“Gaming is for everyone.” So the saying goes. I love Eurogamer, in part because they are fierce allies and advocates for minorities. Aoife and Zoe are both bisexual–and women. Zoe is neurodivergent, too (autistic and ADHD). They are very openly against all kinds of isms an celebrate PRIDE with, well, pride. They do a stream every PRIDE asking for donations–and the proceeds always go to an LGBTQ+-related cause. They also have done streams for BLM, autisic people, and various other causes.
I appreciate them so much for this, but it irks me every time they say that gaming is for everyone . I do’nt deny in general with one tweak. Gaming should be for everyone. But, I would go on to say that not every game is for every person. And this is ok.
This is where it gets more complicated. Where is that line drawn? I honestly don’t think every games needs to be able to be played by every person. In part it’s because it’s art. I want artists to be able to put out their vision as they would with a movie or a book. I know it’s different because video games are interactive is a way other pop culture isn’t, but I don’t think this should mean that every game has to be made with every person in mind.
For one thing, that’s impossible. Nothing can be for everyone. Do I think there should be accessibility options in all games? Yes. Devs should be aware and try to include FOV sliders, alternative ways to button mash (*cough* Stray devs, *cough cough*), font sizes and colors, and more. I will say that I was playing Cook, Serve, Forever by David Galindo (Vertigo Gaming), and I was unhappy because the text was done in different colors for different shifts. The darker colors were horrible. I could not parse them as I was trying to press buttons. The next day, the text was all in a clear color (singular) that I could read. I had a hunch that people complained in the Discord and he quickly changed the code.
That’s really cool and responsive. I appreciated it because I really could not read the former text. Now, it’s easy-peasy; it doesn’t take away from the aesthetics, either. It still looks colorful and fun. I can’t pretend to guess how much time or effort it took to change the color of the font, but it literally was overnight.
So, yeah. Put in the aim assists. Put in the gradient difficults in platforming. I’m all about making the game as easy as possible for people within reason. I say thoe last part because I think some of the suggestions that people have are not realistic. In addition, I hold AAA studios to a different standard than indie devs. I expect much more from the former than the latter.
Here’s the thing, though. I’m bitter because even in this, my issues are ones that are never talked about. When people mention disabilities and gaming, it’s usually about modes and physical disabilities. Or, in the case of Zoe, she talks about her ASD and ADHD, and how they make certain aspects of games difficult.
Mine is different. One is that I get nauseous from doing anything first person. This means I can’t play most first-person games. If there is a FOV slider (field of view), then that might mitigate things. It depends on how detailed it is. There have been several first-person indie games that I have tried because I really wanted to play them. One was Firewatch (Campo Santo). No FOV slider. I read that there was a way to fiddle with the files, and because I really wanted to play the game, I did it. It took like half an hour, and when I got it to where I was ok (not great) with the view, I played the game. Which I loved. So much. But even though I would love to go back to it, I will not because of the first-person view.
Another game I really wanted to play was What Remains of Edith Finch (Giant Sparrow). People were raving about it, and I thought the premise sounded right up my alley. I suffered through nausea in the first bit, and it kept me on my back heel. I wanted to appreciate the game, but I could not. Then, there’s a bit where you’re flying in the air as an owl (or something) and I have never been that close to vomiting in a game in my life. I returned the game and tweeted about my experience. I said I was really sad that I could not play it, but I encouraged others to buy it. The devs tweeted back to me and said that if I used the reticule while fiying, that might help.
First of all, I doubt it. I have never felt that bad while playing a game. Seriously. I’m not saying it to be mean; it’s just true. Even the thought of playing it again made me nauseous. I don’t blame the devs for not having an FOV slider because it’s a tiny studio, but that means I can’t play it. Should they be forced to have a third-person view or an FOV slider? I don’t think so.
Another game that I really wanted to play was Paradise Killer by Kaizen Game Works. It’s a detective story that is snazzy and, yes, also done by an indie developer. It’s off-beat style was one of the things that drew me to it. But, alas, it was in first person. Did it have an FOV slider? I don’t remember. I will say that if it did, it did not help. I played, but I was nauseous the whole time. It was a low-level nausea, but it pulsed when I swung around quickly or did other things that messed up my vision. I could only play for fifteen minutes at a time, and after a few hours, I had to give up completely.
But again, I would not demand that these games have a third-person view. Would I have appreciated it? Yes. Did I expect it? No. Because they can only do so much. So it irritates me when people talk about From games and insist that there should be difficulty modes. No. There are plenty of ways to make things easier for yourself, at least in the Souls games and Elden Ring; they just aren’t called that. Again, I am all for clean and/or bigger fonts, brightness, button remapping, and all the other things that can make it easier. But I don’t think that difficulty modes are the way to go.
I have other issues that I have talk about before that makes gaming difficult. I adore Hollow Knight (Team Cherry), but I could not go much farther past the first boss. I just could not do the platforming. Should Team Cherry have to have a simplifed version of the platforming, through the entire game, just so I can play it? Again, I would say no. I’m tired, though, so I’m going to leave it for now. I’ll pick it up again tomorrow when I have more energy.