Disabled Gaming Review Series

[darkscanner]

Hey guys, I'm a disabled gamer and I recently decided to start my own videogame review series. I'm calling myself the Crippled Critic and I plan on reviewing games, particularly I'll be putting a big emphasis on whether or not the controls in the game are easily accessible to disabled gamers. I'll consider things like, "Can the controls be remapped?" Or "Is there an auto-lock available?" Also, I will go into more detail about what I think games can do to improve their controls.

Here a link to my first video:
This video is mainly just an introduction, but I talk alot about disabled gamers, optional controls in gaming, my review style, and what I hope to accomplish with these upcoming reviews. Let me know what you think.

Mod edit: Please embed your videos in the future.

 

[Slyaap]

Wonderful idea! My wife has a rare progressive illness and can't do much but she loves to play games still. It would be a great addition if developers could make games more accessible to disabled players, and quite often I buy a game for my wife not knowing first wether she can actually use the controls.
The only thing about your idea I find a little distasteful is the word 'crippled'. It's not usually a word that's used by disabled people. But hey ho, maybe I'm being a bit too p.c.

 

[Raikas]

Cool idea!

The only thing about your idea I find a little distasteful is the word 'crippled'. It's not usually a word that's used by disabled people.

Eh, I think it's been reclaimed quite a bit. Probably varies regionally though.

 

[IndomitableSam]

The only thing about your idea I find a little distasteful is the word 'crippled'. It's not usually a word that's used by disabled people. But hey ho, maybe I'm being a bit too p.c.

I think it depends on the person. My mother refers to herself as such, and so do we, but we know we're all doing it in good humor. I'm sure there would be a bit of backlash if someone else said it to her and meant she was lesser for it, but referring to yourself as crippled isn't an issue to me, either.

On an interesting note, I played FFXI and partied often with a guy who only had one hand - he was a very good monk and such a sweet guy. ... And also liked to remind people not to play with aerosol cans.

I'll keep an eye on this - thanks for doing this.

 

[mrjoe94]

The only thing about your idea I find a little distasteful is the word 'crippled'. It's not usually a word that's used by disabled people. But hey ho, maybe I'm being a bit too p.c.

I sort of did a double take on that myself but, I feel that if he himself is using it to describe himself it's fine. You could say it's a bit of self deprecation. Besides, it has the alliterative quality that makes it a good name.

I subscribed by the way. Love the idea. I'm somewhat disabled as well, in terms of limbs, but I still play games fine. I'm actually the opposite of you. I find the keyboard and mouse too difficult and prefer having everything on one device (A gamepad). I hope you continue doing this series, i'm interested to see certain games from your perspective .

 

[Legion]

It's an odd one isn't it, that developers constantly talk about making their games more accessible, but frequently seem to neglect doing that in the more literal sense of playing the game.

I wish you the best of luck with the series.

 

[gigastar]

The only thing about your idea I find a little distasteful is the word 'crippled'. It's not usually a word that's used by disabled people. But hey ho, maybe I'm being a bit too p.c.

It does have that alliterative appeal...

Though if i was to hit the theasaurus...

Spoiler: Synonyms for crippled

Synonyms for "crippled"

• 
  [li]bedridden[/li]
  [li]broken[/li]
  [li]damaged[/li]
  [li]defective[/li]
  [li]deformed[/li]
  [li]enfeebled[/li]
  [li]game[/li]
  [li]gimp[/li]
  [li]halt[/li]
  [li]hamstrung[/li]
  [li]handicapped[/li]
  [li]harmed[/li]
  [li]hog-tied[/li]
  [li]housebound[/li]
  [li]impaired[/li]
  [li]incapacitated[/li]
  [li]laid up[/li]
  [li]lame[/li]
  [li]maimed[/li]
  [li]mangled[/li]
  [li]marred[/li]
  [li]mutilated[/li]
  [li]out of commission[/li]
  [li]paralyzed[/li]
  [li]sidelined[/li]

 

[Catie Caraco]

Honestly, I think this is brilliant. It's a side of gaming and game culture I'm unfamiliar with, and while I knew on an intellectual level existed, haven't really had to put a lot of thought into. I really hope this turns out to be successful, because it could open a lot of eyes. And, let's face it, the gaming community could use some good press right now about being more open and inclusive.

 

[thesilentman]

Hey guys, I'm a disabled gamer and I recently decided to start my own videogame review series. I'm calling myself the Crippled Critic and I plan on reviewing games, particularly I'll be putting a big emphasis on whether or not the controls in the game are easily accessible to disabled gamers. I'll consider things like, "Can the controls be remapped?" Or "Is there an auto-lock available?" Also, I will go into more detail about what I think games can do to improve their controls.

