Spoilers Lw S4 - Warning for All Those Who are Light Sensitive

[juhani.5361]

Just tossing in a thumbs up for an option to toggle some of the effects off and my condolences to people who truly suffer from the visual overload.

I don't have any medical or physical issues with the array of sparkles and glitter and kitten knows what else. But it's awful. In open world events, I constantly lose my mouse cursor with all the rainbow effects, little lights, giant swaths of black greatsword and sparkles flashing everywhere. I can't see boss telegraphs or figure out where to dodge half the time because both the player and boss light shows are too much.

I just recently got my guardian to 80 and unlocked a full firebrand trait line. Guardian was bad enough with rainbows, but now I'm blue. Blue fire, blue jets of light, blue auras everywhere-- I get it. I'm blue. Can I turn it off, please? I'm sick of blinding myself. A toggle would be the perfect compromise between those who love their fireworks and those who can't take them.

[BeardedVagabond.8136]

@"Cragga the Eighty Third.6015" said:

@Nick Lentz.6982 said:P.s. I've stopped playing most first person shooters do to motion sickness.

Have you tried Sea-Bands?

I've always found those to be more of a placebo :p

[WARIORSCHARGEING.2637]

hope fully it not be like back when they did the ele turn down and took away the fire ele balls . and so forth. hope they put a slider on it so those that have that problem get a good easy fix and yet not take something away from the whole game .

doing so can turn away a whole lot of what is left of the games player base .

[sevenDEADLY.5281]

@"Menadena.7482" said:That is CYA legalish boilerplate put on every game, whether it is needed or not. I think even sims has it but I would need to check. The epilepsy community ignores those warnings because they are so overused.

Choosing to ignore a warning because "it doesn't happen often enough" isn't an excuse for you to act like its absolutely absurd when it finally does happen. There's a warning, you choose to ignore it and then when it happens you don't get to act like its everyone else's fault that you chose to do something you knew could potentially have consequences. So now we have to either tone down video games or waste resources on a super special "slider" for the minute fraction of people who shouldn't be looking at flashing lights to begin with. Next it will be that people with severe motor control disabilities can't respond to on screen action fast enough, so we'll have to dumb the game down again or spend resources on a "slider" again for that 1%. Repeat ad nauseam for every indivudal's personal "I can't do this because of x" until we're all just playing a game where you press space bar every 5 seconds to watch a black and white "you win" screen (with audio cues for the blind who also suddenly have a need to be catered to in complex mmos).

[Cragga the Eighty Third.60]

@Nick Lentz.6982 said:

@"Cragga the Eighty Third.6015" said:

@Nick Lentz.6982 said:P.s. I've stopped playing most first person shooters do to motion sickness.

Have you tried Sea-Bands?

I've always found those to be more of a placebo :p

All I know is, I used to get so motion-sick from playing 3D games I had to go lie down feeling nauseated for hours, so I gave them up. I couldn't resist a Steam/Macupdate deal on Mac KOTOR 2 and Lego Star Wars for $5 each, but told friends online how they were nearly impossible for me to play. Someone recommended Sea-Bands, and I found I could play those games with only mild headaches, as long as they were positioned correctly. Over time, the headaches even went away. Now I don't need them at all any more. They are cheap and worth a try! Anyway, if you are motion-sick from fake motion, why shouldn't a placebo be the cure?

[Sila.6748]

The amount of "Doesn't affect me, you're just overreacting!" kind of responses in this thread is astounding. You'd think people would have more tact and awareness than that.
It's pretty simple - game designer went a little too over the top in the special effects and the intensity of it all caused legitimate medical concerns for some people. Said people spoke up and asked for the designers to be a little more considerate with these concerns in mind and to possibly give us an option to adjust these settings for our own uses, so we can enjoy the game just like everyone else.To have someone go "Doesn't affect me, suck it up!" is just selfish as all hell.

Thank you, Anet, for actually responding and listening to the suggestions of those who enjoy the game and want to be able to participate in the fullest extent, but just want a little more control over the settings to avoid medical issues.

[Ceridwen.6703]

@"Sila.6748" said:The amount of "Doesn't affect me, you're just overreacting!" kind of responses in this thread is astounding. You'd think people would have more tact and awareness than that.

It's pretty simple - game designer went a little too over the top in the special effects and the intensity of it all caused legitimate medical concerns for some people. Said people spoke up and asked for the designers to be a little more considerate with these concerns in mind and to possibly give us an option to adjust these settings for our own uses, so we can enjoy the game just like everyone else.To have someone go "Doesn't affect me, suck it up!" is just selfish as all hell.

Thank you, Anet, for actually responding and listening to the suggestions of those who enjoy the game and want to be able to participate in the fullest extent, but just want a little more control over the settings to avoid medical issues.

