Accessible setup brings back gaming magic for Ken 

Thursday, December 1st, 2022

Tag Icon used for categories

Smiling man in wheelchair with accessible gaming setup

Ken’s back in business! He’s finally able to enjoy the games he loves again after a long time away from the action due to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), which has severely limited his movement and body strength.  

He’s a big fan of games like Final Fantasy, No Man’s Sky and Star Wars, so our specialist assessment team were as keen as ever to make the most of his abilities. They talked with him via a video call and saw he had good movement in his head and neck, so they suggested that a sensitive chin joystick positioned on a mounting arm might work as a replacement for the left stick.

Although Ken can’t use a standard controller he can press buttons with his right hand, so our team suggested that ten carefully positioned light-action switches secured to a Velcro tray could offer the possibility of accessing almost every button he needs for gaming, including the face buttons, back buttons, and pause.

The loan setup was sent to him, along with suitable adaptors and connection equipment for his PlayStation, and when the team called to assess how he was doing they were blown away to see him on top gaming form.

Our help won’t stop there though, and the team are excited to be working with Ken to explore the possibility of playing games that require two joysticks.

Helping Ken regain the ability to enjoy a much-loved activity in such an amazing and independent way is real honour, and it’s all because of YOUR amazing support, including the stunning One Special Day total that you generously raised in October. It’s enabling us to make such life-enhancing differences all over the world, and we simply can’t thank you enough!