Unplayable: Disability and the Gaming Revolution

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BBC Radio 4 - Unplayable: Disability and the Gaming Revolution

The disabled gamers making gaming more accessible.

The stories of how disabled gamers are changing the world of video games.

There has long been a sizeable gap between the popularity of video games and their accessibility. Disabled gamers can find themselves thwarted by changes to controller settings, frozen out of storylines because particular motor skills are being tested, or stymied by sudden obstacles that require acute hearing or eyesight from someone who has hearing or sight loss. But after decades of advocacy work by disabled gamers, that gap is beginning to close.

In this documentary, blind gamer Steve Saylor hears some of the stories behind how gaming became more accessible. The documentary includes contributions from Steve Spohn from Able Gamers on how a bag of rice proved instrumental in getting an innovative controller made and from Mike 'BrolyLegs' Begum, who uses his face to press the buttons and has become a top Street Fighter player.

Steve Saylor always thought that he sucked at gaming - it turned out that gaming sucked for him.

Produced by Ant Adeane
A Reduced Listening production for BBC Radio 4

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