A Video Game without Video

A new computer game developed by MIT and Singaporean students ve taken the video out of videogames, making it possible for visually impaired people to play the game on a level field with their sighted friends.

The game, called AudiOdyssey, simulates a deejay trying to build up a catchy tune and get people dancing. By swinging the remote-control device used by the Nintendo Wii, which senses motion, the player can set the rhythm and lay down one musical track after another, gradually building up a richer musical track.

AudiOdyssey is an experimental computer game designed to be accessible to both the visually impaired community and mainstream gamers. The user stars as Vinyl Scorcher, an up-and-coming DJ, on his quest to get club patrons dancing. Swinging the Nintendo Wii controller to the beat, Vinyl lays down the various component tracks of a song, and keeps the party jumping. If he does an especially good job, he can even freestyle! But beware - if dancers get too rowdy, they're likely to bump into the turntables, messing up Vinyl's tracks. Think you have what it takes?

AudiOdyssey was developed with four research goals:

• The visually-impaired and the sighted can enjoy the same level and quality of gameplay
• Navigate game's menus with ease and efficiency approaching that of conventional UIs
• Create a fun and natural control scheme using the Wiimote
• An engaging game that relies more on high quality audio than visuals

Download it from http://gambit.mit.edu/loadgame/audiodyssey.php