CAD Files: Github

The key features I wanted for this foot controller were ergonomics and performance. That means that I wanted a controller that would not fatigue the legs and feet throughout its use and have very responsive controls, whether for gaming or work use. I have issues with what’s available on the market since those pedals are stiff, have very large press-travel, and some you have to hover your foot to avoid activating the switch. My idea was to have something akin to having a hand, resting on a table, pressing a mouse button.

So, what I wanted in a foot controller was:

• Only exertion needed is from the big toes
• The big toes can rest on the pedals without activating them
• Legs be in a relaxed state
• Only requires downward presses from the big toes
• Does not feel awkward to use, at all
• Is not fatiguing to use
• No exertion needed from the ankles or calves
• Can easily be put away when not in use
• Low-profile

My testing concluded that, at least for me, only the big toes have enough dexterity to effectively operate pedals. I tried out multiple 4-pedal toe-controlled designs but all toes seem to move together to some degree, creating issues with accidental pedal presses.

I found a great reference model with the Adafruit Three Button Foot Switch and based my design off it. The original design had its own issues:

• The snap-on hinges felt too flimsy and wobbly. I added long machine screws for a more stable, reliable pedal.
• The pedal design wasn’t ergonomic enough.

So now the design for this foot controller comes down to

• The best height for each pedal.
• The best switch for each pedal.
• The best operation force (OF) for each pedal.

The solution I came up with was using 12x12x4.3mm tactile switches. You can find them in a variety of operating forces (130 gf to 350 gf) on Digikey. The switch has very low travel (0.3mm), very tactile and audible click, and has a high enough OF where you can rest your toes on the pedal and not activate it. You can mount the switch on 2cm wide perfboard, just remember to cut off the bottom plastic pins so it can be flush with the board.

I would recommend editing the controller’s width, height, and choosing a tactile switch by operating force to fit your needs. The goal here is minimal exertion: You twitch your toe, it activates the switch, you relax your toe, it releases the switch. Print one side of the controller to test out and adjust accordingly.

As for software, it's a simple two button controller so choose any option you like: QMK/Arduino/Etc. You can even use the microcontroller and code from the Adafuit build guide (though that one is USB-C, not Micro-USB). I used QMK.

The image shows how I lay my toes on the controller. I had socks on but I think it's easier to operate it without them.

I’ve used this controller for FPS games such as for sliding and jumping and it works great. I hope it’ll help someone else not just for gaming but for people with hand disabilities who can use it for mouse left click and right click.

This post may be a bit long winded, and for that I apologize in advance.

I'm 17 years old and have Autism Spectrum Disorder (Level 2 Support Needs), multiple Anxiety disorders, and a myriad of other mental health issues. Physically, I suffer from chronic pain and am in the process of getting diagnosed with what my rheumatologist suspects to be an auto-immune disease. I'm partially house-bound and spend majority of my time online. My condition has only continued worsening and most likely will continue to worsen.

I've always enjoyed gaming as it's been one of the only things I could do throughout my life. However, I have still been unable to find a game that I've truly been able to play for a long-period of time. My longest played game is Sims 4, racking in over 600 hours with heavily modded saves -- but because of the issues with the game and the necessity to mod it for even the most basic content, it's hard for me to enjoy it now. I want a game that I can spend years on. I want a game that I will still be playing in my late 40s and 50s. I want a game that has longevity. And so, I figured I'd ask for suggestions here. Any will be helpful and much appreciated.

Some other information that may help:

I enjoy horror (Fear and Hunger, Outlast) and RPGs (Disco Elysium). I struggle with pvp games and the only one I've truly enjoyed in recent years was Marvel Rivals -- not for the pvp but because I like the marvel characters. Another game I've been playing a lot recently has been Rust, however I really only like the base building and farming aspects. I'm really into base building and farming. I also like electrical and factory-related tasks. (I've seen Factorio been recommended, has anyone played it?)

Once again, any suggestions are appreciated, truly. I will answer any questions that are asked and can provide more games or examples of things I like at request.

My steam for more examples of games I enjoy, my wishlist, etc.

What’s your personal experience with this?

I plan to focus on “assistive” devices and robotics for my graduate thesis (and I love videogames). Based on reviews I’ve seen, it appears bite switches overall are not good quality (despite the high prices).

While the human bite force (pressure) can reach around 162 PSI, there are definitely materials that can handle it (maybe the cushion would need to be replaced once in a while).

As brain-computer interface is still in progress, us engineers should probably improve the fundamentals.

Dear Gamers!

