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In part eight of my twelve part accessibility in gaming series, I sit down with the great and powerful May Wong. May Wong is the Lead Designer for Interior Night and the Lead Designer on As Dusk Falls. I will bury the lead here by saying As Dusk Falls is one of the best blind accessible games I have ever played. I talk to May about how they got into the gaming industry, and how they started working for Interior Night. Obviously May and I talk extensively about As Dusk Falls, and they explain what the inspiration for the game was. Additionally, I ask May what convinced them to include accessibility features in As Dusk Falls. Furthermore, I ask May how it feels to have the game recieve world recognition for its accessibility. This interview means so much to me, because I get to talk with the Lead Designer of one of my favorite accessible games. If you or anyone would like to learn more about As Dusk Falls then visit https://www.asduskfalls.com.

In part seven of my twelve part accessibility in gaming series, I sit down to talk with Jesse Anderson AKA Illegally Sighted. Jesse or Illegally Sighted is a technology, gaming, and XR accessibility advocate and consultant. When Jesse is not busy advocating for accessibility in the digital sector, Jesse works as an assistive technology instructor. Jesse helps teach transitional students how to learn and master the various assistive technology available to the visually impaired. Jesse and I talk about his fondest memories concerning video games, in addition to why gaming was so therapeutic for him growing up as a blind gamer. Jesse shares with me how he started uploading video game related content to his YouTube channel, and how he leveraged his social media presence into a consulting career. If I had to pick a stand out moment from this episode then it would be the discussion Jesse and I have on accessibility in virtual reality. I hope you all enjoy Level 7 of my accessibility in gaming series! You can find Jesse everywhere and anywhere on social media under the name Illegally Sighted. Please check out his YouTube channel over at https://m.youtube.com/user/illegallysighted.

In part six of my twelve part accessibility in gaming series, I talk to Bjorn and Zoey who are the Global Product Managers for Tobii Dynavox. Tobii Dynavox is a global team that works to help people with communication and mobility challenges live bolder and richer lives. Tobii Dynavox's technology benefits those who use it, in addition to the people around them. Tobii Dynavox empowers people with complex communication and mobility needs to decide on what they want to say and do. I would like to dedicate this episode to my dear friend Komori. Komori was a VTuber and content creator living with Muscular Distrophy. Sadly in January of 2023 she lost her battle to Muscular Distrophy, and I miss her every day. Komori did not have the ability to communicate nor move on her own. However, thanks to eye tracking technology created by Tobii Dynavox she was able to continue playing games and entertaining her followers. It would mean a lot to me if you listened to this episode and learned just how much Tobii Dynavox empowers people like Komori.

It is time to press start and begin the second core of my accessibility in gaming series. In level five I sit down with solo developer Alex Leone who is developing the blind accessible game Upheaval. Upheaval is a text-based open-world rogue like adventure game where every decision you make matters. Alex and I talk about his childhood love for gaming and how from a young age he was invested in learning how games were created. Alex shares with me how his brother unintentionally inspired him to go all-in on being a developer. I talk extensively with Alex on why he decided to focus on accessibility for his game. Additionally, Alex shares with me how gamers who are visually impaired encouraged him to make Upheaval accessible. Alex is a dear friend of mine, and I have played several builds of Upheaval personally. I believe Alex is creating a wonderful game so please consider supporting Upheaval! If you would like to play the demo for Upheaval then please visit https://store.steampowered.com/app/2253300/Upheaval/

It is time to press start and begin level four of my accessibility in gaming series. In part four of my twelve part series highlighting accessibility in gaming, I sit down to talk to the great and powerful Sightless Kombat. Sightless Kombat is a gamer without sight and is an accredited and award winning accessibility consultant. Additionally, Sightless Kombat is a well respected content creator who highlights accessibility in gaming through reviews, first impressions, and playthroughs. I was so honored to talk with Sightless, because as a blind gamer myself I use his accessibility reviews to decide whether I should buy a game. If you were ever curious as to how Sightless Kombat approaches accessibility then you will want to listen closely as he explains his process. If I had to pick out a favorite part of our interview then it is our conversation about how physical merchandise can be used as an accessibility feature. To read his reviews and get links to where he uploads his content make sure to visit his website at https://www.sightlesskombat.com.

Level three of my accessibility in gaming series is a rare treat, because I speak to none other than Topher Winward. Topher Winward is a software engineer and developer at Rare formerly Rareware. Rare is the studio responsible for such iconic video games like Banjo Kazooie, Donkey Kong Country, Perfect Dark, Goldeneye 007, Battletoads, and Jet Force Gemini. As a kid who grew up in the 90s and early 2000s, and spent most of his time playing on the Nintendo 64. I cannot begin to express how much my interview with Topher Winward meant to me. It is amazing to see how even though I have continued to lose my vision that I still am capable of playing games developed by Rare. This is due to the committment Rare has taken as a studio to ensuring that their games are accessible. I had so much fun learning about how Sea of Thieves ended up featuring so many accessibility features. Additionally, I found it so interesting how Topher found himself at the helm of the ship steering accessibility in Sea of Thieves alongside his amazing colleagues.



This episode of the podcast was originally recorded last year in August.