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. Every year the games industry has been embracing it to ever greater levels.
2019 has been no exception. While there was no individual effort that was as monumental as the announcement of the Xbox Adaptive Controller the number of companies and individuals doing their bit for the cause took another leap forwards. Some of these efforts are not public knowledge, companies holding private internal events, individuals sending emails around their teams, and so on. But many are public knowledge. I’ve tried to keep track of as much as I can but there will be others that I missed, let me know if you know of any!
a11yjam
Week long game jam finishing on GAAD
https://mobile.twitter.com/VGaccessible/status/1128412250837065728
A11ystreaming
Discord & twitch round table discussion on where accessibility is and how to get it to where it could be
https://mobile.twitter.com/accessiblegamer/status/1128489156575887365
AbleGamers
Partnering with Senator Roxanne Persaud to establish an annual GAME (Game Accessibility Means Equality) event at Brookdale University
https://mobile.twitter.com/AbleGamers/status/1128749714726432774
Accessibility Days
Exhibit of audio games
https://mobile.twitter.com/AgileMovementIT/status/1128652760155590656
Accidental Queens
Thread on the development process of the accessibility features in Alt-Frequencies
https://mobile.twitter.com/SirPsychoHelo/status/1129019992022736897
Apple
iTunes feature on blind accessibility, and featuring Subwords as game of the day
https://mobile.twitter.com/BlindSparrowInt/status/1128801057667133443
https://mobile.twitter.com/klemensstrasser/status/1128901754177937408
AT&T
Talk on game accessibility by Brian Marquez
https://mobile.twitter.com/OneArmedWonder7/status/1128473153917870080
BBC
Talks and exhibits on accessibility in children’s games, and talks on VR accessibility, an accessible game UI framework, and research on & principles of subtitle size
https://mobile.twitter.com/GarethFW/status/1128690999570640897
https://mobile.twitter.com/GrahamDensham/status/1128629620843208704
https://mobile.twitter.com/QualityIsKing/status/1128990377908801537
Cherry ‘cherryrae’ Thompson
Compilation of twitter threads on a wide range of games, and a post on the importance of kindness when advocating and teaching
https://mobile.twitter.com/cherryrae/status/1128882449503494145
https://mobile.twitter.com/cherryrae/status/1128889950546432000
Eidos Montreal
Kicking off a series of workshops to investigate both accessibility standards across their output and tailored options for individual games
https://mobile.twitter.com/EidosMontreal/status/1129054175617265664
Game Informer
In depth state of the industry article by long term accessibility supporter Javi Gwaltney, with input from many specialists, gamers, manufacturers and developers
https://mobile.twitter.com/gameinformer/status/1129088351393288192
Gaming Cat
Sharing experiences of Melanie Eilert with the Xbox Adaptive Controller
https://mobile.twitter.com/GamingCat_Blog/status/1129072862818635776
Golden Sands
Blog post on how Sea of Thieves’ anniversary update impacts accessibility
https://mobile.twitter.com/GoldenSandsBlog/status/1129136561013047297
Grant Stoner
Podcast with Cherry Thompson, Bryce Johnson and Ian Hamilton
https://mobile.twitter.com/Super_Crip1994/status/1129081120933457920
Ian Hamilton
Sharing some less well known facts through 20 question of accessibility trivia
https://mobile.twitter.com/ianhamilton_/status/1129001503937769474
Level Access
Clip from AbleGamers CEO Mark Barlet on why game accessibility is important
https://mobile.twitter.com/LevelAccessA11y/status/1129018468731375616
Magic Leap
Talk by ML’s Accessiblity Manager Bill Curtis-Davidson at Miami’s GAAD event
https://mobile.twitter.com/pravvy/status/1128969662295957504
Mixer
Adaptive controller sticker available on Mixer all week, and a week long programme and homepage takeover of accessibility advocates & disabled streamers
https://mobile.twitter.com/watchmixer/status/1123723774149292032
OneSwitch
Video showcasing Fortnite being played using 3 light-weight thumb-sticks on a Game Control Mixer.
https://mobile.twitter.com/OneSwitch/status/1128944604907298816
PlayStation
Internal events including inviting Paul Amadeus Lane as a guest speaker and developer empathy excercises
https://mobile.twitter.com/Amadeus2k/status/1129187647413317632
https://mobile.twitter.com/SilvasDesign/status/1129118608078983169
Sony Santa Monica
Sharing an internal presentation on accessiblity efforts and learnings in God of War (be sure to turn on speaker notes)
https://mobile.twitter.com/SonySantaMonica/status/1129786256576065538
SpecialEffect
The story of how they were able to help 3 year old Oliver play again
https://mobile.twitter.com/SpecialEffect/status/1128941581426413572
Splash Damage
Awareness raising event with guest Ben ‘SightlessKombat’ Breen, inclusive tech lab setup, literature, and cake!
https://mobile.twitter.com/lefran/status/1128767782638714880
https://mobile.twitter.com/lefran/status/1129132420018692096
Steve Saylor
GAAD podcast reflecting on the progress over the past year and work that lies ahead
https://mobile.twitter.com/stevesaylor/status/1129050862091948033
Ubisoft
Video and article centered on a workshop held with a range of advocates & specialists, together with an interview with David Tisserand on Ubisoft’s wider accessibility practices and principles
https://mobile.twitter.com/Ubisoft/status/1129064336264241152
Utrecht University
Networking lunch for game studios and disabled gamers
https://mobile.twitter.com/neurodivergers/status/1128626161817407488
Xbox
A very busy day for Senior Gaming Accessibility Program Manager Brannon Zahand
https://mobile.twitter.com/BrannonZ/status/1129268608784224256
Xbox Ambassadors
Announcement of accessibility training programme to empower Xbox Ambassadors to both raise awareness and assist gamers
https://mobile.twitter.com/XboxAmbassadors/status/1129124274139148288
And…
To close on, a GAAD message from Bryce Johnson
https://mobile.twitter.com/brycej/status/1128916965433663489
If any of these activities and initiatives have left you feeling like you want to get involved too, next year’s event will be on Thursday May 21st. But you don’t have to wait until then, every day is a good day to raise awareness about accessibility.
