SmileShark and Dot Launch ‘Dot Vision,’ a Game for the Visually Impaired, Globally

- Launch of Dot Vision, the first tactile game for the visually impaired
- Launch of 8 pioneering digital tactile games using the Dot Pad

On January 4th, World Braille Day, cloud startup SmileShark (CEO Jang Jin-hwan) announced the launch of the world's first tactile game, ‘Dot Vision,’ on the Apple App Store in collaboration with barrier-free technology leader Dot Inc. (CEOs Kim Ju-yoon and Sung Ki-kwang).

World Braille Day marks its 215th anniversary this year and was established to commemorate Louis Braille, the French inventor of Braille. To celebrate the day honoring Braille and information accessibility for the visually impaired, the two companies officially released ‘Dot Vision’ on January 4th.

‘Dot Vision’ is a game that connects with the ‘Dot Pad’ via Bluetooth, aiming to go beyond the limitations of existing audio-only games for the visually impaired by utilizing both auditory and tactile senses. The Dot Pad won the Best Innovation Award in the Accessibility category at CES 2023 and was recently selected as an officially certified product in the Accessibility section of Apple’s website.

SmileShark stated that they produced this content by recruiting game experts with over 15 years of experience from companies such as Krafton, SundayToz (now Wemedplay), Gravity, Webzen, and Netmarble. The first package, consisting of eight games, was created with the goal of allowing anyone to start easily and enjoy the games intuitively.

‘Dot Vision’ was planned in collaboration with visually impaired developers from Dot, focusing not only on fun and engagement but also on contributing to Braille learning and tactile rehabilitation. They also emphasized that the game was developed by actively incorporating feedback from visually impaired beta testers. Currently, it supports only Korean and English, with plans to expand to various language versions gradually.

[Photo by Dot Vision, Global Launch through Apple App Store]

The ‘Ladder Game’ displays four randomly arranged ladders in various shapes on the tactile display, allowing users to follow the lines from top to bottom. The numbers in the game are in Braille, designed to help users naturally learn Braille. Additionally, ‘Find the Different Braille’ is a game where players listen to sounds and identify a specific Braille character among 20 options. Other games include finding different shapes, the Ladder Game, Rock-Paper-Scissors, Tetris, constellation games, spear and shield, and dungeon escape.

Starting with the eight games launched this time, continuous content updates are planned. In the second half of this year, they are developing board games enjoyed by the visually impaired, such as slot machines and blackjack, playable through tactile feedback.

[Visually impaired person directly touching the DotPad, enjoying DotVision's 'Find the Different Braille']

Go Ye-jin (33), a visually impaired person who experienced the Dot Vision game firsthand, said, “As I naturally encountered Braille through the game, the process of finding Braille felt enjoyable,” adding, “By enjoying the game using tactile and auditory senses, it could greatly help sensory development for children with visual impairments or those who have acquired visual impairments.”