Achieving inclusive game design

It’s readily apparent that ‘inclusive game design’ is a broad goal for the industry. Ask anybody making games, and it’s possible to receive wildly different answers about how to do that. The International Game Developers Association’s Renee Gittins did just that in a roundtable discussion on reaching players through inclusive game design at GamesBeat Summit today.

The first thing that needs doing in a discussion like this is to define the terms. Inclusivity for one person might be having a game that features anything beyond the standard male Caucasian hero archetype. Or it could be setting a game in a location that is authentic to the culture and people that live there. It could even be as simple as including simplified controls, or colorblind modes to allow players with disabilities to enjoy themselves.