disability accessability options.

[bigolbear]

ok folks i know theres been a fair bit of talk on the forums and in game regarding issues this game has for the colour blind. DDO by its very nature of being reasonably priced, highly time consuming and related to old school D&D attracts a good number of disabled customers.

Now some of the needs of these people is affecting the atmosphere and gameplay of every one else - not that it should be an issue but id like to see ideal options for all.

I realise how that sentance might sound so let me assure you all i want is the best gaming experience for all, regardless of ability. I my self have various issues with my health as do several of my guildies.

I therefore suggest:

Accessability options: (in the options panel somewhere)

1. colour blind (sets textures and colours to be easier to recognise - numbers rune wheels)
2. hard of hearing/deaf. (uses speach recognition to type out voice data from other players in the chat window)
3. partialy sighted (uses speach synthesis to speak data from the chat window, uses clear symbols for things like rune wheels, larger mouse pointer)

Id welcome any further input or suggestions on this topic, especialy from disabled people and devs.

[Gorbadoc]

Now some of the needs of these people is affecting the atmosphere and gameplay of every one else.

Is it? I remember the colorblind tweaks, but I didn't notice those tweaks changing the game's atmosphere. The closest I've heard to a complaint was that the Reaver's Fate Mastermind puzzle is less pretty.

Are people being jerks on other servers? Come join us on Ghalanda. People seem pretty good about trying to work with each other there. There's an occasional jerk, but not enough to ruin the atmosphere, IMO.

Edit: Oh, yeah, and if there are other accessibility needs, by all means, I /sign the devs taking reasonable steps to let more folks enjoy the game. Like you said, though, further input should be coming especially from the people with the special needs and from the devs responsible for implementing changes.