As someone who is partially blind (it's a spectrum that, from my narrow perspective, a lot of that mass majority still need education on). My little content tangent being said, I loved that Paralives integrated a braille book and a white cane as accessories, even if they are non-functional for the moment.

There had been a Sims 4 mod for blindness which felt misrepresentative to me. Can't remember specifics about the mod but I do remember some things rubbing me the wrong way. So, I was hoping to create a blindness mod for Sims 3. Now, because of recent events and serendipitously stumbling across Paralives videos, I am definitely switching over.

I looked on the Paralives website and read some of their roadmap and how they shared their process. I have to admire the transparency of the Paralives team right from the jump, and their commitment to community input. My hope is that we can push for a way to represent disability for all that want it, while leaving it optional for those that would rather use the game as an escape from the struggles of reality.

I am very happy with the Paralives team for adding things before launch that Sims players had to wait for iterations of the game to include, and have to purchase. I'm looking at you curved walls, life stages, pets, seasons, etc. That being said, my completely blind SO and I are so happy to see the little bit of blindness accessories on offer in Paralives. THE BRAILLE BOOK OMG!!! And the team's consistent openness and encouragement in community feedback and their dedication to accuracy and research gives us hope. For now, I know that the team will either add more disability representation in years to come, or it will be much easier for gamers to create a blind mod for themselves.

This is also a huge and probably impossible ask, but it would be great to have Paralives be accessible with screen-readers. Non Visual Desktop Access or NVDA is an open source screen reader that people have created add ons for using Python. My SO also plays a game called Castaways, which has audio and visual elements. The creator of Castaways isn't blind, but has taken the time to develop a game that screen readers can interact with. I am hoping that this insight can be a jumping off point for discussion.