mod needed for blind players

B

blindPlayer

Guest
Hi ya,
I am a blind player of hl2, using a screenreader and software that turns images into sound files to maneuver around.
I would like to pursue having a mod made for blind players such as myself with a level that is very simple with simple black and white textures, and possibly having each player make a distinctive sound whenever they move.
When I could see a few years ago, I did some level creation for hl1, so I am sure this kind of thing could be done.
If you are interested, or know someone that could help me out, please email me directly if you wish at
[email protected]
Obviously this would be a multi player level, and I think it would be a great training tool for folks learning to use the image to sound software.
Many thanks,
Che Martin
[email protected]
www.linksForBlinks.com
 
Yeah, because, you know, technology is so primitive that blind people have to just sit around doing nothing.

You guys need to get out more.

He explained in the post. He plays via sound.

Also, as a person who types without looking at the keyboard, I'm pretty confident that it's not impossible to type things out while blind. Once again, screenreaders and, I would imagine, braille keyboards.

If I had any clue how that would best be implemented, I would love to help, but the truth is, I'm not really that on top of my coding.

Best of luck though with getting this done.
 
I think navagating forums would be harder than typing or playing a game based on sound
 
Ya, navigating the forums can be hard at times. I am using a screenreader which turns the text into a synthesized voice.
If any of you know where I might find someone to create this mod for us, please let me know. Maybe another forum or a website dedicated to mod work.
Any help is greatly appreciated.
Again, feel free to email me at [email protected]
 
That actually sounds really fun, using only sound to navigate a 3D map and blast away opponents...I'd love to play a map/mod like that.

I'm not able to help, and I'm not even sure about what other sites to check for help with the idea, but good luck anyway.
 
it sounds quite intricate/ linear to make a mod using sound only. not to say its undoable. it just might take more than your common modder to make this type of game. reletively speaking you would just need a monotone color for the game wouldnt you? Assuming your targeting blind players only. The thought of sound perplexes me though! how would your make it so its not a maze and more to do with an fps. its sounds like you could only make something like a myst type game
 
No, the level qould be quite easy to make, just some simple walls and maybe an obstacle or two. The sound software would handle everything else, making sound forms based on visual input from the game.
The only other part would be to create a sound when other players moved about the level.
Hope that makes sense.
 
Yea, I thought it would be pretty easy...

Think of the way people would hunt footstep sounds in CS, except in this version, enemies' footsteps sound different than friendlies' (if you had teams). Walls could make a low hum or something, and if you wanted the maps to get intricate:
Different types of rooms or areas would have distinctively different ambience sound, so that you could tell what part of the map you were in.
Stairs, obstacles, doorways etc could make their own distincive sounds.
There could even be ticking grenades like in half life 2. You'd have to have a damn good speaker setup though...

Seems as simple as creating a map for HL:DM or CS:S, with no visible textures, only sounds. Then again, making a seperate mod for this map might be better. Either way, it's a cool idea, hell I could even create the sounds for it if the mod really got started. That's about all I could do though.
 
I think its a great idea!

It would be cool if you didnt use the monitor at all so everyone can play it under the same rules. Everyone have to rely on sounds to play it.

I can't give you a timeframe or anything but me and my friends would like to give this a shot at some point. We are already working on several other projects at the moment so I dont know when we will have time for this. It is, however, a very nice idea and the design welcomes a lot of new creative thinking, just how we like it.

How does this Image to sound software work? If you look at a white texture ingame, will it translate the image of the white texture into a certain sound?

I could just do a very simple mod in a day with new maps (Black and white textures) and new footstep sounds for the players so you hear them better. It could also feature a railgun kind of weapon, in other words, one shot, one kill. Classic DM.
 
blindPlayer said:
Hi ya,
I am a blind player of hl2, using a screenreader and software that turns images into sound files to maneuver around.
I would like to pursue having a mod made for blind players such as myself with a level that is very simple with simple black and white textures, and possibly having each player make a distinctive sound whenever they move.
When I could see a few years ago, I did some level creation for hl1, so I am sure this kind of thing could be done.
If you are interested, or know someone that could help me out, please email me directly if you wish at
[email protected]
Obviously this would be a multi player level, and I think it would be a great training tool for folks learning to use the image to sound software.
Many thanks,
Che Martin
[email protected]
www.linksForBlinks.com
Click to expand...

