how One disabled boy Inspired a Video Game Studio and altered attitudes

Take a look at the Stumble Guys website and the game, built by American development studio Scopely and playable on PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, iOS, and Android, is described as “a massive multiplayer party knockout game with up to 32 players online [featuring] round after round of escalating chaos to stumble through different levels until one victor is crowned!” The title happens to be a favorite of a 9-year-old French boy named Fayçal, who’s disabled and relies on a wheelchair for everyday mobility.

The problem was, until recently, no one in Stumble Guys actually looked like Fayçal.

He complained about this lack of representation during a visit to Scopely’s offices in Barcelona, asking the team quite pointedly why none of the characters in his beloved Stumble Guys have a wheelchair. Faced with the challenge, the team got to work on making Fayçal’s dream a reality and bringing true disability inclusion to Stumble Guys.

“Meeting Fayçal was one of the most moving and meaningful moments of my time at Scopely,” Antonio Do Souto, the global creator program manager for Stumble Guys, said recently in a brief email interview with me. “I feel deeply honored and grateful to have been the one to welcome him to the office on behalf of the entire team.”

Do Souto explained Fayçal was in Spain on a medical trip and dreamt of seeing where the proverbial Stumble Guys sausage is made. When Fayçal arrived at Scopely’s offices, his enthusiasm was “contagious,” Do Souto said, and “you could see the spark in his eyes the moment he realized he was actually there.” Meeting Fayçal was a deeply emotional experience for Do Souto, as he said a big part of his duties involve “[bringing] people together” from all walks of life in an effort to create “a creative and inclusive space where players constantly inspire us with their stories, energy, and imagination.”

“Even though my work centers on creators, it naturally keeps me close to our players. I often get to see firsthand how deeply people connect with the game and with each other through it,” Do Souto said of his work at Scopely. “My role keeps me seated at the heart of that connection: I get to listen, learn, and help transform those real community stories into meaningful actions that reflect who our players are.”

Indeed, Do Souto affirmed Scopely’s users undoubtedly include people like Fayçal.

“That’s why stories like [his] resonates so deeply” he said. “They remind us behind every player is a person who finds meaning, fun, and belonging in what we create.”

Scopely has a short video on Fayçal’s story on its official YouTube channel.

Do Souto’s conversation with Fayçal was so resonant precisely because of his earnest question over why none of the Stumble Guys crew had heretofore looked like him. In that moment, Do Souto said the team was presented with a prime opportunity to “stop and reflect” on their design decisions. “It was such a simple, genuine question—yet it hit all of us deeply… that moment wasn’t just emotional. It was clarifying,” Do Souto said. “It showed us that representation isn’t abstract; it’s personal, it’s human, and it has the power to change how someone feels seen in the worlds we build.”

That meeting Fayçal was such a breakthrough for Scopely is because it crystallized the studio’s thinking on upping its representational game. Prior to that, Do Souto told me, the team “naturally thought about inclusion in a broad sense, through diversity in characters and play experiences,” but conceded disability inclusion was an area they “hadn’t truly examined” before Fayçal came along and pressed the issue with them.

In the end, the work paid off—for Scopely, sure, but mostly for Fayçal.

“It’s hard to describe that moment in words,” Do Souto said of the moment when Fayçal first discovered his sought-after avatar. “We worked quietly behind the scenes to create a special skin for him: a joyful superhero in a wheelchair named Axel. We coordinated with his mom to make it a surprise, ensuring that when he launched the game, Axel was already unlocked and equipped on his account.”

Do Souto continued: "When Fayçal opened Stumble Guys and saw the skin appear on his screen, he froze for a second, then smiled from ear to ear and shouted, ‘They made a skin of me?!’ His whole family gathered around, and there were tears everywhere.”

Do Souto went on in effusively recalling the poignant reveal for Fayçal and family.

“Seeing that pure joy, that disbelief turning into pride, reminded all of us that a small creative gesture can hold enormous emotional power. It wasn’t just a skin. It was a moment of belonging. It was a kid realizing that his world existed inside his favorite game too,” he said of Fayçal’s reaction. “To me personally, this moment reminded me once again why we go to work every morning. Yes, we all have our abstract tasks and metrics. For me, it’s things like how many creators are in the program this trimester, how many videos are out there, what the retention rate looks like, and so on. For others, it might be questions like ‘Is this mechanic balanced?’ or ‘Is there enough rebound in this collision?’ But in the end, what we’re all really aiming for is something simple and powerful: a smile on a kid who’s happy to be part of the Stumble Guys universe.”

Meeting Fayçal and making his digital likeness was transformational for Do Souto and Scopely. The experiences reminded everyone “games have the power to do more than entertain… they can connect, heal, and make people feel seen. Moreover, the chance to meet Fayçal galvanized the Scopely team like never before, according to Do Souto.

“Artists, producers, developers, and everyone in-between came together with open hearts to make one magical moment possible,” he said.

He added: “At Scopely, we have cultural tenets, which act as our code that guides decision-making and serves as our day-to-day compass. My favorite has always been ‘Care Deeply.’ This experience gave that phrase a whole new meaning. Representation isn’t about checking a box, it’s about making sure every player feels they belong. Fayçal reminded us of that truth with his courage, his smile, and his imagination.”

When asked about the future, Do Souto echoed Aisha Amin, the young filmmaker who recently vowed never again will she make another movie without Deaf people in prominence, by telling me Scopely’s time with Fayçal “changed how we think about inclusion in a very real way,” adding “it reminded us that accessibility and representation aren’t add-ons; they’re part of what makes a world feel welcoming and complete.” Since that day with Fayçal, the Stumble Guys team have engaged in growing, “broader” conversations around disability inclusion. The talks have crossed a rubicon of sorts, leading to a shift in mindset that prioritizing accessibility is not a mere technical endeavor; it’s cultural and recognizing the disability community as human.

“It’s about asking who else can we represent, and how can we make them feel celebrated, not just included,” Do Souto said.

Once more, with feeling, from Do Souto and connecting with Fayçal.

“Fayçal’s visit was a catalyst to push us to continue that spirit of representation a lasting part of how we build, test, and imagine every update moving forward… [his] story reaffirmed our commitment to keep learning, listening, and building worlds where everyone can see themselves, not just as players, but as heroes,” Do Souto said.

The video game industry is better off with concerted efforts like Scopely’s.

“Authentic representation and accessibility are what truly move our industry forward,” Do Souto said.