AbleGamers Foundation opening Accessibility Arcade

The AbleGamers Foundation, a nonprofit group that advocates for video games to be developed with the disabled in mind, will open its first permanent arcade, the Accessibility Arcade, on Oct. 10 in Washington, DC.

The Accessibility Arcade will be located at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, the main branch of the District of Columbia Public Library. "We're looking forward to welcoming new and experienced gamers with disabilities of all ages to the library for a unique experience," said Venetia Demson, chief of the DC Public Library's Adaptive Services Division.

The foundation's accessibility arcade first debuted at a conference in Boston four years ago, and according to president and founder Mark Bartlet, the organization has been "dreaming about this day" ever since. October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month, an appropriate timing for the momentous occasion. Steve Spohn, editor-in-chief of the AbleGamers Foundation, called the arcade "a tremendous victory for disabled gamers everywhere, and added, "Moreover, it's a victory for everyone who has ever worked with, contributed to, and especially donated to the foundation."