Over three decades video games have become a world-wide entertainment phenomenon. The video game industry is still growing and even at a time of global economic recession sales for entertainment software rose to $11.7 billion in 2008, a 22.9% increase over 2007 (Entertainment Software Association, 2009). Key to this success is entertainment software developers’ drive to reach as many gamers as possible, by means of designing games of universal appeal and localising them into different languages. The Japanese company Nintendo has led the way with the design of their Touch! Generations series of games for their Wii and DS consoles, designed for people of all ages and levels of gaming experience.
However, in their race to make games as universal as possible, developers are leaving behind an important segment of the market which, according to the UN, accounts for approximately 12% of the world population: people with disabilities. People suffering from visual, auditory, cognitive and mobility impairments also enjoy playing games because of the fun and entertainment that they provide. Games can contribute to improving their quality of life and increasing their sense of inclusion. Games can sometimes also have an educational and therapeutic value. Unfortunately, the fact that most mainstream titles are designed without taking into account accessibility issues means that most games are not suitable for players with disabilities. This can be the source of great frustration and emphasises the marginalisation and the exclusion that these groups endure.
This paper explores the current issues associated with games design and accessibility. It focuses on the main problems and challenges faced by different groups of disabled players from a technological, physical, linguistic and cognitive perspective. It is ironic that the advances in gaming technology and design which have led to more interactive and sophisticated games, with complex storylines and cutting-edge cinematic scenes, have also increased their accessibility barriers. However, the application of adaptive technology can help overcome this problem, as is demonstrated by a few games that have successfully been made accessible for players with disabilities. I will present some of these examples and use them to explore new paths towards a design for all, truly providing fun for all.

Carmen MANGIRON is lecturer at the School of Applied Languages and Intercultural Studies at Dublin City University, and is affiliated with the Centre for Translation and Textual Studies at the same university. She also teaches postgraduate audiovisual translation courses in games localisation at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (Spain) and the Universitat de Vic (Barcelona, Spain). Her research interests include games localisation, audiovisual translation, accessibility to the media and literary translation. Mangiron worked as a software and games localiser on a freelance basis for a number of years and is one of the localisers of the Final Fantasy series into Spanish.