEE GEM 2018 - Collaborative Accessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces - D. Bulgarelli, F. Corno. L. De Russis - http://elite.polito.it

14. Game Accessibility
• The monster associated to the one-switch control is
driven through the GNomon interaction method
• Arrows are painted next to the monster, in all the
allowed directions
• GNomon clocks are placed besides each arrow
• All game elements (including controls: pause, level
selection, music control, …) are also GNomon-
controllable
16 2018-08-16 IEEE GEM 2018 - Collaborative Accessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces - D. Bulgarelli, F. Corno. L. De Russis - http://elite.polito.it

15. Game levels
• In each new stage (10 levels) new special
elements are introduced
• The number of special elements increases in
later stages
• Some levels might lead to stall situations
(need to restart the level)
• Some levels have a shared labyrinth, some
separated
• Some levels require the collaboration of
players to be solved
17 2018-08-16 IEEE GEM 2018 - Collaborative Accessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces - D. Bulgarelli, F. Corno. L. De Russis - http://elite.polito.it

16. Evaluation
CollaborativeAccessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces

17. Evaluation
Goals
• Validating the characteristics of the
game
• Playability
• Fun
• Collaboration
• Understanding its applicability
• Suitable mental age
• Required cognitive capabilities
Method
• 2-steps
1. Analysis by a group of experts
2. Study with pairs of players of
various ages
19 2018-08-16 IEEE GEM 2018 - Collaborative Accessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces - D. Bulgarelli, F. Corno. L. De Russis - http://elite.polito.it

18. 1. Analysis by experts
Experts group
• 3 speech therapists (1 new)
• 2 psychologists (1 new)
• Analyzed the game design
• Analyzed the control methods
• Tested its implementation by playing
Analysis results
• Successful gameplay requires:
• Cognitive flexibility
• Working memory
• Strategic thinking
• Ability to handle multiple information
• Planning
• Collaboration
• Suitable for children with physical
disabilities whose cognitive
functioning can meet the described
abilities
• Can also be a fun activity to improve
these competences and skills while
interacting with peers
20 2018-08-16 IEEE GEM 2018 - Collaborative Accessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces - D. Bulgarelli, F. Corno. L. De Russis - http://elite.polito.it

19. 2. Experiment with players
21 2018-08-16 IEEE GEM 2018 - Collaborative Accessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces - D. Bulgarelli, F. Corno. L. De Russis - http://elite.polito.it
• 5 player pairs
• Some children, some adults, no disabilities
• In-family settings
• One experimenter observing the players
• Players were free to switch roles
• Game duration was up to the players
• Logged actions

20. Comments
• After a few levels, a collaboration strategy was always developed
• Some discussing and agreeing, then moving the monsters
• Some with a ‘leader’ and an ‘executor’ (especially when age difference was
significant): collaboration suffers
• One verbal fight event was observed
• Game is playable for children with a mental functioning of 5-6 years
• For stages 3 and above, a mental age of at least 8-10 years is required
• Some levels were found too difficult for the younger children, requiring
external hints
• Players generally enjoyed the game, found it challenging and
engaging, and endured a long play time without problems
22 2018-08-16 IEEE GEM 2018 - Collaborative Accessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces - D. Bulgarelli, F. Corno. L. De Russis - http://elite.polito.it

21. Conclusions
CollaborativeAccessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces

22. Conclusions
• Games are a powerful tool for stimulating
children abilities and socialization
• Control interfaces must be accessible, and
game design must take into account special
needs
• Multi-player collaborative games enhance
socialization and collaboration
• May offer relaxing and fun moments at home
and in the classroom
• Next step: experimentation with children with
disabilities
24 2018-08-16 IEEE GEM 2018 - Collaborative Accessible Gameplay with One-Switch Interfaces - D. Bulgarelli, F. Corno. L. De Russis - http://elite.polito.it
http://bit.ly/gnomon-games
GNomon games are
free to download