Category: Accessible Games
Hi all,
I'm wondering if anyone has any experience with the VI Fit suite of games? From http://www.vifit.org:
The VI Fit research project seeks to explore how exergames can be developed that can be played without visual feedback, with the goal to increase
the participation of users with visual impairments in physical activity and to improve their health. All VI Fit games can be downloaded for free and played
using low cost motion sensing controller (called the Wii Remote) capable of providing vibrotactile and audio cues.
Pet-n-Punch
Pet-n-Punch is a novel exergame inspired by
whack-a-mole
. Help a farmer protect its fields of carrots by bopping varmints on their head..... but make sure
not to hit any kitties! This game you can play with either one or two Wii remotes. This game gives you a much higher workout than our other two exergames
(bowling / tennis).
Bowling
VI Bowling implements the gameplay of
Wii sports
Bowling. VI Bowling has a novel motor learning feature that allows players to find the direction in which to
throw their ball using vibrotactile feedback. Audio and speech effects are used to indicate the result of each throw. VI Bowling was evaluated with six adults
and was found to yield levels of active energy expenditure that are comparable to walking.
VI
Tennis
VI Tennis implements the gameplay of
Wii sports
Tennis. This game provides audio and vibrotactile cues that indicate when to serve and when to return the
ball. You can play this game against the computer or against a friend using two Wii remotes. VI Tennis was evaluated at
Camp Abilities
with 13 children who
were blind and we found our game to engage children into levels of active energy expenditure that were high enough to be considered healthy.
I've picked up a cheap WIImote on eBay so will be able to comment on the gameplay in a few days, but I was wondering if anyone could give me an idea of what to expect?
Cheers.
Never heard of it, but it might be interesting.
Tell us more.
Bob
That sounds cool! I don't have a game system or one of these remotes but I'll def. check it out!
I have a wiimote as well as the console, but no way to connect it to my computer that I know of
How does wii remote work with the computer? Would it work with any old laptop or what? I seem to remember seeing this before, and you need bluetooth which I do not have :(
could you access it through wifi on the wii?
Hi,
I've played the games a few times now and as a bit of light hearted entertainment they're ok I guess. You can tell that they were made as a proof of concept though and I'm skeptical that any blind people were consulted during their creation. Never the less, if you find a source for a cheap wiimote (mine cost just over £10) it's probably worth giving them a go, purely for the different interaction experience.
The Wiimote connects to your computer via blutooth; most laptops have it built in but if not a USB dongle can be purchased extremely cheaply that adds this capability.
Cheers.
those sound interesting, are they mac compatible?
Does it matter what kind of Bluetooth device you have? I think I got a rocketfish from BestBuy but I don't think it worked. It detected my remote but the games wouldn't play for some reason.
Hi,
I too played these games; they are okay, a little entertaining.