People with disability finding connections in accessible video games September 17, 2025 6:31 AMSubscribe
People with disability finding connections in accessible video games. Rob Taylor has motor neuron disease and uses specially-designed controllers to play video games with his son Chris. posted by chariot pulled by cassowaries (5 comments total)
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This is a great reminder that digital forms of socialization and connection--like both this forum and like these video games--offer a powerful tool for people whose bodies are dysfunctional to connect on an equal (or at least equal-ish) playing ground with able-bodied loved ones.
I love the org which is campaigning for visibility for assistative tech so that gamers with progressive conditions can continue to game. Foot and mouth controllers are a great idea! Both should totally circumvent the neurons that seem to be specifically affected for this gentleman, and while motor neuron disease isn't one I'm especially familiar with it strikes me that these assistative tools should be able to work for a much broader swathe of disabilities than just MND. I'm sure that MND Australia is way ahead of me on that one, though. posted by sciatrix at 8:42 AM on September 17 [4 favorites]
Here's MND Australia's Gaming & entertainment guide, which includes the "Game On" guides mentioned in the article.
I used to work in this field for a Canadian charity. The field is huge, and because of the need to customize every setup for each individual, there's lots to do. In a rare piece of actually positive work from Microsoft, the XBox Adaptive Controller (the white thing with two black pads in the top two pictures) is a marvel, and provided at a relatively low cost. That, along with the Logi Adaptive Switch set (the buttons on Rob's foot board), upended the assistive switch market. Existing vendors were very used to relying on the disability tax to charge more for a single switch than the entire Logi set costs.
It's not just for people with MND. It's for everyone who finds the "standard" controller difficult. posted by scruss at 9:16 AM on September 17 [4 favorites]
I saw a report on the subject in general on the bbc the other day. In googling for a link, I discover that they've done a few over the years. Check them out. posted by BWA at 11:11 AM on September 17
Also: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000rllh posted by BWA at 11:16 AM on September 17
For someone with a progressive movement disorder (et) for whom current treatments have been ineffective, this gives me hope that I won't lose something I love to do. posted by BigHeartedGuy at 11:45 AM on September 17 [3 favorites]
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I love the org which is campaigning for visibility for assistative tech so that gamers with progressive conditions can continue to game. Foot and mouth controllers are a great idea! Both should totally circumvent the neurons that seem to be specifically affected for this gentleman, and while motor neuron disease isn't one I'm especially familiar with it strikes me that these assistative tools should be able to work for a much broader swathe of disabilities than just MND. I'm sure that MND Australia is way ahead of me on that one, though.
posted by sciatrix at 8:42 AM on September 17 [4 favorites]