Courtney Craven – Gamer and disability activist

Craven does presentations worldwide to assist game developers, teachers, writers, and others in making text and images available to people with any disability.

- By Melissa Hart

Courtney Craven, a non-binary gamer and disability activist in Chicago, runs the popular website Can I Play That? (CIPT). The site publishes reviews of video games that focus on accessibility for kids who are Deaf or hard of hearing. Fifteen years ago, Craven became hard of hearing after being kicked in the head by a horse. They earned master’s degrees in English and Creative Writing from Southern New Hampshire University. Now, they work as a caption writer for the game Fortnite. An accessibility and inclusion expert and a self-described “video game nerd,” Craven does presentations worldwide to assist game developers, teachers, writers, and others in making text and images available to people with any disability.

AS A PERSON WHO IS HARD OF HEARING, WHY WAS STARTING CAN I PLAY THAT? (CIPT) IMPORTANT TO YOU?

People who are Deaf or hard of hearing have no way of knowing whether they can play a video game without an accessibility review. They may spend 60 dollars on a game, and then they find that they can’t play it because of non-existent subtitles or the lack of visual cues. It’s a gamble. I believe we should all be able to have fun in the way we choose to. I’d been writing Deaf game reviews for four years before launching CIPT, and I’d had a lot of success. I wanted to give a platform to people with other disabilities so that games could meet their needs, as well.

HOW DO VIDEO GAMES BENEFIT DEAF AND HARD OF HEARING KIDS?