A round-up of the talks from GAconf USA 2023

GAconf returned to the US this week with a series of accessibility talks hosted at the Archer Hotel in Redmond, Washington. Virtual attendance was available through Zoom and YouTube. Talks ranged from those on personal experiences of disability and accessibility to more pointed talks about the process of bringing accessibility to specific games and series. All of this was emceed by GAconf co-director, Tara Voelker.

This edition of GAconf is notable for featuring two talks on blind-accessible triple-A games, which would have been impossible only a short while ago. It’s something co-director Ian Hamilton is especially proud of, since the content of GAconf, he says, “is a reflection of the industry. So, it is wonderful to finally see the tide turning in this area.”

With COVID-19 surging and protections against it so lax, GAconf still employs precautions despite no requirement to do so at a national or local level. “All attendees [were] required to show both proof of vaccination and a negative COVID test result taken in the morning before attending,” Hamilton told me. Room capacity was capped to 50 percent, and socialising areas were outdoors and ventilated, though masks at this edition were only a “recommendation.” That said, GAconf still represents one of the few events protecting its attendees as COVID cases climb. “It’s still critically important for us,” Hamilton says. “Particularly as the nature of the event means that we have attendees who are at higher risk.”

Day one kicked off, as always, with a news update from Hamilton, in which he took us through the progress and new interventions around accessible hardware, resources, and the people we’ve welcomed into the accessibility industry since the last GAconf in April.

The first talk came from Michael Anthony, and discussed how to reframe accessibility through the lens of social justice, and how that reframing can lead to a better quality of change. After a break, Christian Cimon and Morgan Baker delivered a presentation on accessibility in the Dead Space remake, which released earlier this year. They went on to explain how they made the game more inclusive, and how to create a horror experience for everyone.