Global Accessibility Awareness Day is event that takes place on the third Thursday of every May, with the goal of raising awareness about digital accessibility. For many years now the games industry has been embracing it.
In 2024 this has continued again. Some of the efforts are not public knowledge, companies holding private internal initiatives, individuals sending emails around their teams, and so on. But many are public knowledge.
If you’d like to get involved but haven’t planned anything, it’s not too late! Even just sharing your favourite talk or article with your followers or colleagues makes a difference. Here are two great links to share:
Playlist of GAconf talks by disabled people talking about their lived experience
Free game accessibility training, an online course developed by Microsoft
As the day goes on I’ll be updating this page and trying to keep track of as much as I can, but there will be some that I have missed. Drop me a line on twitter if you know of anything that isn’t on here yet!
Antonio Martinez
National radio show interview about Playstation’s Access Controller, on behalf of Game Accessibility Nexus
https://twitter.com/Black1976/status/1790685798297129074
Apple
Interview with Wren Brier about the accessibility of Unpacking
https://apps.apple.com/story/id1743255567
“We love these accessible games” curated app store collection
https://apps.apple.com/us/story/id1619544766
Wide range of new iOS accessibility features announced, including eye tracking, vocal shortcuts, and virtual trackpad
https://twitter.com/BrandonButch/status/1790747757243777448
Arevya & SightlessKombat
Co-streaming Gears 5, SK playing without sight, Arevya playing with feet
https://twitter.com/arevya/status/1791069945914179747
Barrie Ellis
Showcase of c1ix single switch hardware and game suite from Alejandro Silva of Mexico
https://switchgaming.blogspot.com/2024/05/c1icmx-one-switch-suite-of-fun.html
Blizzard
Video on how the Diablo development team is working closely with the accessibility community and finding new ways to expand access to gaming for everyone
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCuywYFjcJs
ByoWave
Proteus modular XBox & PC controller now available for pre-order
https://www.byowave.com/product/proteus-controller-kit-vip
Can I Play That
Awards season – editors choices, Barrier Breakers, and the AbilityPoints Diamond Award 2023
https://caniplaythat.com/category/editors-choices-and-awards/
Dom Parker
Post on enhancing accessibility in gaming
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/gaad-games-enhancing-accessibility-gaming-dom-parker-yebif/
Talk at a11ybytes
https://twitter.com/thatproductchic/status/1791033353350889814
EA
Presentation by Steve Saylor to 14 EA studios
https://twitter.com/momoxmia/status/1790839667073630612
Easterseals
GAAD stream with Brendan and Erin
https://twitter.com/esgaminghq/status/1790745233321312598
EasySurf & Games Accessibility Hub
Sharing a highlights video and full report from a recent accessibility audit
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKvTAUi2Bhg
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1UTwv1uQyQqZtXEHKJlxirNES07m8YP7Y
ESRB
Guest article by Josh Straub on helping kids with disabilities enjoy video games
https://www.esrb.org/blog/gaming-enabled-helping-kids-with-disabilities-enjoy-video-games/
GAconf
The full set of all quotes that were shown on the break screens during the last event
https://twitter.com/GA_Conf/status/1791085804581748876
Project Gameface open-sourced and launched for Android
https://developers.googleblog.com/en/project-gameface-launches-on-android/
Guide Dogs
GAAD stream with Cari Watterton and TheWobblyGamer
https://twitter.com/guidedogs/status/1791043236363968544
Helpshift
Podcast with Games Accessibility Hub
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMV9vYp3uE0
Hyper Luminal Games
Dev diary on the accessibility of Pine Hearts
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfI0-DJO6cw
Ian Hamilton
The annual GAAD trivia quiz
https://forms.gle/8XzmD919XU5J1wtAA
IllegallySighted
Video on the future accessibility possibilities of AI
https://twitter.com/BGFH79/status/1791076217849876762
Keywords
Week long series of talks and panels
https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7196879431871746048/
King
Launch of several new accessibility settings and features to iOS Candy Crush Soda
https://community.king.com/en/candy-crush-soda-saga/discussion/445124/
Klemens Strasser
Added better Voice Control support to StudySnacks, to make it easier to use for people with motor impairments.
https://twitter.com/klemensstrasser/status/1790691509018271955
Laura Kate Dale & Arevya
GAAD episode of the Ctrl, Alt Access video podcast
https://twitter.com/LaurakBuzz/status/1791103805041316215
Meta Quest
Curated collections of Quest games spread across color customisation, mobility & movement, subtitles, and visual accessibility
https://www.meta.com/en-gb/experiences/section/816954250350260/
Ninja Theory
Deep dive on representation of psychosis in Hellblade 2
https://news.xbox.com/en-us/2024/05/15/hellblade-2-senua-most-human-character-in-gaming/
Outright Games
Showcase of accessibility features in PJ Masks Power Heroes: Mighty Alliance
https://twitter.com/Outright_Games/status/1791111360551522763
Patelesaur
Hades playthrough using the Overjoyed Accessibility Controller software
https://twitter.com/patelasaur/status/1790878237741957336
Rebellion
Collection of accessibility feature usage data across Sniper Elite 5, Zombie Army 4, and Evil Genius 2
https://twitter.com/Rebellion/status/1791089804546851031
Internal expo with RNIB, SpecialEffect and Abertay University
https://twitter.com/Rebellion/status/1790732431273742578
Accessibility test brief for students & aspiring specialists
https://careers.rebellion.com/education/
Ross Minor
Announcement of the Accessible Gaming Wiki
https://twitter.com/ross_minor/status/1790799242266821054
SeraTen04
Announcement of accessibility upgrades to all games in the Folklore visual novel series
https://twitter.com/seraten04/status/1790810270597521523
Sony
“Hands on with BSL” session
https://x.com/TheOakenForest/status/1791127493212094700
Retrospective of 2024’s progress and strategy
https://sonyinteractive.com/en/news/blog/global-accessibility-awareness-day-2024/
Accessibility of PS5, Access Controller and games all featured in GAAD post by Sony’s CEO
https://www.sony.com/en/SonyInfo/blog/2024/05/16/
Square Enix
Showcase of SpecialEffect’s visit to talk about accessibility and their work, with hands on of gaming AT
https://www.square-enix-games.com/en_US/news/square-enix-special-effect
Stark
Observations on recent developments
https://www.getstark.co/blog/how-creators-can-make-games-more-accessible-for-all/
Xbox
Announcement of Xbox Ambassador Accessibility Ally badge
https://news.xbox.com/en-us/2024/05/15/xbox-global-accessibility-awareness-day-2024/
New Xbox Support articles, categorized by disability
https://support.xbox.com/en-GB/help/accessible-gaming
XAC firmware update, with each USB port now supporting 12 buttons (instead of 8), a second stick, and a hat switch
https://twitter.com/KaitlynJones_/status/1790801817644974554
Game Accessibility Workshop Toolkit, instructions and visual assets to help game developers conduct Game Accessibility Workshops on their own
https://developer.microsoft.com/en-us/games/articles/2024/05/game-accessibility-workshop-toolkit/
And a couple of quotes to finish on –
The games industry needs to be better.
Accessibility needs to be in from concept.
Accessibility check ins with every sprint.
Accessibility reviews in pre & post production.
Otherwise you end up with people like me who can’t play your game, & honestly that feeling sucks.
To the devs working their ass off to push accessibility across your teams, keep it going!
To the players: We hear you, we see you, and we’re doing it for you. ????