This sound like something really fun to do and at the same time very good for blind people. I am interested in helping out creating this mod. I could assist with basic modelling, mapping, texturing and pretty much anything else except coding work.

Do you have MSN messenger ?

EDIT: This mod could be very fun for people that are'nt blind too, since to rely completly on sound is quite unique in the gaming world as far as i know. The maps could just be a box and instead of walls to hide behind the players could have some kind of noise making weapon that distracts other players. And there could be some sort of sound grenades instead of a pistol. It would then be easier to hit/kill an enemy since a greneade has a wider damage range =)
 
Wow. If/when you start/announce your mod, be sure to fire off an email to [email protected] . This is the sort of thing we'd definitely report on, and I applaud you (below).

Applause!
 
I could imagine a low tone emitted from your targeting reticle that changes pitch slightly when it passes over entities in the game world. It would be subtle enough to not make it over powering.
 
Me and a mate just started toying around with the idea of having a all-audio mod with no visuals what so ever. We'll see what we can come up with in a few days. Stay tuned!
 
Hey guys, thanks for all the responses.
One thing that seems to be confusing folks is how this mod will work. We do need visuals, not just sound files. This is not like the quake game for the blind. We are using a 3rd party software that takes visual images and turns them into sound that the blind player can interpret. So we would need fairly standard level creation, just with much more simple textures, for instance mostly black with white edging, so the software would be able to indicate wall edges and passageways.
This has never been done before, so I want to start out very simple, with maybe a two room level and each room having a smal obstacle in the middle.
Also, I love some of the ideas put forth here, especially the reticle targeting idea. I am not sure what all can be done from a coding standpoint, but that would be great. Also, if weapons sound could be adjusted that would be very welcome, especially for grenades.
However, I think we should start out small and build up. I have had a couple of people email me privately wanting to help out, and I think this will be the best way to form a team.
If you are interested in this project, please email me at [email protected] and I will see what different parts of the mod we can handle.
So you know, before losing my sight to diabetic retinopathy, I was a visual effects artist working on film and television projects. Using software like Maya, softImage, FLame and Inferno. I mention that only so you know I have an extensive background in graphics and can talk the talk when it comes to texturing and the like. Also, I dabbled around with level creation with hl1 when I could see, so I know some of the basics, though I am sure the new creation systems are far more advanced than what we used for hl1.
Anyway, I look forward to hearing from any and all of you.
Thanks for your interest.
Che
 
Sorry, this forum is very hard to maneuver and I posted twice, tried to delete this one, but could only edit it.
Anyhow, please disregard.
Che
 
Puzzlemaker said:
Where do you get this software?

And that sucks. A lot.
Click to expand...
The image to sound software is a free download at www.seeingwithsound.com
The guy who developed this software is behind this half life project one hundred percent, and I have set up a forum for it at my website www.linksForBlinks.com
If you want to see how a screenreader works and if you have XP, just type narrator into your run box and voila, instant screenreader. Though the one I use is called Jaws and is much more advanced, this will give you an idea of how screenreaders work.
Later,
Che
 
I was just taking a look at vOICe, and it's incredible technology. I really wish there was something I could do for this project.
 
Good idea guys! The best of luck to you, and I wouldn't mind playing myself. Keep us informed
 
Ok gang, we're going ahead with the first level design, but I still need someone to do a tweak so we can have each player create a distinctive sound so they can be tracked.
If you are interested in doing this , or know anyone that might be, please let me know at [email protected] or by replying here.
Thanks much for any help, and I'll keep the thread updated as we make progress.
Take care,
Che
 
Can I ask how many blind gamers you think there are?

Regards,
Mutley.
 
That's mighty impressive. I hope your project comes to fruition soon.
 
