How do we standardize visual audio as an accessibility option industry-wide?
Advocacy Statement
As a game designer and a survivor of a school shooting, I carry a unique relationship with sound. Loud, sudden audio cues—gunfire, explosions, shouting—can trigger panic. Despite my love for shooters, I stepped away from many of them because these sounds overwhelmed me or brought back traumatic memories.
Fortnite’s audio visualizer changed that. By translating nearby sounds into clear, on-screen visual indicators, it gives me agency over my sensory experience and lets me engage on my own terms. Originally designed for Deaf and hard-of-hearing players, it has become a lifeline for people like me—players with trauma, sound sensitivities, or cognitive differences.
I believe features like Fortnite’s visual sound indicators should be a standard across all shooting games—not as a niche setting, but as a core accessibility option. Just as subtitles and colorblind modes are expected, visual audio cues should be part of every player’s toolkit. This is inclusion in action: an act of empathy that tells players, “You belong here, too.”
As I continue my studies at USC and build games with teams who care about impact, I’m committed to carrying this philosophy forward: design for excitement and expression, and for safety. The audio visualizer is more than a feature; it’s a symbol of what games can become when we make empathy part of design.
Design as Advocacy
This experience fundamentally shaped my philosophy as a game designer. I believe that audio visualizers should become standard across all shooting games — not just as a feature for Deaf or hard-of-hearing players, but as an essential accessibility tool for trauma-informed play.
Accessibility isn’t limited to physical ability; it extends to emotional safety, mental health, and cognitive inclusion. Standardizing visual audio cues can help:
- Players with PTSD or sound-trigger sensitivities
- Neurodivergent players who struggle with overstimulation
- Hearing-impaired players who rely on visual cues for awareness
By offering visual alternatives for auditory feedback, developers invite more people to safely experience fast-paced, high-stakes gameplay without exclusion or distress.
