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Image: Nintendo LifeWe can all agree that Nintendo isn't exactly a games industry forerunner in terms of accessibility. The lack of being able to quickly and easily remap buttons in many Nintendo first-party games is just a start, but there are often mechanics that require multiple button prompts, or simple commands that require you to press different buttons per game.
It's not an across-the-board problem, but we know Nintendo can — and should — do better. Both Sony and Microsoft have their own accessibility controllers: the PS Access Controller and the Xbox Adaptive Controller. They're pricey, but that's still more than Nintendo can say.
This has led to players such as Anthony DeVergillo, a 31-year-old digital communications expert and the Vice Board Chair at the non-profit organisation Our Odyssey, taking matters into their own hands. Through Our Odyssey, which aims to improve digital accessibility for those living with rare and chronic conditions, Anthony has developed the Overjoyed Accessible Controller, a digital overlay interface that enables you to play video games through the use of just one finger or even through eye and facial recognition.
"The name of the controller is Overjoyed because it's an overlayed joystick," Anthony shared with us, "but also, it is a feeling you get when you're able to play a game again."
OverGalaxy
Speaking to Anthony via Zoom, he told us about how he came up with the idea for the Overjoyed Accessible Controller back in 2020.
"I got Super Mario 3D All-Stars, and I was excited to play it because I've never actually played Super Mario Galaxy. I've played [Super Mario] 64, I've played a little of [Super Mario] Sunshine. So I decided to try out Galaxy, until I turned it on and it asked me to point my controller up at the screen and choose a world or choose a save file."
...there is no reason it had to require a moving controller.
Anthony lives with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy — a rare disorder that gradually weakens the muscles over time — making mandatory gyro or motion controls difficult. It can also make using multiple fingers challenging, too.
"I asked for help and I started playing. I was like, 'Okay that was a little annoying.' But I could still play the game. I beat the whole tutorial and then it said, 'In order to save, point the controller at the screen.' I can't lift the controller at all, right? So that kind of got me on my journey."
Image: Nintendo Life / NintendoThis barrier for something as basic as saving your game was the "last straw" for Anthony, but Super Mario Galaxy's other forced motion control moments made other parts of the game challenging, "A lot of motion in that game could just be [on] the right stick — there is no reason it had to require a moving controller."
