I am a gamer. One of the earliest memories I have is of playing "Sonic the Hedgehog" on the SEGA with my dad. I have countless fond memories playing various games late into the night, just to get up early the next morning to start again. Most of these memories involve Pokémon, so it's no surprise that Pokémon Go! has been a game I have been waiting for with baited breath. But imagine my disappointment when I discovered I have an almost impossible time playing.
There have been countless articles floating around the interwebs about accessibility issues with Pokémon go, so I won't continue to beat a dead horse. I want to take this opportunity to talk about the larger problem of accessibility and gaming, with a focus on the future of the activity. Please note this is in no way exhaustive, as the disability community is vast and varies from individual to individual.
Ever since the Nintendo Wii was introduced in 2006, people with physical disabilities seemed to be left in the lurch. The movement required to control games was something that I personally could only do intermittently, and I have friends who were not that lucky. Wii Sports was the only game we had for the console for the longest time, and of the five sports it came with (Baseball, Boxing, Bowling, Golf, and Tennis) I could only bowl effectively. Even when we got other games, I was limited in what I could do and for how long, depending on when my arms got tired. The two other consoles (Xbox360 and PlayStation3) released similar movement-controlled games, excluding disabled players.
The Wii U, the successor to the Wii which was released in 2012, fixed some of these issues but created others. The large controller with the second screen and gyroscope made it difficult to play certain games that required the gamepad. The pro controller was also available, however certain aspects of certain games required the larger pad with the second screen. However, if there is good news for this generation of consoles, it’s that for the most part, it seems like the motion-centric games for both the XboxOne and the PlayStation4 have dropped off significantly.
Now we come back to Pokémon Go! and what it means for the future of gaming with a disability. Pokémon Go! Is virtual reality. Virtual reality is coming, and coming soon. The Oculus Rift has been out since March, PlayStation’s VR (Virtual Reality) set is going to be released in October, and I don’t think I’ll ever be able to play it. Motion controls are getting harder and harder, and soon will be impossible for me. I’m worried VR will take over, like motion control did. I already lost out on several games I wanted to play but couldn’t. I don’t want to miss out on others.
To learn more about how video games more accessible, I have an article I wrote last summer about various ways to make games more accessible, which you can read here.
