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Ear Hockey
20 Accessibility Features

We've documented 20 accessibility features for Ear Hockey, including Fully Voiced (Or No Speech), Large Text, Select Difficulty, No Repeated Pressing and No Holds. Its accessibility is strongest in Visual and Controls but it also has features in Reading, Getting Started, Difficulty, Navigation and Audio to reduce unintended barriers.

This report is created with input from accessibility experts and the player community to help people find games that have the accessibility features they require. Once you have found potential games on the database, there are excellent specialist accessibility sites that offer in-depth reviews to guide your purchasing decisions.

Ear Hockey is a bat and ball competitive game played by listening to the in-game audio alone; no screen is required. It uses spatial audio cues to signal to the player where they are in the play space and where the main game object, the ball, is travelling.

Our accessibility examiner, Andy Robertson, first checked Ear Hockey accessibility 2 years ago. It was re-examined by Andy Robertson and updated 2 years ago.

NotesAccessibility Notes

There's a good tutorial to introduce sounds and interactions. There are some difficulty settings for the computer opponent. You can adjust the volume of the sound. You can't adjust the music and effects volume separately.

DetailsGame Details

Release Date: 14/12/2018

Price: Free

Out Now: PC

Skill Rating: 8+ year-olds

Players: 1-2 (2 online)

Genres: Action, Sports (Rhythm and Traversal)

Accessibility: 20 features

Components: 3D First-Person

Developer: Patrick D Farley (@PatrickDFarley)

Costs: Free

 

ControlsControls

We've documented 4 accessibility features for Controls in Ear Hockey which deal with how you control the game, different options for alternative inputs and whether you can remap these settings to suit your needs.

Mouse And Keyboard

Can play with the following:

Keyboard Alone: Can play with just the keyboard.

Button Combinations

Specific button operation required to play

Holding Down Buttons Optional: Holding down buttons for prolonged periods (a second or more) is not required or can be switched to toggling the action on and off. This is in addition to the movement stick/button which is not considered a hold for this purpose.

Rapid Repeated Pressing Optional: Quick, repeated button pressing (more than 2 times a second) is not required, can be skipped or switched to holding a button to trigger a repeated action.

Controller Vibration

Vibration Optional: Controller vibration not used in the game or you can disable it.

 

Similar Games With More Accessibility Features for Controls

If you want to play Ear Hockey, but it doesn't offer the Controls accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Controls accessibility:

DifficultyDifficulty

We've documented 1 accessibility feature for Difficulty in Ear Hockey which deals with how you can adjust the challenge of play, and whether this is locked once chosen or can be adjusted as you play.

Difficulty Options

Select Difficulty: Select the level of difficulty from a range of presets. This not only offers a way to adjust the challenge of a game but enables you to do so without dealing with individual criteria.

 

Similar Games With More Accessibility Features for Difficulty

If you want to play Ear Hockey, but it doesn't offer the Difficulty accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Difficulty accessibility:

Getting StartedGetting Started

We've documented 2 accessibility features for Getting Started in Ear Hockey which deal with what support is offered to get started with the game. This includes customising the experience when you first open the game via any onboarding processes it provides as well as tutorials and other assistance when you first start playing.

Assistance Getting Starting

These features aid your play of the game in terms of cognitive load on learning controls, dealing with pressure and coping with the environment and challenges.

Tutorials: There are helpful tutorials and instructions on how to play. Information is provided in a timely manner, with appropriate level of detail.

Practice Area: You can practice freely without opponents or time pressures. This can be a specific practice option, or the ability to play levels with the easiest opponents to improve understanding and skill.

 

Similar Games With More Accessibility Features for Getting Started

If you want to play Ear Hockey, but it doesn't offer the Getting Started accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Getting Started accessibility:

ReadingReading

We've documented 3 accessibility features for Reading in Ear Hockey which deal with how much reading or listening comprehension is required, how well the game provides visual and audible access to the text and whether subtitles and captions are a good fit for purpose.

Reading Level

How much reading is required to play the game's main path or story and how complex the language is. The presence of voiced characters doesn't reduce this requirement, as it's recorded as a separate datapoint.

Simple Minimal Reading: Minimal reading is required. The quantity and complexity of reading are at a level that a primary/elementary student (9-year-old) could understand.

