Building Inclusive Minecraft Communities for Players With Disabilities and Neurological Differences
Building Inclusive Minecraft Communities for Players With Disabilities and Neurological Differences
Building Inclusive Minecraft Communities for Players With Disabilities and Neurological Differences
By Matthew Harrison
May 4, 2021
Summary
Offering players a 'virtual sandbox', the video game Minecraft is a cultural phenomenon that has transcended many societal preconceptions around creativity, collaboration, and community through digital play.
Others within the Minecraft play space also offer different options for players.
In Dr. Ringland's research examining Autcraft, she observed parents actively inviting players to come play games like hide and seek, but ultimately leaving the decision about whether to join in or not to the players themselves.
Communities can offer a number of different play options and games within Minecraft to give players the benefit of playing how and when they want.
As Minecraft is largely played collaboratively, these values and expected behaviors on Minecraft servers largely focus on how players should make decisions and interact with the creations of others.
As shown below, players completing this survey are asked to consider "When in the same Minecraft world as other players, what are 'some things that players should remember to do to make sure everyone is having fun?".
Building from this notion of individual agency is affording players the opportunity to choose how they interact with other players.
Suggestions for supporting alternative modes of communication:Enable an inclusive communication culture by explicitly listing the multiple ways through which players might choose to engage with each other, and celebrate these differences.
If playing remotely, create signs at spawn points providing ideas for the different ways that players might want to communicate with other players.
We know from our first hand experiences that creating inclusive servers can require careful thought and time, but we have also seen the incredible communities that have built up through inclusive play.
Reference
Harrison, M. (2021, May 4). Building inclusive Minecraft communities for players with disabilities and neurological differences. Hybrid Pedagogy. https://hybridpedagogy.org/building-inclusive-minecraft-communities/.