In May of 2019, I was featured in a video and article about adaptive gaming and the importance of cultural accessibility.
Podcasts & Interviews
The Digital Crip Wave: Podcasts by Disabled People
I started listening to podcasts about two years ago when I was looking to alleviate my insomnia; the first show I found was Denzel Washington is the Greatest Actor of All Time Period with W. Kamau Bell and Kevin Avery. Being a Denzealot myself (who isn’t?), I was hooked by these hilarious and insightful dudes breaking down the best of Denzel’s work.
Then I started checking out other podcasts, like Stuff You Should Know, The Black Tapes, and Welcome to Night Vale. They all fascinated me in different ways, but I longed for the disability voice I wasn’t hearing in these shows. I wanted to know where all the crips were, and how I could support their work on the digital airwaves.
Through research and word-of-mouth, I discovered these rich, powerful, illuminating shows produced by crips. That’s why I created this living resource showcasing podcasts by disabled people. Our words hold value, and more folks need to pay attention.
Making Nintendo’s Switch Accessible through 3D Printing
While I haven’t been able to get my hands on a Switch, I am still following the accessibility reviews coming in from disabled gamers. One big issue is the Joy-Con controllers and the inability to remap their buttons in many games. When disabled programmer and designer A.J. Ryan emailed Nintendo about this access barrier, their response was anything but appropriate. An employee from Nintendo wrote: “I realize it can certainly be very frustrating to not be able to enjoy the same games as many others do due to having an unfortunate condition, and we sincerely empathize.”
Nintendo here is framing inaccessibility as a personal challenge to overcome rather than a design flaw that needs fixing. They are patronizing A.J. for wanting inclusive access rather than directly addressing the problem, and in the process, further stigmatizing disability in gaming. I’ve stated over and over again how accessibility cannot be an afterthought, and that it must be part of game development from the start. While disabled gamers wait for this tide to change, we make and rely on our hacks to play. We depend on the creativity and ingenuity of the disability community and non-disabled people working with us to partake in our favorite hobbies.
One such ingenious person is Julio Vazquez, a mechatronics engineer using the power of 3D printing to build accessories for disabled gamers; his latest project is a design for the Nintendo Switch’s Joy-Con. I was excited to interview him and learn more about this project.
Read moreMaking Nintendo’s Switch Accessible through 3D Printing
The Walking Dead, and books everywhere!
So, I recorded more podcasts with Geek Girl Riot: Did The Walking Dead season 7 premiere go too far? Cindy …
The Geeky Gimp Riots: Video Game Accessibility
You knew I couldn’t stop podcasting, right? I’m proud to share that I am now part of Geek Girl Riot, …
Interview with La Femme Collective
Thank you, Nora, for reaching out to me about La Femme Collective, a website that “supports and celebrates the career …
Star Trek and Disability Live Panel: Part Two
Space, the final frontier… You probably know by now I’m a huge Star Trek fan. It’s one of the few …
The Geeky Gimp Presents – Disability and Star Trek: live panel recording!
Video is closed-captioned, and the transcript is below!
In this live (recording) of our Google hangout, we chat about disability and Star Trek, including the episodes: “The Managerie,” “Melora,” “Ethics,” “The Loss,” and “Is There in Truth No Beauty?” We also discussed Geordi LaForge and the portrayal of blind characters, whether or not Data represents disability, and so much more!
The guests were:
- Alice Wong of The Disability Visibility Project, @DisVisability and @SFdirewolf on Twitter
- Andrew Pulrang of Disability Thinking, @AndrewPulrang on Twitter
- Zack Kline, a former podcast guest and blind gamer, @zkline on Twitter
- Day Al-Mohamed, writer and disability advocate at her personal website. @DalAlmohamed on Twitter
Thank you to all my guests for a wonderful discussion!
Read moreThe Geeky Gimp Presents – Disability and Star Trek: live panel recording!
The Geeky Gimp Presents #6 – A Podcast with Chris!
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 34:37 — 63.8MB)
Subscribe: RSS
Chris (@preiman709 on Twitter) and I chat about Daredevil, blindness portrayed in Star Trek, RPGs, and dating while disabled. You can subscribe to my podcast by searching for “The Geeky Gimp” on iTunes, or using the subscribe button in the right menu. As always, English subtitles are available on the YouTube video, and the transcript is below. Enjoy!
Thank you to Todd for providing us with this transcript and subtitles. Please support him by visiting his blog at http://boardgamemadness.blogspot.com!
The Siblings Trouble – Interview with Eduardo Baraf
I interviewed designer Eduardo Baraf this past summer about his new game, Lift Off! Get Me Off this Planet! It was successfully funded on Kickstarter, with copies on their way to backers as I post this. Now, Ed is launching a new game on Kickstarter called The Siblings Trouble, with gorgeous artwork and fantastic gameplay mechanisms that give it an epic RPG feel. Check out my interview with Ed below to learn more about the game, which launches today!
GG: Hi Ed, thanks for joining me again to talk about your upcoming game, The Siblings Trouble! Before we get into the details about that, how are you doing? How are things going/where are you with Lift Off! Get me off this Planet!?
Ed: Personally, I’m doing well. Life is busy, but in a good way. My family is healthy and I’m making lots of stuff, which makes me happy. Lift Off! Get me off this Planet! is going well. We were delayed on a few components, but all of the final manufacturing is complete and all copies have left PandaGM in China! The games are now starting the process of being shipped around the world and should be in players hands end of April to mid-May.
Read moreThe Siblings Trouble – Interview with Eduardo Baraf