Understanding Tabletop Games Accessibility: Exploring Board and Card Gaming Experiences of People who are Blind and Low Vision

Abstract

Gaming accessibility research for blind or low vision (BLV) communities largely focuses on digital games. There is a need for designers to understand BLV's experience with tabletop games that involve the player's physical interaction. In this study, we investigate BLV individuals' experience with the accessibility of tabletop games. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 15 BLV participants and found four themes that uncovered participants' tabletop gaming experiences: (1) properties of inaccessible games, (2) outcomes of inaccessible games, (3) properties of accessible games, and (4) outcomes of accessible games. Our findings demonstrate a richness and variety in BLV individuals' tabletop gaming experiences. By providing discussions on the state of tabletop game interactivity and design recommendations, our work assists the creation of accessible tangible games that make use of digital information and physical forms by affording designers the opportunity to understand how inaccessible interactions in tabletop games affect BLV populations. CCS CONCEPTS• Human-centered computing → Accessibility; Accessibility; Empirical studies in accessibility; Accessibility design and evaluation methods.

Exploring Accessibility and Companionship in Boardgames via Alexa

“…Accessibility refers to the design of products, services, or environments for all intended audiences, including people with and without disabilities [78]. Inaccessible boardgames mean individual game elements (e.g., a physical board, game pieces, and cards) along the dimensions of text, color, sound, and touch cannot be processed by players who are blind or low vision (hereafter, BLV) [37,62]. For instance, players who are BLV have a difficult time reading Dungeons and Dragons game cards because these cards use a decorative font style designed to highlight the game's fantasy theme.…”

“…For instance, players who are BLV have a difficult time reading Dungeons and Dragons game cards because these cards use a decorative font style designed to highlight the game's fantasy theme. Boardgame rulebooks are also inaccessible [37]. Players who are BLV use online rulebooks, but some rulebooks are not compatible with assistive technologies that translate text to speech (e.g., optical character recognition, a screen reader) [37,90] and this inaccessibility may cause frustrations in BLV players even before the game begins.…”

“…Boardgame rulebooks are also inaccessible [37]. Players who are BLV use online rulebooks, but some rulebooks are not compatible with assistive technologies that translate text to speech (e.g., optical character recognition, a screen reader) [37,90] and this inaccessibility may cause frustrations in BLV players even before the game begins.…”

“…The survey highlighted that inaccessibility can result from an interplay of social stigma and the nature of assistive technologies. Studies have shown that it is crucial to offer accessible games for several reasons [37,47]. First, players with disabilities value their independence and they do not want to rely too much on other players while playing games [47] or learning game rules [37].…”

“…Studies have shown that it is crucial to offer accessible games for several reasons [37,47]. First, players with disabilities value their independence and they do not want to rely too much on other players while playing games [47] or learning game rules [37]. Second, they can enable players to compete fairly without putting players without disabilities at an advantage over players with disabilities [37].…”