'Marvel's Avengers' Game Will Include Wheelchair-Using Character

What to know: On Thursday, the designers behind the upcoming “Marvel’s Avengers” revealed the new video game will include a character who uses a wheelchair. The third-person action-adventure game will include the non-playable character Cerise, one of the super-powered Inhumans in the Marvel universe. To realistically portray Cerise, game designers hired Cherry Thompson, a wheelchair user and accessibility consultant, to do motion capture.

Big news!!! I’ve been dying to talk about this for a year and a half!!!

Last year… I did some Motion Capture for @CrystalDynamics’ @PlayAvengers in my wheelchair????????‍????

A sneak peek at the character based on my moves! And look, it’s me with real life stunt men!!! In a funny suit!! https://t.co/6K7BWZitdI pic.twitter.com/m7mhOeD22j

— Cherry Thompson ???? (@cherryrae) May 28, 2020

The frontlines: Like in other forms of media, many video games don’t include characters with disabilities, and often the games themselves are difficult to play because of the design. “Marvel’s Avengers,” however, worked to make this game more accessible in addition to including a character with a disability:

• “Marvel’s Avengers” is designed with a high-contrast user interface to make the game easier for those with low vision or who struggle with difficult or distracting interfaces
• The game’s controls are completely remappable
• Other features include “character-associated subtitles, campaign-relevant closed captions, and HARM Training Rooms”

A Mighty voice: Our contributor, Mollie Miller, explained that disability representation impacts how people act in the real world. “The key to understanding people — in this case, disability life — is freely welcoming immersive experiences and deliberately connecting and communing with neighbors who may look, think or feel distinctly dissimilar from us.” You can submit your first person story, too.

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Add your voice: Join the Distract Me group on The Mighty by downloading our app or comment below.

Other things to know: Want to read more about disability representation in video games? Check out these Mighty articles:

• How to Make Gaming More Accessible to People With Disabilities
• Why I Have Mixed Feelings About This Disabled Video Game Character
• Why the Xbox Adaptive Controller Is a Game-Changer for People With Disabilities

How to take action: You won’t be able to get your hands on the new “Marvel’s Avengers” game until Sept. 4, but you can pre-order it here and read the full story about its accessibility features here.