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Game accessibility guidelines

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Ensure that subtitles/captions are cut down to and presented at an appropriate words-per-minute for the target age-group

In general, sign sanguage users find subtitles faster and more difficult than deaf people with oral English. Profoundly deaf users tend to have the most problems with fast or complex subtitles.
OFCOM

Speech often happens at a faster pace than reading speed, especially bearing in mind the 17% of the UK/US population that has some difficulty reading, and bearing in mind that for people born deaf, the language in the subtitles is not their first language. There are established guidelines from the TV/Movie industry for words per minute depending on age group, including how to sub down the text to fit within the words per minute.

It is critically important to convey the same information through subtitles and captions as through audio, so reducing the number of words should only by done when absolutely necessary, and be through compacting phrases, and not through removing any information.

More information: BBC subtitling guidelines
More information: OFCOM subtitle speed research
More information: Video game subtitles – what movies can teach us

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Help & advice

How to work with these guidelines

FCC Chairman's Award for Advancement in Accessibility
finalist 2016, tiga games industry awards
DFA foundation best practice award, Horizon Interactive Bronze Winner, 7-128 industry & community leader

About the guidelines

A collaborative effort between a group of studios, specialists and academics, to produce a straightforward developer friendly reference for ways to avoid unnecessarily excluding players, and ensure that games are just as fun for as wide a range of people as possible.

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