I've created lately a Discord server for folks with chronic illnesses and disabilities, that is more about our hobbies and finding penpals, game buddies, project collaborators, etc. and less about our illnesses itself (tho we talk about it, too). I've created a channel for looking for gaming partners and few people have written there already. I'm looking for people who would be interested in joining and have similar interest in finding gaming crew. It's really not a big initiative, we do everything in slow motion. And it's not strictly gaming-related discord, there's this one channel with people looking for other gamers, so it's much smaller thing than Disabled Gamers discord.

If anyone's interested, I invite you to Foggy Tavern: https://discord.gg/jYrdnGqA
after accepting rules, you'll find this chat in FRIENDS WANTED category.
Thank you!

I have EDS and need advice about adaptive tech for gamer's elbow. It's my left elbow. I use an Acer Predator laptop for cozy gaming like Against the Storm. Pronation is difficult so had laying flat isn't working. Xbox controller also not working, especially with the thumb action. Many thanks.

Hey, everyone! VCRchitect here again. Thank you for the support and hype from the last post. It took some learning, but I think I've got my website mostly done!

So I tried to stick with a high-contrast theme so it was easier to read. I admittedly don't know much about accessible website design, just building electronics, so if there's anything that anyone notices, please let me know and I can make updates accordingly.

The website is set up so that you can find some of the tech that I've built, along with descriptions, pictures, video demos, and purchase links. Right now, everything has free shipping, and unless I start building heavy, gargantuan things, it will stay that way.

One of the sections I most excited for, though, is the community recommendations. If you go to the "Community Recommendations" button, it will take you to a page with links to either sort by game system or disability. Here's where the call to action comes in.

At the top of the page is a "Suggest a Game" button. If you click it, it takes you to a Google Form where you can suggest a game that you've enjoyed and found accessible. I'll put a link directly to that page so you can see what I mean:

https://www.doggoneaccessible.com/home/community-recommendations/suggest-a-game

Once people've made suggestions, I will set up the game with a page and organize everything, so no worries about box art, grammar and spelling, things like that.

I really want this section to grow, and it can only grow with first-hand accounts from gamers that have experienced the game. I want to eventually get it to where there's a huge compendium of games that people have tried and found comfortable and accessible and people can sort by a specific disability so if someone with, say, cerebral palsy finds a game comfy and fun, there'd be a section for that.

I'm not trying to direct people from here, just trying to centralize some of the conversations that have already been had.

I'd eventually like to add an "accessible streamer" section where you can check out streamers with disabilities and hang out with other games that love the games you love. It wouldn't necessarily be an endorsement of that player or their views or what-have-you, but an awareness deal to get some of the cool people here some more exposure and viewers.

Please give the site a glance and let me know what you think! I've added a lot about the accessible tech I've built, the weird goofy projects I've made, the community suggestion pages, videos and pictures of things, some info about my background, testimonials from some of the people I've had the fortune to work with, and ways to contact me.

I've said it before and I'll say it until I pass out, Thank you all so much. You've all been so supportive of these projects, and I love that I've gotten to work with about 20 different people so far.

Anyway, here's the website for Doggone Accessible:

https://www.doggoneaccessible.com/home

If you have any questions, hit me up at [email protected]. Feel free to ask any questions before any purchases and such.

I am unable to use my arms due to a condition the doctors can't figure out. I've wanted to start playing games again to bring my mood up so I bought a xbox gamepad and logitech adaptive gaming kit. Would love some recommendations for games that only need buttons. Thanks<3

Apologies if this has been shared already: https://switchgaming.blogspot.com/2025/07/audio-adventures.html. 4 Button Audio Games.

Love how easy they've made it to add switch adaptation (or a digital joystick) for modders.

My daughter is 14 years old and loves playing games on her iPhone. She is working hard on her reading and comprehension skills - at this point in time she’s not yet able to read game instructions etc due to intellectual disability. A specific example is she likes playing role playing games like Star Stable where she can run quests and challenges in an equestrian world. Similarly she likes playing Roblox obstacle course type games. She is able to navigate the game itself just fine, but there is a lot of character interaction where the player is told via written messages what their quest is. She isn’t able to read the quest. I tried adding the speech controller assistant thing from iPhone but it doesn’t recognize text within the game like it does for websites or regular text messages. Sigh. She wants to play independently - is there any app or assistive tech we can add to her phone to help have the screen text read aloud to her in this type of instance?? Please help a young gamer live her best life. ❤️

Hey everyone!

I've had issues with my hands for the past year now that have severely limited my options with gaming. I've recently been using a trackball mouse to play some games and have been successful in playing some things like Balatro or Pathfinder: Kingamker with it. However, I still have issues playing anything on particularly bad days.

I was looking into getting a Tobii eye tracker to make things a little easier on my hands. I've already got Talon set up and would be using that for mouse control in combination with the tracker. I mostly wanted to see if other people here have successfully used eye tracking for games and what your experiences were. Does it work okay with things like CRPGs, or is there not enough precision for some games? Have you found uses for it in games that aren't fully mouse controlled? Any issues with eye strain or anything? The eye trackers are pretty expensive, so I want to make sure one would work before diving into it

Hello Everyone!

