Oh boy, will this trigger some “high-level, end game grind enjoying” pro-gamers. Accessibility in our video games. Lets talk about what that looks like.

First things first, lets choose a song:

Its been a good while since I’ve listened to Bilmuri, the live version of this song is just as good as the album track.

On Accessibility

So I’ve obviously got my own disabilities to be aware of, but for the most part I can play games as “normal” and without much thought. I’ve of course taken efforts to reduce any weird motion-blur in games, or ridiculous particle effects blinding/flashing lights.

I haven’t experienced any notable issues except the one time I had a seizure while playing Beat Saber, but a lot of these UI/UX effects elicit a weird head feeling. The worst of it for me is sound - specifically high pitched ringing. (Detroit: Become Human has the best example of the worst of this as of late, as there is a sequence in which Markus regains hearing and for a period of approx. 5-10s all the user hears is an excruciating high pitched ringing. Players beware.)

Regardless of my response or ability to play games, It’s important to me that people are able to access games in the same way another person is, able-bodied or otherwise.

For many people, doing what “Everyone else does” isn’t what works for them. I’ve been subjected to having to hear how much of a “crutch” it is for players to use controllers in FPS games that aren’t even inherently competitive, when the players in question have already stated that they simply cannot use a KB/M. It’s comes down to motor function and ease of use for that player.

So why am I even writing this today?

Well Twitter inspired me, specifically Destiny twitter. I’ve tried my hardest to get that cesspool of toxicity off my feed, but it simply returns every other day. Same with Halo.

Here’s the Tweets in question:

And the referenced user + more shit:

Again: Twitter thread where a PhD candidate doubles down on ableism

And finally, the aforementioned tweet:

Ableist PhD candidate says: If you legitimately believe that end game content should be balanced around those with disabilities or lower skilled people to preserve accessibility rather than understanding that not everyone should be able to complete all content then you are beyond help

That’s. A lot to take in.

So first of all, lets get a couple things out of the way. (And please correct me in the comments if I’m wrong on any of these points)

  1. Bungie has historically handled accessibility terribly.
    • None of the original Halo games included accessibility features apart from subtitles and control / button reconfiguration (which were all pre-set configurations.)
    • Speaking of subtitles, Halo: Reach only included subtitles for cutscenes. On the initial re-release by 343i they were also not included (I’m unsure of whether they are present now or not.)
    • Regarding accessibility and Halo, that seems to be one of the best things 343i has done for the franchise - both MCC and Halo Infinite feature a wide array of accessibility features (now), with Infinite having more.
    • Regarding Bungie and Destiny 1 & 2? We have:
      • Hud Opacity
      • Subtitles
        • Language based too!
      • Color Blind modes
        • Deuteranopia
        • Protanopia
        • Tritanopia
      • and standard remapping / reconfiguration of controllers & keyboard/mouse.
        • but thats… it.

  2. Destiny has never actually been competitive in a real sense. Yes Bungie does make higher level / “end game” content that is supposed to be more difficult vs a story mode, a patrol, a strike, or regular crucible match.

    If something more difficult in the game, such as raid or dungeon, was not in place, the game would feel stale and a lot more monotonous than it already is (which don’t worry, it can be very monotonous).

    The problem you’re having here is that you cannot reconcile the fact that it’s not difficult enough for you. And because of that you wish to remove things from game which enable others to have a better time in the game. You’re effectively gatekeeping others from using items and/or having fun.

Here is a take from someone who actually runs shit:

I was on the raids team. I helped ship VoW. I stand firm in the opinion that wanting Div nerfed and wanting harder content are not the same issue. If you think the gun is OP, dont use it on bosses. Solves that problem. At the end of the day, div helps groups clear content easier.

Here’s the overarching problem

Bungie simply cannot properly implement accessibility into the game while maintaining a sense of reward, and never have been able to do so.

Divinity does indeed alleviate this issue a lot. But then you have people such as Mr. PhD candidate who believes it’s an insult to other gamers and game balancing.

Absolutely NO one is telling highly skilled or otherwise able bodied players to use these options and mechanics. If it affects your ego and sense of achievement, that is your own issue that should be worked out.

When Bungie finally implements proper accessibility toggles and difficulty toggles on the game, I think divinity is the best option. On the flipside - it makes the player using it feel like they’re contributing very little to the fireteam (I know - I’ve been div bitch before).

The bottom line is if you’re in a competition, or want a challenge - don’t use something that you feel will challenge your fragile ego. (Typically competitions have rules and ban certain weapons, classes, and abilities anyway.)

Here’s some pettiness

This dude is a PhD candidate. Meaning he’s essentially completed all the coursework for his doctorate, and should in theory be writing his dissertation. I have no fucking clue what his doctorate is in, but thank god he’s not an MD; I’d hate to be anywhere near him if he were to be practicing medicine. With ableism & entitlement this bad, I peg this guy as going for philosophy.

Last but not least.

In discussing accessibility, it’s probably important to link some examples to guidelines, as well as other resources.

  • These are the guidelines I’ve been referring to when making pre-dev plans for the game I’m making.
  • Can I Play That? also has invaluable resources, as well as write-ups on games.

I’ve been using both websites semi-regularly to refer to when making plans. Here is a link to some of that if you’d like to read about some of our future plans.

In summary

I think all developers should ensure that their game is flexible and accessible to as many players as possible. Yes, I believe it should still be rewarding, and there should be balancing; but I don’t believe people who are highly competitive, make money off playing the game, and perfectly able bodied should have the loudest & most authoritative voice on what “Balance” means for a game.

It is important for developer’s content to be available to the widest range of people as possible, from PR to Motor accessibility, and everything mixed in between. It is not hard to implement these features, especially if one starts sooner rather than later.

Thanks for reading my rant.

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