There are thousands of blind gamers, but very few that play fps games, because without using software like vOICe or creating a totally sound driven environment like the quake mod does, it is basically impossible.
However, this isn't about running around and shooting your blind friends. The main purpose here is to create a training software for people to learn how to use the vOICe software. If you are interested in how it works, go to seeingwithsound.com
It is not something that is easily learned, or learned in a short amount of time. The brain has to be trained to recognize the sound aptterns, and a project like this can help tremendously in doing that.
Frankly, I am amazed that nobody in the mod community has stepped forth and offered a small amount of their time to help us do the sound creation for when a player moves. This is a very worthwhile project and could potentially help a lot of people out.
Again, if you can help with this or know someone who can, or even if you know somewhere else I can find a person like this, perhaps another forum or web site, please let me know at [email protected]
Thanks much,
Che
 
Basicly this game would only require basic maps, textures, sound and a decent coder.
 
I would help, except I dont have the neccesary skills... Ill spread the word, though.
 
Having no luck finding a coder for the project, I am looking into doing the sound coding myself. I have some experience with visual studio and c+, so maybe I can do some of this.
The thing is, I can't seem to be able to download the hl2 sdk source from Steam. The Valve development site says it is free for download, but I don't even see it in my list. Does it come automatically with the basic hl2 package?
Thanks,
Che
 
Id want to play this even though I am not blind, it would be a cool experience to try to play things with no visual input.
 
CookieCuttah said:
Id want to play this even though I am not blind, it would be a cool experience to try to play things with no visual input.
Click to expand...

You are welcome to. You can try it already with Half-Life as-is,
although of course it will initially be much too complex to handle.

The recipe is at

http://www.seeingwithsound.com/win3dgame.htm

and the software can be downloaded for free at

http://www.seeingwithsound.com/winvoice.htm

First make sure that you understand the basic image to sound
mapping rules, such that you will know why something sounds
like it does for a given visual view. You may also need to
tweak Half-Life contrast settings for best results.
 
I'd be more than happy to help with this project as a mapper, it sounds really challenging and a great idea. If you need examples of my work check this website www.forsaken-game.com
 
Hey, I would also like to help with mapping, Sorry I cant code which is what your really looking for but... yeah anyway I could also create a website for you and stuff as well.
 
Rovient said:
I'd be more than happy to help with this project as a mapper, it sounds really challenging and a great idea. If you need examples of my work check this website www.forsaken-game.com
Click to expand...

Thank you, Rovient and Sathernut! I had a quick look
at forsaken-game.com and was very impressed with the
graphics. :cool:

Now what I think we need most is a visually simplified
and uncluttered environment, such that blind users can
first learn to visually find their way in buildings, on
roads, through corridors and gates, whatever, with only
few and mostly static objects/obstacles along their way.

The vOICe will generally be best perceived with objects
of interest that are relatively bright against a
relatively dark background (but not too dark or one
would no longer notice walls, floors and ceilings etc).

To give some idea, it may be useful to have a look at
the crude VRML/X3D sample at

http://www.seeingwithsound.com/winvrml.htm

I'm sure one can do a much better job, so this is just
to illustrate the kinds of visual simplifications that
one could apply to create a visual environment for
practicing seeing with sound, and hopefully that
environment would also be more elaborate to navigate
and explore.

Well-chosen textures can probably help as well with
the perception of visual perspective, because their
spatial frequencies become higher at larger distances.

For lack of tactile feedback it would also be great if,
separate from The vOICe, there could be characteristic
collision or scraping sounds whenever a wall or an
object is touched upon, and optional sounds to help
identify other player avatars - as indicated by Che.

From this point on it is probably best to coordinate
things with Che. Any help is appreciated.

Thanks!


P.S. I have now dropped the automatic forwarding from
The vOICe home page to its game page, so just in case,
it is still at

3D games made accessible using The vOICe
http://www.seeingwithsound.com/win3dgame.htm
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

-smash-
Valve at GDC 2019
Replies
0
Views
25K
-smash-
-smash-
B
Barking Dog Studios' work for Valve
Replies
0
Views
12K
Barnz
B
MFL
Fascinating look at the ongoing psychological evolution of flat hieirarchies.
Replies
2
Views
2K
Tollbooth Willie
Tollbooth Willie
B
Half-Life's lost feature, Timeline
Replies
0
Views
6K
Barnz
B
B
From Warren Spector to Arkane Studios: Half-Life 2's cancelled Ravenholm episode
Replies
2
Views
10K
Clan Wolf 2
Clan Wolf 2
Back
Top