VR studio Owlchemy Labs on the universal benefits of accessible game design
VR developers have a unique opportunity to become accessibility champions, Owlchemy Labs COO Andrew Eiche tells me during a recent chat at Gamescom 2022.
Eiche is one of the leading figures at the Texas-based studio, which has worked on notable virtual reality titles including Cosmonious High, Job Simulator, Vacation Simulator, and Rick & Morty Virtual Rick-ality.
During a frantic week in Cologne, we grabbed a few minutes with Eiche to discuss Owlchemy's approach to inclusivity and accessibility in VR, with the studio having recently released a mammoth Accessibility Update for Cosmonious High that introduced a one-handed mode, dynamic height adjustments, localisation improvements, character pronouns, and more.
Mulling over the key differences between accessibility in virtual spaces compared with more traditional digital arenas, Eiche explains VR creators should be actively look for inspiration in how we approach accessibility in the real world -- learning from both our successes and shortcomings to make their projects more accommodating for players from all walks of life.
"We can leverage the same real-world solutions that exist, right? Where we can't put objects too high, or too low, or too far away. We can build spaces like that consider those factors," he explains. "Or we can add features that don't exist in the real-world and just make objects shoot to your hand."
Eiche says the discreetness of VR inputs means creators working in the space are faced with unique challenges when attempting to make their tactile spaces more accessible, although he adds that VR control schemes do eliminate some issues that might frustrate developers working in other areas of the industry.
"What we don't have to account for are complex
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