This is the fifth entry in my UX portfolio series. If you have not read the previous one, you can find it here 👈️
WAVE a suite of evaluation tools that helps authors make their web content more accessible to individuals with disabilities.
Interlude
When we last left our summer research study, we completed a pilot round of examination for our study materials before drafting a preliminary report on the result from the pilot. This past two weeks, we have taken a short recess from conducting our study, to explore two important topics in the realm of user experience: Information Architecture and Web Accessibility. Relating to one core goal of the Mad UX program, these weeks allow us to develop a broader understanding of various research methods. Shifting focus in this way also allows us additional time to make changes to our study based on peer feedback, and recruit participants for our final study.
Information Architecture
Our first week of study during this unit saw my cohort and I returning to the practice of information architecture, a topic we had briefly covered in more detail in the fall term of our UX capstone. As it relates to digital accessibility, creating clear and effective headings and labels is a crucial part of creating websites that are easy to use for keyboard-only users or users navigating sites with a screen reader. As strange as it may sound (though I suspect some of my fellow code monkeys may relate) one aspect of creating digital applications that I find particularly satisfying and rewarding. As may be evident from the platform of this site, I have a deep love of writing in Markdown (a markup language that emphasizes structure and consistency) extending beyond authoring content for this blog to the notes I take with Obsidian every week.
In video games, information architecture is a crucial piece in organizing menus and interfaces of the game ranging from the settings and title menus to the inventory, stat windows, and skill trees of many RPGs. These interfaces are often developed and evaluated with card sorts and tree tests depending on the stage of development and the maturity of the interface. For MOTHER², the most appropriate method for testing interfaces like the combat menus used in battle would likely be a tree test as veteran players already have well-defined mental models of EarthBound’s interfaces. Conversely, the settings menu for MOTHER² would most likely benefit from a cart sort, to better categorize the new features of the game in a way that matches the expectations of today’s RPG players.
WAI, WCAG, and WAVE (Oh my!)
A majority of the time spent these past weeks saw us revisiting the principles of universal and inclusive design and how they apply to both sites and games. A majority of our time was spent revisiting the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, which are developed by the World Wide Web Consortium’s Web Accessibility Initiative. Our main exercises this week was provided by Accessible University. Their site provides a great way to practice your skills in auditing websites for accessibility issues, using tools like WAVE and Orca (or any other screen reader). I found this exercise to be a great way to develop empathy for users who rely on a screen reader and inspired me to audit my own site for accessibility issues (perhaps the subject of a future post…)
Accessibility in Games
It is important to note, however, that accessibility for digital games has only recently gained greater public awareness in the last 5 years. Apple’s Human Interface Guidelines which is considered the go-to bible for web guidelines by some, only recently expanded to include games last month.
If you are looking to learn more about how the games industry is changing to become more inclusive: check out this playlist by Game Maker’s Toolkit.
The UX portfolio series continues on. In the next entry you can read all about conducting the usability test in this case study. ⏩️