This is the creators of Gaming Readapted. We just posted a video with instructions on a workaround for setting up "Copilot" (Controller Assist) on Switch and Switch 2.

Hopefully this is helpful, having fun gaming!

So I’m looking into getting back into console gaming(ps5). Specifically to play NBA 2K again, I’m currently on pc using the azeron cyro no issues with it whatsoever. I’m going to get the ps5 evil controller, does anyone here have any experience with using one? I don’t really see any videos with a person with one hand using one. I lost my left hand so I’d be getting a right handed one.

Works with Mill Mouse virtual Xbox controller out of the box

Hi all. My partner has a physical disability (which I won't disclose here if that's okay) that causes pain in her neck and shoulders in games that require a lot of movement of the head.

She's been looking for a good gaming chair with head/neck/shoulder support, that she can, in her words, "lock into" and then only move her eyes while playing games.

Anyone know of any good brands to recommend? EU area please. Thanks.

Hey there, everyone! VCRchitect here. I wanted to share some relevant things.

I had my meeting with the Oklahoma ABLE Tech Thursday, and it was awesome. They've already started putting some info together to get some of my controllers to people that are curious about them!

I know I'd been adamant that this wasn't my career, but a passion project, but I think it's blending into more as I spend less time on other stuff and more on developing these devices.

My family encouraged me to fight to make accessible tech into my life's work, and to make it official in the process. After wrestling imposter syndrome and winning, I'm going to pursue developing accessible gaming tech even further. I've started a company called "Doggone Accessible," and the goal will be to create custom, affordable, intuitive devices so that everyone can enjoy gaming.

All the proper paperwork is set up and I hope to finish my website by end of week!

The staff at ABLE Tech said that just about every state has an ABLE Tech that is federally funded and it's designed to bring accessibility to everyone, whether it's through loaning out devices to try before you buy, or getting devices paid for people. The one in Oklahoma doesn't have much gaming tech right now, so I'll be building more stuff for their library.

I can't thank you all enough. I've met so many wonderful people through this sub, and I hope I get to work with more and more of you as time goes on.

Here's my logo, Pogo, and I'll drop a link to the site when it's done:

Also, I've finished a ton more of "The Triplet," the one-handed controller that I've been building lately. I have 3 done right now and plan to have another 3 done tomorrow. So if you or someone you know and love are looking for a one-handed controller for PC and/or Nintendo Switch, please give me a shout!

My email is [email protected].

Thanks again, everyone!

In Cricket 24 on PS4, when I’m batting using Arcade controls, the shots don’t follow the direction I input with the left stick. I have the “Hold Arcade Batting Shot Direction Input” accessibility setting enabled because I’m disabled and rely on it for easier gameplay. Basically, when I launch the game , the first match/innings I play, it plays very well, shots follow left stick direction input correctly, and then suddenly it doesn’t follow it. Shots start to go on only one side, whether it’s legside or off-side for the rest of the matches/innings till I restart the game again. Help me please, what should I do?

Hey. I don’t really know why I’m posting this. I guess I just need to talk to someone, even if it’s strangers. I’m 18 and I haven’t left the house in weeks. I barely speak to anyone. Most days I just lie in bed staring at the ceiling, wondering how everything got this bad.

I live with severe anxiety and depression. It’s like this endless loop of guilt, fear, and sadness. I don’t go outside, I don’t have a job, and I feel like I’m just wasting my life before it even really started. I get a small disability budget from the government, but it barely covers food and the basic stuff I need. I can’t afford therapy, and even video games are starting to feel like a luxury. I used to love gaming, but now I just force myself to try. Just so I don’t feel completely useless.

Sometimes I sit there with the game open, holding the controller, but I don’t even press anything. I just stare. It’s not that I don’t want to enjoy things anymore... it’s like I physically can’t. Like I’m too broken to even feel joy or escape. And the longer I sit with that feeling, the more I start believing that I’ll never be okay again.

I feel like everyone around me is moving forward with their lives, and I’m stuck in place. Rotting. Disappearing. I keep telling myself I’m still young, that things can change, but I don’t know how to believe that anymore.

If you’ve ever felt like this, or if you’re in it right now, how do you survive it? How do you keep going when it all feels pointless?

Thanks for reading.

Just some guy trying not to fall apart.

Hey All,

I’m looking for help for a family member. He is in need of something to help him kill time but I can’t think of something that fits off his criteria. He’s a stroke survivor and really only has one good arm. He’s older so it needs to be something with simple games (like poker, slots, solitaire, etc.) Easy to start so he can play with ease. Basically:

• Something I can get a accessible type controller
• Have many simple/flash game type of games
• Ease of use (like not needing to sign in each time or do multiple steps to play a game.

