Welcome to the first annual Games for Blind Gamers jam! The goal of this jam is to build awareness of blind gaming (and accessibility in general), as well as making games for blind players. We welcome developers of all types (beginners and veterans, sighted and blind, etc.) and encourage you to learn about blind gamers and accessibility to create interesting and creative games!

• What: A 31-day chilled jam where you create a game that blind players can play, too.
• When: From December 1st to 31st, 2021 (inclusive)
  
• Why: Blind gamers have their own set of challenges when gaming. We hope to build awareness and create interesting, creative games that they can enjoy too!
• How: It's a chilled jam, so the community will vote on the winners! Anyone with an account on Itch can vote (public).

Rules:

• Prior code is OK, but please make sure you state in your submission what prior code you used.
• Ditto for prior assets - please state them and/or reference them appropriately.
• You can work alone or in teams of up to four
• Please don't actually work on your game until the starting date. We're trusting you!

To ensure as many people as possible can play your game, please make sure it runs on Windows, or web/HTML5. I will post links to the jam page on the Audio Games forum to try and attract blind players to give feedback on submissions.

That's pretty much it. More clarifications/rules may be added in response to questions before the jam starts.

Q: Where can we hang out and talk to people involved with or participating in this jam?

A: We've set up a #games-for-blind-gamers channel on this Discord server. You can use it to discuss the jam with us, ask questions, get fedeback, show your progress, network with others to form a team before the jam, etc.

Q: Where can I find and talk to blind gamers?

A: You can try the AudioGames forums. There are lots of helpful, friendly, blind gamers there.

Q: Do I need to be sighted to join the jam?

A: Nope, blind game developers are also welcome!

Q: How do I begin making a game for blind people?

A: I don't really know! Here's what I've learned so far:

• The most common advice I get when I ask blind gamers, is "turn off your monitor and play the game." That's a good starting point.
• You may also want to download the NVDA Screen Reader to get an idea of how blind players interact with your game.
• Audio is very very important. Think carefully about background and foreground audio, and how to convey important information through audio (e.g. distance as volume or pitch).

Q: Can I include graphics?

A: Yes! Bear in mind that blind players won't see (or care about) your graphics!

Q: Do I have to make a text game (interactive fiction, roguelike, etc.)?

A: No! It certainly makes some things easier - you can probably include more content, and focus on sounds more, too.