Carlos Vasques masters the combat video game “Mortal Kombat”, although he is unable to see the fight on screen because he is blind, as he relies on sound to launch punches, kicks and evasions.
Vasques, who lives in Texas, is one of a handful of people speaking up, calling for better access to video games for people with disabilities.
About the reason why he played “Mortal Kombat”, Vasques says, “There are two characters, one on the right of the screen and the other on the left of the screen, fighting, and you just have to memorize the buttons.”
While the issue of facilitating the use of the game for people with disabilities was neglected by the developer, this idea became at the forefront of its concerns, as it was motivated by financial and ethical reasons to make the game available to more players, in an industry worth billions of dollars.
According to the World Health Organization, more than one billion people suffer from some form of disability.
Microsoft, which owns the Xbox brand and its cloud-based game streaming service, estimates that the number of gamers with disabilities is about 400 million.
Vasques’ ingenuity at play drew the attention of Netherrealm Studios, owned by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, which developed Mortal Kombat.
At the company’s suggestion, the studio added audio cues to help blind players decide what objects they can interact with in the game.
Game makers take accessibility into account when designing their software, adding settings designed to fit the playing field for players with disabilities.
Games can be modified to allow the AI or other players to provide any assistance to people with disabilities when needed.
Also, the options included in the games can be structured in such a way as to bypass problems that a player with a disability cannot solve.
“Our approach is to try to make access to games an integral part of the work of every employee in the company,” says David Tesseran, head of initiatives at Ubisoft, a French video game company.
“We want to make sure that everyone understands that accommodations for players with disabilities is part of their job,” he added.
Among the games that won awards is the racing game “Forza Horizon 5”, which is the first game to support American and British Sign Language.
“Things are now much better than they were decades ago because games can be fixed by twitching,” says Chris Robinson, a Chicago-based gamer who has been deaf since birth and hosts a program on Dev Gamers TV on Twitch. Updates”.
Useful visual and audio features introduced in recent game releases including “Last of Us Part 2, Guardian or the Galaxy” and “Far Chairs 6” have received mentions from gamers with disabilities.
Despite the progress made in this regard, players with disabilities who spoke to AFP unanimously agreed on the need to achieve more, expressing their desire to be heard.
Robinson mentions, for example, that the adoption of a larger font in the writing that passes on the screen and in the visual cues makes a big difference for deaf players.
“Another challenge he faces is communicating with other players who do not have hearing problems,” said Soleil Wheeler, a 16-year-old deaf player.
Thousands of people online watch Wheeler playing fighting games including “Fortnite” and “Apex Legends”.
The teenager is eagerly waiting to view conversations that take place during games in which multiple players compete as real-time feedback during the gameplay.
David Compario, president of the French startup Hetclec, which specializes in designing equipment that enables people with mobility impairments to play on a competitive level, says equipment supplies for players with limited use of their hands are scarce.
Microsoft makes an adaptive Xbox game controller that costs $100 before adding the costs associated with each customer’s specification.
Compario notes that rival Sony and Nintendo do not provide a console similar to that offered by Xbox.
Although online platforms attract a variety of players, they may be subjected to a torrent of insults and abusive comments from “trolls” and “haters,” according to the teenage player Wheeler.
“I won’t let them waste my time,” he says. I choose my battles wisely as I move forward with my life.”