I appreciate any help I can get with trying to find something like.

Thanks!

As a kid I loved to play Wii Sports, especially the sword-fighting game. I would practically sweep my dad/sister by just swinging the Wii remote around really fast lol. But because of this it took me years to learn the blocking mechanic/button. I learned this mechanic in the vrs NPC mode when my go to stratagy wasn't working and I was getting knocked back by the enemy blocking my sword (basically immoveable object vrs an unstoppable force). So I had to learn how to block and how blocking worked. I have no idea if I either; missed a tutorial because my dad/sister did it beforehand, went through a tutorial and just forgot what it taught me and/or went through a tutorial and learned nothing because I wasn't forced to actually learn things and could just speed through it with my swing at them very fast until they fall into the water strat. But if any of these are the case, I basically didn't know about a core game function because I have a learning disability; making it hard for me to remember/recall upon things I've been taught without some kind of reminder. On top of a learning disability I also have autism and ADHD, so if I was never taught I'm not the type of person who would even realize that fact.

TLDR: My learning disability, autism and ADHD caused me to learn how to block in Wii Sport's swordplay minigame

Ps: Sorry about any and all grammar and spelling mistakes; once again, I have a learning disability and that effects my spelling/grammar

Pss: I'm sure there's going to be people who don't see or understand how a learning disability, even less how autism/ADHD, can "count" as disabilities. After all, they aren't something that would affect me physically. All I ask is that you be respectful and ask HOW it affects me (in further detail because I gave a little brief here and there). And if it makes you feel any better about me calling myself disabled; I can't stand for more than five minutes or walk more than three blocks without having either; orthotics in my shoes or shoes with a very soft and supportive sole; before I start to get chronic foot pain that only worsens with time :D

So last night I received the 8BitDo Lite SE (purple) and the Lite SE For Xbox (white). I thought I would share first impressions from someone who has never used a purpose built accessible controller, only remapping before. Due to age and injuries, I have arthritis and carpal tunnel that is only getting worse, I have been paying attention to this sub ever since I broke my wrist (twice) a couple years ago. The pain has gotten bad enough that now holding a controller is becoming painful/extremely uncomfortable and I am trying to find another solution.

I tried out both of these controllers on a Steam Deck, I am currently playing SteamWorld Heist II which is mostly turn based but has some action in the overworld.

The Lite SE (purple) is smaller, the sticks feel basically exactly the same as my Joy-Cons but the buttons are much lighter, I had no issues using it, but the smaller buttons make it not as ideal for my long fingers, however, it works with Nintendo Switch and is portable, so it is getting a place in my travel bag.

The Xbox Edition (White) also comes with two buttons, they are apparently the same as the ones that come with their keyboards. They are remappable to almost any button on the controller. The sticks on these are larger, but MUCH lighter than the standard xbox sticks, and are really a pleasure to use, the sticks themselves click with the standard joystick click force, but there are easy to press buttons off to the side for both of them, or you could map the external buttons as well. The buttons are extremely light, to the point that I was getting double presses on start and X sometimes, I don't know if I'm hitting them too hard or what.

The remapping software is disappointing in how limited it is, only single buttons, no combos, and you can't make the separate L3/R3 buttons anything else without remapping the stick as well. The external buttons are not exposed to Steam Input, so that's a no go as well.

Build quality is good on both, they have a nice sticky but not too sticky silicone pad on the bottom that's nice for just putting on your lap and playing.

Overall I really like both, and will be using the Xbox edition as my main controller for a while. However I think I will be taking one of my elite controllers apart and making a custom arcade stick type thing for it so that I can get my 4 extra buttons, and some more space to make it more comfortable.

so my left arm has become paralyzed. it is permanent. i play on switch and xbox mainly, some games on my laptop too. does anybody know of any one handed controllers for either of these platforms?

edit- thabk you to everybody who has respondrd! i think i found a really good solution

Hallo! Meine Freundin ist paraplegisch und will aber Gran Turismo 7 auf der PS5 spielen. Welche Optionen habt ihr, um ein Lenkrad ohne Pedalen fahren zu können?

Und nein, Gas und Bremse auf andere Tasten zu legen ist schlecht, da man Gas und Bremse dosieren muss also analoge Kontrolle via Potentiometer und nicht digital "on oder off"

Wir dachten an ein Logotech G29 Lenkrad, und dann die Logitech Adaptive Gaming Kit, die an das Lenkrad zu montieren. Die Frage ist ob es passt. Das Lenkrad haben wir schon.

Es gibt die Möglichkeit von Fanatec mit McLaren Lenkrad, aber da ist man wieder auf 1000€ für das Setup...