Innersloth’s multiplayer social deduction game Among Us surged in popularity in 2020, thanks in part to COVID-19 lockdown orders and the large number of players who streamed the game on Twitch, YouTube, and Facebook. It became so popular that Epic Games recently announced a new Imposters Mode for Fortnite that has the developers at Innersloth a little frustrated. Clearly, the Among Us formula is attractive both to other developers and gamers, including those with disabilities.
Accessibility for disabled gamers is an issue that game developers, publishers, and hardware manufacturers have become more focused on in recent years, opening up the pastime for many who were unable to play before or making it a more enjoyable experience for those who could only play with concessions. Despite the progress in making gaming more accessible to everybody, however, potential problems are not always obvious due to the wide range and severity of disabilities.
Steven Spohn is a disabled gamer and COO of AbleGamers, a charity that advocates for the validation and inclusion of people with physical and cognitive disabilities. Spohn and a number of Twitch content creators play Among Us every week and, in a recent Twitter post, the gamer pointed out to Innersloth that it would be appreciated if Among Us allowed players to use mouse and keyboard inputs at the same time. The developer responded the same day to request clarification, and Spohn confirmed that he meant being able to move in the game by clicking the mouse while keyboard controls are active. Innersloth replied that the accessibility feature would be included in the game’s next patch.
The AbleGamers Foundation is a nonprofit organization that was founded in 2004 with the goal of using video games to eliminate the social isolation that often comes with disabilities. Since its establishment, the charity has raised millions of dollars, most recently fundraising $1 million between September 2020 and August 2021 through a series of gaming streams. AbleGamers uses the money raised to assist disabled individuals in purchasing accessibility peripherals, give scholarships to send people to game development networking events, and fund engineering research and peer counseling.
AbleGamers also works with video game developers and publishers to make sure that the needs of disabled gamers are taken into consideration during game development. It gives out annual awards to recognize the most accessible games released each year, such as those that include simplified quick time events or customizable control schemes, colors, and font sizes. Perhaps Among Us will be among the contenders for an award this year.
Among Us is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Mobile, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.