IKR, right? The rest of this is not aimed at you, Sila. :)

Oh, my, I'm a disabled person, instead of asking for consideration in something that brings me joy and kitten it, freedom of a sort I don't normally have otherwise, I should just kitten off and drown myself so as not to inconvenience these kittenmuppets and their funs.

Gods, it's not like anyone has said "Take it all away all the time !!?!" No one in this thread has said that. You people with no priors should damn well hope nothing like a seizure ever happens to you or yours because of wanting to have a little stress-relieving fun; and I'll tell you this for nothing: you don't have to be epileptic to have a seizure from lighting effects on a screen. You can have no family history of seizures and it can still happen to you. You know that's what those medical warnings say, right?

Some of us with pre-existing conditions are still able to play because we take a kittenload of precautions that you'd probably never recognise if they came up and whacked you in the face; yet the moment we say, "Please, lovely game designers, spare a thought for disabled people and give us an option to reduce visuals" you start all your crying and saltiness because for some odd reason, you feel threatened and think someone's taking your toy from you? Kitten you and the kittened horse you rode in on!

Good grief.

[Blur.3465]

I agree, sometimes it appears to be too much.I also noticed that 'brightness' in game is sometimes reaaaaally over the top.Like if you look at the white areas of the game it's almost impossible to look at them.The flashiness of skills and effects can get over the top too.I do not suffer from migraines nor anything, but it bothers me regardless.Guild Wars 1 had handled this better.

[particlepinata.9865]

@Blur.3465 said:I agree, sometimes it appears to be too much.I also noticed that 'brightness' in game is sometimes reaaaaally over the top.Like if you look at the white areas of the game it's almost impossible to look at them.The flashiness of skills and effects can get over the top too.I do not suffer from migraines nor anything, but it bothers me regardless.Guild Wars 1 had handled this better.

Except for the Monk Ray of Judgement skill, that was terrible ;) But nothing compared to The last episode, or others like The end fight of Crack in the ice. One big ray of Judgement 'like' cluster in different colors, not healty at all. My biggest fight is not the mechanics, but the abnormal use of flashy bright colored effect.

[Menadena.7482]

@Feothyr.6072 said:

@"Valkyrie.1794" said:Most of the people "crying" about it are individuals with MEDICAL reasons it bothers them.

I don't wanna be a buzzkill, but if someone's having medical issues because of something they engage in then maybe simply don't do it?! If you're allergic to peanuts you're probably not going to eat a snickers and then complain about it containing peanuts, right?

I'd welcome an option to decrease the flashiness of the game for people who have issues because of it and I feel for them ... but wouldn't hurt to tone down the entitlement.

Say you had that peanut allergy and an activity you liked suddenly had peanuts everywhere which was peanut-free before? Would you silently walk away or speak up?

[Menadena.7482]

@Klowdy.3126 said:

@Menadena.7482 said:

@Haishao.6851 said:They have warning about seizure, like every video games.

That is CYA legalish boilerplate put on every game, whether it is needed or not. I think even sims has it but I would need to check. The epilepsy community ignores those warnings because they are so overused.

I specialize in accessibility on web sites. I wonder why we even bother to HAVE 508, WCAG, and associated technologies? I mean, I can just slap a disclaimer on the site, right? Yeah, that is equal accessibility there .... games do not get a free pass. It is one thing if we are talking a key mechanic (like if the ONLY way to do something was because the player, and not someone else, heard something) but all the things listed would not suffer one jot if they did not trigger photosensitivity.

As someone with epilepsy I know seizures caused by flashing lights are rare. Still though, I avoid flashing lights when I can because, well, why take the chance? Plus with this large a player population it will affect SOMEONE and I tend not to play russian roulette.

I agree there should be a slider, but it is no one's fault but their own if people choose to ignore warnings. Overused or not, a warning is there to provide protection to absolutely anyone that may be affected.

What are game players supposed to do? Stop playing ALL games? As to ignoring warnings, I doubt everyone on the planet has read every word of every TOS and license they have ever agreed to.

Yes, a slider would work wonders here.

[Menadena.7482]

@sevenDEADLY.5281 said:

@"Menadena.7482" said:That is CYA legalish boilerplate put on every game, whether it is needed or not. I think even sims has it but I would need to check. The epilepsy community ignores those warnings because they are so overused.

Choosing to ignore a warning because "it doesn't happen often enough" isn't an excuse for you to act like its absolutely absurd when it finally does happen. There's a warning, you choose to ignore it and then when it happens you don't get to act like its everyone else's fault that you chose to do something you knew could potentially have consequences. So now we have to either tone down video games or waste resources on a super special "slider" for the minute fraction of people who shouldn't be looking at flashing lights to begin with. Next it will be that people with severe motor control disabilities can't respond to on screen action fast enough, so we'll have to dumb the game down again or spend resources on a "slider" again for that 1%. Repeat ad nauseam for every indivudal's personal "I can't do this because of x" until we're all just playing a game where you press space bar every 5 seconds to watch a black and white "you win" screen (with audio cues for the blind who also suddenly have a need to be catered to in complex mmos).

