Design Principles of Game AI Assistant (GAIA) for Players with Disabilities: Accessibility Needs and Ethical Concerns

Video games offer immense potential for identity formation and social participation for players with disabilities; nevertheless, fragmented accessibility settings and assistive tools often impose cycles of uncompensated accessibility labor. We explore the Game AI Assistant (GAIA) concept, designed as a framework for personalized support that should adapt to both game context and inferred needs, while preserving autonomy and fair play. We conducted ethics-approved, semi-structured interviews with seven hardcore players with disabilities. Participants were shown a prototype in the context of a high-concentration fighting game to elicit their perceptions and needs. Thematic analysis revealed a core conflict around the psychological state of flow: the prototype was valued for reducing accessibility labor during low-focus preparatory phases but was rejected as a disruptive intrusion during high-concentration moments. While participants appreciated guidance on accessibility resources, they criticized the prototype’s limited customization and verbose responses. Based on these findings, we propose two design principles. The first, Dual Context Adaptation, mandates that an assistant must dynamically adapt its behavior to protect the player’s state of flow. The second, an Ethical Framework for Agency and Accomplishment, is grounded in Self-Determination Theory, so the assistant protects the player’s fundamental needs for autonomy and competence.