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Text-to-Speech for Platforms and Games in Big Box

LaunchBox for Windows

📋 Summary

Introduce optional text-to-speech functionality in Big Box to audibly announce selected platforms, games, and their descriptions

🎯 Feature Overview

When navigating Big Box, have the system read aloud:

  • The name of the selected platform (e.g. “Nintendo 64” or a custom label like “My Favorites”)

  • The title of the highlighted game

  • Optional: A short description of the game or platform, pulled from metadata

Support for using built-in Windows voices or allowing users to configure their preferred voice engine.

🛠 Example Use Case

  • As a user scrolls through platforms, Big Box reads “Sega Genesis.”

  • On selecting a game, it reads “Sonic the Hedgehog 2 — Released 1992. A fast-paced platformer starring Sonic and Tails.”

  • This replicates the immersive, arcade-like experience of voice-narrated frontend navigation, and aids accessibility for users with visual impairments.

📦 Benefits

  • Enhances immersion, especially in arcade/living room setups.

  • Provides improved accessibility for users with vision limitations.

  • Offers nostalgia for users familiar with older voice-narration plugins from Hyperspin.

  • Adds flair to custom setups and themes.

💡 Notes

Voice behavior could be toggled on/off in settings, with separate options for platform names, game titles, and descriptions. Could leverage the Windows Speech API or integrate with third-party TTS engines for custom voice support.

Posted by zeoboromir ·
Status: Open To Community3 comments

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Comments3

  • AstroBob changed status to Open To Community
    Team•

    Jul 4, 2025

    Pinned

    Hi there!

    Thanks so much for submitting this request and for taking the time to explain your use case — that context is always super helpful.

    I’ve gone ahead and fleshed out the main idea using the info you provided, and I’m opening it up to the community for further discussion and feedback. Please let me know if this fleshed-out version doesn’t match your original intended request.

    Feel free to let me know if you have any extra thoughts, examples, or edge cases you think might be relevant!

    Cheers,
    The LaunchBox team

    • zeoboromir

      •

      Jul 4, 2025

      It's perfect, thank you!

  • zeoboromir

    •

    Jul 4, 2025

    Text to speech

    It would be great if bigbox could read the platform we select (whatever name we have set) and also read the game we select, it could also read a brief description of the chosen platform and maybe also of the game itself, years ago there was something similar in hyperspin, a plugin that used a voice engine of our preference.