No Sound, No Problem: Accessibility in Gaming for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Players

Abstract

Video games play an increasingly important role in entertainment, social interaction, and cultural participation, yet accessibility challenges affect not only who can play games, but also how play is experienced. For Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHH) players, accessibility is closely tied to core game mechanics, as many games rely heavily on auditory information. While prior research and industry guidelines have proposed a range of accessibility features, less attention has been paid to how these features shape the experience of play and the trade-offs they introduce. We present a thematic analysis of Reddit posts from DHH-focused gaming communities to examine how DHH players describe accessibility barriers, adaptive strategies, and desired design features across a range of games. Our analysis reveals recurring tensions between accessibility, immersion, competitive fairness, and enjoyment that are often overlooked in feature-based accounts of accessibility. These findings highlight DHH players as active participants who continually adapt and critique game systems to sustain meaningful play. We conclude with player-centered design implications that frame accessibility as an integral part of game experience rather than a post-hoc accommodation.

The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction, 2026 · DOI ↗