The Road to Twitchcon
Dear person,
As the producer of the video above and a manager on this website, it has been a great privilege to have the opportunity to work with one of our own, Gommel Nox, in helping him create a message about some of the difficulties that disabled-bodied people face everyday when it comes to doing tasks that you and I might take for granted. In 2003, Gommel was injured in an accident that left him paralysed from the chest down. While he retains some movement in his arms, fine tasks are can prove difficult. I know I certainly never thought about how I would play videogames without the ability to use the motor skills in my hands and arms or other senses that contribute to me making that dank headshot or raid-saving last minute heal. On top of that, being able to stream it all live (while doing it well enough to get accepted to go to Twitchcon in San Diego) is no small feat.
In short, these past few months working with Gommel has been inspiring.
Gommel Nox, aka the Accessible Gamer, will be a panel presenter at this year’s Twitchcon convention in San Diego. It will be the second year that Twitch has put on this gathering, which is quickly becoming a top destination for any and all streamers who use its services. With presentations, panels, and parties, there will be no shortage of stories to tell, and we will do our best to make sure Gommel comes away with it all with some really good ones.
Something I never think about as your average overweight, un-exercised middle aged adult is just how difficult it is for Gommel to get on a plane and fly somewhere. Not only does he have to be one of the first people on and the last people off, but he has to do so without the comfort of his accessibility chair, which (fingers crossed) needs makes it to San Diego in one piece. Even after flying across the coast and getting to his destination, he cannot use the forms of transport you and I probably use, and instead has to rent his own accessibility van, which is not cheap. On top of everything, he cannot do any of this alone, so when he travels, he tends to have a bit of an entourage.
Thankfully, he’s been able to raise most of the travel costs via donations on his his twitch channel as well as our own, but to cover the last remaining costs (his accessibility van) we are blasting the internet and telling folks to go directly here to donate. If you are interested in connecting further with him while he’s not streaming, he can be easily reached on our Discord server. For those able to tune in, Gommel’s panel on accessibility in gaming will be streamed live on Saturday at noon PST, and will be rebroadcasted on TMC’s Twitch channel.
To learn more about able gaming, visit Gommel’s website and blog athttp://www.accessiblegamer.com/.
