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A Sony employee has gone above and beyond to help a young gamer who had difficulties using the Dualshock 4 controller due to having Cerebral Palsy.
When 21-year-old gamer Peter Byrne contacted Sonyabout his problems using the company’s Dualshock 4 controller, he probably didn’t expect the response he would eventually get. Bryne, who is based out of South Amboy, had a difficult time using the controller because he has Cerebral Palsy. The design of the new Dualshock 4 controller made things difficult for the young gamer, as a result of the controller’s touchpad interface.
Byrne said that once he sent the email to Sony, it took less than a day for Sony employee Alex Nawabi to get in touch with the avid gamer. Nawabi informed the young player that he would tackle the matter personally, and not in an official Sony capacity. Two weeks later, Byrne received a custom PlayStation 4 controllerin the mail, as well as a personal letter form Nawabi detailing the construction details behind the custom peripheral, and a promise that another one would be made should this one break.
It took over ten hours of labor to produce the one-of-a-kind Dualshock 4 controller, which took 3 different controllers to build and involved rerouting the touchpad’s inputs to the rear of the controller. Nawabi also added a heartfelt personal note at the end of the letter, once the technical instructions had been given:
“The email you sent definitely struck a chord within. I’m not sure how you got access to our email but I’m glad I could be of some help. It killed me to hear something you used to enjoy thoroughly was being ruined because of our new controller design. Although I can’t help everyone who has this problem, at least I can help you. I wish I had more to give you.”
Byrne said that Nawabi ‘did more than [he] ever expected’, stating on his personal Facebook page that he was currently enjoying, where he has experienced no interruptions to gameplay with Nawabi’s custom controller. So far, the custom unit has held out, but it’s good to know that Nawabi has a second unit ready just in case the first one malfunctions. As if this wasn’t enough, Nawabi asked Byrne to provide feedback from the first unit so the second controller could be improved prior to being sent out.
Alex Nawabi wasn’t reachable for comment, but we’d like to commend the Sony employee for taking matters into his own hands. Gaming should be for everyone, and he helps make the medium itself a brighter and more accessible place.
Interested gamers can take a look at Nawabi’s full letter here.
Source: News12 New Jersey