Text Visibility

Large Clear Text: All essential text is large and clear or can be adjusted to be. The general text used throughout the game in menus, instructions and other key information (excluding subtitles that are assessed separately) is at least 1/20 (46 pixels on 1080 screen) the height on landscape screens and at least 1/40 height on portrait screens. We base this on the full line-height, including the space above and below the letters.

Voice Acted

All Dialogue is Voice Acted (Or No Speech In Game): All of the game dialogue and narrative can be voiced, or there is no speech in the game. This means there is no requirement to read the dialogue and narrative text to play the game.

 

Similar Games With More Accessibility Features for Reading

If you want to play Ear Hockey, but it doesn't offer the Reading accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Reading accessibility:

NavigationNavigation

We've documented 1 accessibility feature for Navigation in Ear Hockey which deals with how the game provides guidance and assistance to navigate its worlds. These are only for games that have traversal and exploration in 2D and 3D spaces.

Menu Navigation

Menu Narrated: All of the game menus can be narrated for easier navigation. The game menus can therefore be navigated without reading text.

 

Similar Games With More Accessibility Features for Navigation

If you want to play Ear Hockey, but it doesn't offer the Navigation accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Navigation accessibility:

VisualVisual

We've documented 9 accessibility features for Visual in Ear Hockey which deal with how you can adjust the visuals to suit your needs, and offer additional information if you can't hear the game.

Contrast

High Contrast: There is high contrast between elements that need to be distinguished from each other, such as characters, interactive objects and game environment, either by default or a high contrast mode. This is different to a slider that increases contrast or brightness between light and dark.

Interactive Elements

Large Game Elements: Game characters and other elements are large and distinguishable. Enemies and player characters are at least 1/6 of the height of the screen. Or there is a zoom feature to make them larger.

Outline Interactive Elements: Characters, platforms and enemies can be outlined or highlighted for visibility. This can be with a large border around the character or a special visual mode that adjust the colour to make characters more visible.

Visual Distractions

No Flashes: No flashing strobe effects or you can disable them. This includes the absence of flashing from dramatic visual effects, explosions or weather effects like lightning.

No Screen Shake: No screen shake effect or it is included but it can be disabled. This includes the absence of screen shake for dramatic effect as well as to indicate hits on a target.

No Busy Backgrounds: No distracting backgrounds or you can make them static or blank. This includes the absence of other movement elements in the background that might distract or confuse the action. Where foreground contrast is high, this includes games with some movement in the background that doesn't make it overly difficult to distinguish what is happening.

Audio Cues for Visual Events

Audio Cues for Visual Events: Audio is provided to indicate visual events. Game events or progress highlighted by visual icons, effects or animations are also accompanied by audio to signify that progress. This is useful for blind players.

Narration for Visual Elements

This is the audible narration of in-game text. Sometimes talk about as Text To Speech, although it may include the narration of no-textual elements. This is different to Text To Voice, which provides player-player textual communication audibly.

Menu Narrated: All of the game menus can be narrated for easier navigation. The game menus can therefore be navigated without reading text.

Play Without Sight

Play Without Sight: The game can be played without sight. Positional/stereo sounds and haptic feedback enable play without the need to see the screen. This is useful for blind low-vision and sightless players.

AudioAudio

We've documented 1 accessibility feature for Audio in Ear Hockey which deals with how you can adjust the audio of the game and whether audio cues compensate for aspects of the game that are hard to see.

Adjustable Audio

Balance Audio Levels: Set music and game sound effects separately. This enables you to select your preference as well as ensure critical game sounds aren't obscured by other audio.

 

Similar Games With More Accessibility Features for Audio

If you want to play Ear Hockey, but it doesn't offer the Audio accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Audio accessibility:

CommunicationCommunication

We haven’t documented any accessibility features for Communication in Ear Hockey which deal with how you can communicate with other players in the game and what options are available to customise and control this interaction. The following games are similar to Ear Hockey, and offer accessibility features for Communication:

System Accessibility Settings

In addition to the accessibility features provided in the game, you can also use system-wide accessibility settings:

PC
Windows has extensive accessibility features. Some, like colour correction, work with games. Lots of accessibility software can be used with PC games, from voice recognition to input device emulators.
 
Read more about system accessibility settings.

VSC LogoAccessibility Report supported by VSC Rating Board, PlayabilityInitiative and accessibility contributors Andy Robertson


Taming Gaming Book Written by parents for parents, the database complements the in-depth discussion about video game addiction, violence, spending and online safety in the Taming Gaming book. We are an editorially independent, free resource without adverts that is supported by partnerships.

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