Actually, it is good design for things like warnings. If you overuse them people WILL ignore them.

Say you had a walk light on a road cars never used. How long do you think it would take until people were jaywalking? One day some car goes down the road for some reason and hits someone. Yes, I can see the driver's lawyers saying there was a 'do not walk' sign but that does not excuse the fact that it was a de-facto pedestrian area there.

[Mal.1670]

OP I hope you are also mentioning how your skill bar flashes when surfacing from water, leaving necromancer shroud, randomly when dismounting, etc. Story-based effects are a one-time only deal that you will find in virtually every game, and it's going to be better to just turn down the brightness. The biggest issue IMO are the intermittent annoying effects that happen all the time, as mentioned...

[Mal.1670]

The motion sickness in Confessor's End was really bad. On all other counts, I'd usually be very aware of these things yet I haven't noticed hardly any of the cases listed in OP. A graphics setting to tone down flashing and such would be awesome regardless, seriously it needs to include the skill bar flashing. Try diving, going to the surface, up on land, back down again, repeat. The flashing will get you BIG TIME. That is really freaking obnoxious, and there really should be a fix for that garbage.

Please give us options to tone down user interface visual effects as well, in addition to story-related effects.

[TheGrimm.5624]

I know the push to tone down the screen noise a few years ago was seen by some as a negative experience. I do really believe that options allowing players to limit other players screen effects would be welcomed by many. That way if a player wants the full experience they can do so and if another wants to tone down the effects they can also. Picture something like limit effects to: No one, everyone, party, self.....

There is a lot of screen flash in place currently. Take ToK, is there any reason that these should flash around the player? Anyone full leveling an 80 with these in public is just a bit abusive to those around them. And that just 1 instance. Mounts, any reason they have to strobe flash when summoned? Just something to think about with new design. Now any boss fight and .....

[miraude.2107]

@"TheGrimm.5624" said:I know the push to tone down the screen noise a few years ago was seen by some as a negative experience. I do really believe that options allowing players to limit other players screen effects would be welcomed by many. That way if a player wants the full experience they can do so and if another wants to tone down the effects they can also. Picture something like limit effects to: No one, everyone, party, self.....

There is a lot of screen flash in place currently. Take ToK, is there any reason that these should flash around the player? Anyone full leveling an 80 with these in public is just a bit abusive to those around them. And that just 1 instance. Mounts, any reason they have to strobe flash when summoned? Just something to think about with new design. Now any boss fight and .....

This. In WoW, you can do this crap. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esjIBC41fXI

So I'm curious as to whether or not you can even do this in GW2.

[Klowdy.3126]

@Menadena.7482 said:

@sevenDEADLY.5281 said:

@Menadena.7482 said:That is CYA legalish boilerplate put on every game, whether it is needed or not. I think even sims has it but I would need to check. The epilepsy community ignores those warnings because they are so overused.

Choosing to ignore a warning because "it doesn't happen often enough" isn't an excuse for you to act like its absolutely absurd when it finally does happen. There's a warning, you choose to ignore it and then when it happens you don't get to act like its everyone else's fault that you chose to do something you knew could potentially have consequences. So now we have to either tone down video games or waste resources on a super special "slider" for the minute fraction of people who shouldn't be looking at flashing lights to begin with. Next it will be that people with severe motor control disabilities can't respond to on screen action fast enough, so we'll have to dumb the game down again or spend resources on a "slider" again for that 1%. Repeat ad nauseam for every indivudal's personal "I can't do this because of x" until we're all just playing a game where you press space bar every 5 seconds to watch a black and white "you win" screen (with audio cues for the blind who also suddenly have a need to be catered to in complex mmos).

Actually, it is good design for things like warnings. If you overuse them people WILL ignore them.

Say you had a walk light on a road cars never used. How long do you think it would take until people were jaywalking? One day some car goes down the road for some reason and hits someone. Yes, I can see the driver's lawyers saying there was a 'do not walk' sign but that does not excuse the fact that it was a de-facto pedestrian area there.

You can ignore traffic signs all day long, but if you slam into the back of a car, it's your fault. Ignorance due to overuse is not a legitimate excuse. It wouldn't hold up in court, because a warning is in place.

And yes, if it is bad enough that people are doing damage to themselves, they should stop playing games. People know the risks, and it is up to them how much abuse they would inflict on themselves, but it is no one's fault but their own.