Here a link to my first video:
This video is mainly just an introduction, but I talk alot about disabled gamers, optional controls in gaming, my review style, and what I hope to accomplish with these upcoming reviews. Let me know what you think.

Mod edit: Please embed your videos in the future.

Hey man, I really like this idea! Keep on pushing through and make this something unique.

Initiation time: Welcome to the Escapist, stay out of the basement, and blame Kross if anything goes wrong. Hope you have a good time here.

 

[IGetNoSlack]

Thank you. I have cerebral palsy (and also review games) and I've really only seen AbleGamers cover it in its entirety.

It's something that needs to be done, because I don't think many games go far enough to accommodate disabled gamers. Not that I play the games any different than anybody else (my CP only affects my right side), but I do like that you're doing this.

 

[mrjoe94]

I have one critique and it's not even about the content of the video. The ending music blew my ears off, due to it being so much louder than the rest of the video.

 

[IndomitableSam]

Sam's sister here. She made a good point about our family, but forgot to mention me. While not disabled, I'm one of the millions of non-disabled people who still have trouble. Carpal tunnel and tendonitis in the wrists and arms hit me years ago, I figure it was a culmination of a lifetime of video games and working on computers. And being a raiding rogue in WoW didn't help either.


I find console games easier, the Xbox controller feels more comfortable in my hands and leaves me in less pain than a keyboard.

Being able to map keys so I don't need to extend my fingers up to the shoulder buttons and such really helps. Pushing down on the dpads can almost be impossible for me on bad days. With PC gaming I can map as much as I can to the mouse and if my wrist is well supported it's not so bad.

And I'm not even disabled. My heart goes out to those such as you Darkscanner. When I can't do something in a game I get angry and frustrated that my body won't work like it should.I only have the slightest inkling of how it feels to be truly disabled, but I do feel you on the controls.

I wish you the best with your series and I hope if the voices of the disabled community get loud enough that the industry listens.

 

[Weaver]

I think this is awesome! Subscribed!

If I may offer some constructive feedback, I think the content and format of your show is really good. As someone who used to do youtube videos myself, my only suggestion is to look into getting a better microphone. Yours is far from the worst I've heard on youtube, but I think some clarity would help a bit. Also, if you want to, you can use Audacity (a free audio program) to run clean filters and such through your audio. This can help, though having a great audio source is probably the most important thing.

Anyways, it's not that the audio is bad, I just think it could be better

Other than that, keep it up!

 

[guitarsniper]

Cool idea!

The only thing about your idea I find a little distasteful is the word 'crippled'. It's not usually a word that's used by disabled people.

Eh, I think it's been reclaimed quite a bit. Probably varies regionally though.

That, and it makes for some pretty awesome alliteration, which is generally a good thing.

 

[darkscanner]

Thank you guys for the kind words, I appreciate the feedback. Hearing about other people's troubles in gaming really helps and it definitely feels good to know they'll be people interested in the review series.

As far as the name Crippled Critic goes, I honestly use the word crippled as a term of endearment. I also thought the title would be a good way to break the ice and make things less formal you know? For me how you use the word is more important than the word itself. However, I don't mean to offend anyone and I apologize in advance if I do.

The mic problem is definitely something I'll look into. Although, I think it has more to do with how loud I was talking. I felt a little reserved at first, but next time I'll speak up for sure.

 

[darkscanner]

I'm actually the opposite of you. I find the keyboard and mouse too difficult and prefer having everything on one device (A gamepad). I hope you continue doing this series, i'm interested to see certain games from your perspective .

No I completely agree with you about the mouse and keyboard. I only prefer to play on the PC because of the optional controls usually included. I actually can't even use a normal keyboard, so I also use a gamepad to play on the computer. I just plug in my PlayStation 3 and play that way.

 

[Herman Hedning's mace]

That's a pretty neat idea. The only tip I can give is that you should consider getting a better microphone, that would really improve the quality of your videos.

 

[chadachada123]

It's an odd one isn't it, that developers constantly talk about making their games more accessible, but frequently seem to neglect doing that in the more literal sense of playing the game.

I wish you the best of luck with the series.

Hell, until recently, very few (uh...if any?) console shooters even had a colorblind mode/option for the HUD, and even now, the large majority games overall are terrible for an issue that affects some 8% of males.

This is something that would take several hours of programming and testing but would benefit tens of thousands of consumers. Just putting in a "pick your own colors" slider for enemies/friendlies/etc would not only be convenient for the average person but would hugely increase accessibility for colorblind gamers.

As far as OP's channel goes, I'll definitely be giving it a watch, since although I have no conditions/etc affecting my gaming, I still very much support new control technology, both for those that simply can't play normally and those that just have personally preferences.