By Sagar V. Mankar 
The GAconf (Game Accessibility Conference) Awards 2024 announced its nominations across 19 categories shortlisted by an expert panel.
It is an annual event dedicated to recognizing and celebrating outstanding contributions to (mobility, vision, hearing, and cognitive) accessibility in game development. These awards highlight the efforts of developers, studios, and advocates who go above and beyond to ensure that games are inclusive and accessible to all players, regardless of their abilities.
The winners will be determined through a combination of public and jury votes held from November 25th to December 1st.
The winners will be revealed in January, hosted by Steve Saylor alongside a lineup of special guests. The full ceremony will be available to watch on the IGDA-GASIG YouTube channel.
Nominees for the 2024 GAconf Awards
AAA Excellence
- Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown
- Star Wars Outlaws
- Dragon Age: The Veilguard
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
- Life Is Strange: Double Exposure
Indie Excellence
- Periphery Synthetic
- Another Crab’s Treasure
- Botany Manor
- Pine Hearts
- Plucky Squire
Best Deaf/Hard of Hearing Accessibility
- Skull & Bones
- Spider-Man 2 Caption Update
- Star Wars Outlaws
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
- Dragon Age: The Veilguard
Best Motor/Mobility Accessibility
- Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora
- Soundtown
- Just Dance 2025
- Star Wars Outlaws
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
Best Blind/Low Vision Accessibility
- Periphery Synthetic
- Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown
- Star Wars Outlaws
- Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred
- Toby Doom Mod 7 & 7.5
Best Cognitive Accessibility
- Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown
- Star Wars Outlaws
- Super Monkey Ball Banana Rumble
- Dragon Age: The Veilguard
- Botany Manor
Best Mental Health Accessibility
- Home Safety Hotline
- Until Dawn Remake
- Life Is Strange: Double Exposure
- Alan Wake 2 v1.15
- Silent Hill 2 Remake
Best Representation
- The Sims 4
- Hellblade 2
- Rainbow 6 Siege
- Dragon Age: The Veilguard
- Just Dance 2025
Best Journalism
- Why games need a thriving third-party accessibility scene by Geoffrey Bunting
- How Accessible Hardware Bridges the Gap Between Individuals and Options by Grant Stoner
- Playing Pokémon By Ear by Stephen Totilo
- Xbox at Gamescom by Antonio Martinez
- A Prominent Accessibility Advocate Worked With Studios and Inspired Change. But She Never Actually Existed by Grant Stoner
Best Academic Research
- Surveyor: Facilitating Discovery Within Video Games for Blind and Low Vision Players by Vishnu Nair et al
- Detecting Discrepancies between Subtitles and Audio in Gameplay Videos with EchoTest by Ian Gauk et al
- Representation of Invisible Disability: Exploring the Lived Experience of Teenagers with ADHD to Inform Game Design by Kathrin Gerling et al
- Gaming Sickness and Its Impact on Players’ Experiences With Games by Anna Chen et al
- Playing on Hard Mode: Accessibility, Difficulty and Joy in Video Game Adoption for Gamers with Disabilities by Jesse J Martinez et al
Best Assistive Technology
- PlayStation Access Controller
- Microsoft Adaptive Joystick Button
- XAC Firmware Updates
- 8BitDO Lite SE for Xbox
- Byowave Proteus
Best Accessibility Resource
- Rebellion Accessibility Test Brief
- Xbox Accessibility Workshop Toolkit
- Gamescom Stand Accessibility Regulations + Recommendations
- RNIB Devkit
- Collection of Rebellion Accessibility Feature Usage Data
Best Comms/Marketing
- Access-Ability Summer Showcase
- Diablo IV Community Showcase Video
- Xbox Area at Gamescom
- Ubisoft Area at Paris Games Week
- Star Wars Outlaws Preview Rounds
Most Improved
- Star Wars: Jedi Survivor
- Spider-Man 2
- Diablo IV
- Star Wars Outlaws
- Toby Doom Mod 7 & 7.5
Greatest Accessibility Innovation
- Diablo IV Overworld Navigation Audio Cues
- Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown Memory Shards Feature
- Byowave Proteus
- Gamescom Stand Accessibility Regulations
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Asymmetrical Hearing Compensation
Most Dedicated Publisher
- Electronic Arts
- PlayStation Studios
- Ubisoft
- Xbox Game Studios
- Rebellion
Most Dedicated Studio
- Blizzard Team 3
- Ubisoft Massive
- Ubisoft Kyiv
- Rare
- Respawn
MVP Award for Unsung Hero
- Jennissary, Descriptive Video Works
- Kaitlyn Jones, Xbox
- Jordan DeVries, Respawn
- Joost Peters, Ubisoft Massive
- Cari Watterton, Rebellion
The Advocacy Award
- Matthew Allcock (The Wobbly Gamer)
- Antonio Martinez
- Mollie Evans (LittleMoTAC)
- Elisabeth Sivertsen (Arevya)
- Marijn Rongen (ActiveB1t)
Since its inception, the GAconf Awards have served as a platform to showcase innovations, share best practices, and honor those pushing the boundaries of what accessibility in gaming can achieve.
Source: GAconf