MA Game Design Research: Dyslexia-Friendly UI Tool

READ ME:

Hi, thanks for taking part in my research!

This is a study to evaluate the impact of improving player control over UI design to support accessibility. 

This exercise is an example case to demonstrate the benefits of allowing users to individually overrule UI design features to improve the readability of in-game text.

This would allow for developers to maintain their visual design by default whilst still offering inclusive and accessible experiences to those that need adjustments.

Program Overview

The program available for download from this page is a proof-of-concept UI demo designed to replicate industry-standard visual design conventions for menus and written text. It needs a computer to run, mobile devices aren't supported.

A small selection of customisation options allow for certain features of the visual design to be adjusted or negated in order to improve readability at the user's discretion.

My primary goal was to illustrate that accessible UI design is beneficial and easy to implement. This example program helps support that idea, but is only a small part of a larger discussion about accessibility within the games industry.

Finally, I'm not an experienced programmer. My code is somewhat unrefined, but this only further supports my point  - an industry professional would be able to achieve higher quality results in less time.

Instructions

1. To use the tool, simply launch the .exe file found within the folder.

2. Click on Settings to open the menu. There will be several options available and a few paragraphs of example text for reference. 

3. Adjust the settings to your preference to change the look of the text elements. Use the mouse wheel while hovering over the example text to scroll up and down.

4. Once you are confident that the options either provide useful adjustments or fail to do so, record your feedback in the form found using the link at the bottom of this page.

NOTE:

When asked for your name on the survey, please give your first name only.

Alternatively, you can simply put "RP" instead if you'd rather not give your name at all (short for Research Participant).

This is in accordance with data protection guidelines.

Bugs

On pressing Reset, sliders and dropdowns don't return to default. They are still fully functional for further adjustment.

The example text may appear to vanish if font size is reduced after scrolling to the bottom of the enlarged page. This is usually because the text is back at the top out of sight - scrolling back up should bring it back into view.

Feedback

Form: Feedback Survey

Once again, thank you for taking part.