In the cutthroat realm of professional gaming, one remarkable player is known as Rattlehead.
At tournaments in the US, his adversaries come to realize quickly that Carlos Vasquez (his real name) is, as he himself puts it, "totally sightless".
Them being unaware of the dangers ahead, they assumed that playing Mortal Kombat should be nothing more than a breeze. They were proven wrong, however, as he would almost always emerge victorious.
Rather than visually observing the game, Carlos turns to sound in order to devise his attacking and defensive actions. "I can distinguish the various noises made by the characters," he explains.
In 1992, at the age of six, Carlos's gaming journey began in Houston, Texas. However, when he was eleven years old, he was diagnosed with a type of glaucoma, a condition that increasingly impaired his sight.
Carlos, aged 37, recounts that it was not a sudden occurrence. He used to be able to perceive the broad outlines of items, but lack the ability to discern their details.
As time went on, the sight in my eyes deteriorated steadily until I was 24 and totally blind.
He discovered that the majority of commonly available games were practically unplayable as accessibility features for his sight impairment were not available.
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In his younger days, Carlos was fond of playing fighting games, with Mortal Kombat being especially memorable.
"The reason I was able to get so good at Mortal Kombat wasn't due to any special accessibility features it had," he explains. "It was because I was able to recognize the unique sound effects it had. This enabled me to keep playing it as much as I could."
He was able to work out which character he was playing due to the fact that the character on the right of the screen grunted at a higher pitch than the one on the left.
By 2023, a substantial amount of games will contain accessibility features; these titles include Forza Motorsport, Diablo 4, The Last of Us, Hearthstone, Street Fighter 6, and the newly released Mortal Kombat.
The visually impaired are afforded the opportunity to experience the exuberance of Forza Motorsport with Blind Driving Assists. Audio prompts let them know when to make sharp turns on the track, as well as when the car is moving too fast, has veered off course, or needs to shift gears.
Mortal Kombat now boasts a whole selection of additional sounds providing feedback, e.g. about the distance between the combatants or if an adversary dodges.
The inclusion of spatial audio into Forza Motorsport has revolutionized games accessibility.
This utilizes specifically directed audio to drastically assist visually impaired gamers in pinpointing their exact position on the screen. This is what gives you the sense of direction and the sense of depth."
According to the words of expert Prof Brian Smith, the reason you can discern direction and depth when hearing a real-life sound is due to the fact that the physical waveform reaches your two ears at different times and different intensities.
The sound will go through your head to be interpreted by the other ear, and in the process it may be altered. Your brain has the ability to interpret the signals at differing times and deduce that it is one sound coming from a certain location.
Prof Smith's research at the Department of Computer Science at the University of Columbia in New York endeavors to translate the truly existing directional qualities of sound into the audio generated by computer games.
The technology can be utilized with standard stereo speakers and headphones, yet it yields more optimal results when specialized spatial audio gear is used.
Prof Smith stresses that it can be highly effective in aiding those with impaired vision to manage characters in video games. The challenge lies in ensuring the game is accessible to all, while still providing a worthwhile challenge.
He and his team had a hand in developing Forza Motorsport.
Even though large video game producers have now started to recognize the importance of accessibility, it was previously small-scale, amateur game creators -- some of whom are visually impaired -- who were largely responsible for pioneering advances in that area.
Seven years ago, The AbleGamers Charity asked Rockstar, a game developer, how much it would take to make their Grand Theft Auto V title available to those with disabilities, as they campaign for computer games that are accessible to people with special needs.
It was reported that the firm replied that the cost of $128m (£100m) was too expensive for them.
Liam Erven, an independent software developer, saw this as an opportunity and took on the challenge to create an ad-on, or mod, for Grand Theft Auto in order to allow players with impaired vision to experience the game.
Liam, having been blind since birth, collaborated with a team to develop Grand Theft Accessibility, their mod.
They were able to include features such as auditory cues that provide players with data on nearby objects, vehicles, and people. Players can also receive audio notifications about their position and the direction they are heading, as well as which weapon they have selected.
It was accomplished for far less than what Rockstar predicted.
Liam commented that the ad-on is not flawless but it is enjoyable to use and has earned a sturdy user base.
Prof Smith argues that independent developers have been pivotal in heightening recognition, and "rousing" the large gaming corporations so that they understand that making accessibility for visually impaired players "might not be as difficult as perceived".
He goes on to say, though, that there aren't many blind people involved in the gaming industry and, therefore, there isn't much knowledge that blind people can play video games. "Consequently, one might think that making games accessible for the blind is contradictory."
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Nevertheless, significant progress has been made. Carlos Vasquez is now succeeding at Mortal Kombat, not only against rivals, but also against himself.
He currently works for the game's creator, NetherRealm Studios, in the role of an accessibility consultant. He believes it would be beneficial if gaming companies were to hire more individuals with a similar profile.
He emphasizes that in the past, developers would take a guess at what people with disabilities were needing, instead of asking them directly. He stresses that it is vital for companies to consult with individuals who have disabilities and are experiencing it in their everyday lives, in order to get their opinions.
No matter if it's in the development environment, or you're given the ability to sample early versions, we're beginning to witness this more frequently. Despite that, I think the industry as a whole should be more clear about if their game will contain accessibility features or not.
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