Ablegamers releases shopping list for disabled players originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 21 Nov 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Virtual environments evince a significant lack of mainstream adoption. Relatively tiny percentages of the world population are involved in them in any way online. There's something clearly missing.

At the present time, virtual environments simply lack any compelling reason to exist that motivates mainstream users and might drive mainstream adoption. There's no killer app, or secret sauce that gets large numbers of people thinking "I want to get me some of that!"

Continue reading The Virtual Whirl: The secret sauce

The Virtual Whirl: The secret sauce originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 22 May 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

That's the money-quote from Seshat Czeret in Feldspar Epstein's piece on disability and accessibility at The Metaverse Journal this week. Really, those five words condense thousands of written words on the empowering properties of a collaborative virtual environment, and not just for the differently-abled, but for the regularly able as well.

It is interesting to note that those with physical limitations and disablements tend to view their own physical bodies as a physical, fleshy avatar far more frequently than those who have no such impairment. To the physically handicapped, the body may not function as it ought, but their minds and persons are as whole and complete as any. Many view their bodies as simply a malfunctioning vehicle, and their step into online avatars in a 3D environment is as slight a transition as getting into a car and driving.

To many such physically impaired users, the body is no more nor less a tool than an online avatar, and the latter (despite lag, occasional inventory loss, network problems and all the other hurly-burly of a virtual environment) is the more reliable, expressive and liberating, allowing more ability to contribute, work, play and socialize.

Why then, do the able-bodied among us tend to see so much more distinction between our bodies in the physical world and our digital representations? Is that distinction merely an artificial one, a handicap brought about by our able-bodied perspective?

	Are you a part of the most widely-known collaborative virtual environment or keeping a close eye on it? Massively's Second Life coverage keeps you in the loop.

"Second Life is my wheelchair" originally appeared on Massively on Sun, 21 Sep 2008 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Stephanie Walker was a gamer who had never expected to have to deal with a disability. She was 23 at the onset of her condition, a college student who also worked a full-time job. She liked to spend the little free time she had unwinding online. Initially resistant to the idea of playing EverQuest, Stephanie quickly discovered that slaying virtual orcs and bandits while joking around in party chat was surprisingly fun. It was a great way to keep in touch with long-distance friends and burn some stress after a long day. She didn't have a lot of time to play, but she was good at it when she did.

While working at her job one day, Stephanie noticed that her right hand and leg had fallen asleep. When she tried to get up to walk the sensation off, she realized that something was seriously wrong -- the entire right side of her body had just stopped working. Stephanie was rushed to the hospital, and the diagnosis was confirmed the following morning: she had multiple sclerosis, and she would have to deal with it for the rest of her life. Overnight, everything changed. She went from being someone who spent 20 hours per day away from home to someone who really never left. Moving around within her house required an enormous effort on her part. Even feeding herself had become a challenge. The little things, like not being able to get online and chat with her friends (something she really enjoyed) just made her situation that much more painful.

Continue reading Player vs. Everything: Gaming with a disability

Player vs. Everything: Gaming with a disability originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 28 Apr 2008 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Heron Sanctuary helps the disabled find a Second Life originally appeared on Massively on Tue, 29 Jan 2008 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.