Writing for All Audiences - Professional Techniques for Video Game Writing - page 97

Place your dialog to give audio cues during gameplay, but also have text written
as subtitles. You'll want to consider how a voice actor can concisely alert the visually
impaired of actions and locations relative to what they're doing in the game at any
given moment. Hinn advises giving attention to “the differences between subtitling
and captioning. Captioning includes all ambient sound (especially when hearing
what is going on is the only way to know what to do) and captioning through the
cutscenes. Subtitling is just concerned with the dialog.� Both will be relevant but
should be considered separate efforts.
Additionally, you will need to think about how choices made to support blind
players may affect the accessibility for the hearing-impaired. There is much room for
creativity in this field as it grows, but in any choice you make, it will be essential to
playtest and put the gameplay (the fun part) at the forefront of any game.
10.5 Conclusion
Attention to your audience's needs and taking the time to research or work with
focus groups and playtesting groups can make the difference for an enriched game
experience in any genre and for any audience. Whether you're writing to address a
specific audience or appeal to all audiences, your focus will be on honing your craft
and understanding your audience.
Your role as a writer is ultimately to communicate with the players and add to
thedesigninawaythatmakesthegamemoreenjoyableforthem.
10.6 Exercises
1. Take one of your favorite video games and imagine it in light of a different
audience. Rewrite anything you want to—from character background sto-
ries to dialog to player tutorial text. After you do this, ask yourself: Has the
genre of the game changed? If so, in what ways? What does this mean for an
audience-specific game?
2. Take a video game that you feel has poor localization, low-quality writing, or a
general lack of appeal to multiple audiences. Go step by step identifying each
aspect you as a writer would be able to change and rewrite the game without
changing the genre or overall story.