By Kieron JH · 27 August 2025
It’s not often that a gaming critic influences an advocacy platform. But TotalBiscuit wasn’t just a critic. He was a force of nature. A truth-teller. An articulate, relentless voice for fairness and transparency, even when it ruffled feathers. And those principles sit right at the heart of The Reasonable Adjustment.
I first discovered John Bain during the World of Warcraft: Cataclysm beta. He brought a surgical precision to his commentary, and it felt like watching someone with a laser pointer in a world full of flashlights. I’d get home from school, jump straight on YouTube, and watch his Azeroth Daily videos like clockwork. It wasn’t just entertaining, it was formative. He made me feel smarter just by listening.
A Blueprint for Integrity
What made TB stand out wasn’t just his wit or production quality. It was his refusal to be bought. He drew a line in the sand: no sponsored reviews, no behind-the-scenes compromises. He understood the value of trust. And when you’re autistic, trust is everything. It’s hard-won and easily shattered. His commitment to integrity taught me that even in a world of noise and influence, a lone voice, if it’s consistent and principled, can change the game.
That’s the DNA of The Reasonable Adjustment. I may be small, scrappy, and unapologetically independent, but I will never distort the truth for convenience or funding. My work isn’t about appeasing institutions. It’s about pushing them to do better. And when I call them out, it’s not rage-bait. It’s because I’ve done my homework, and I expect others to rise to that standard too.
Respect the Audience
TotalBiscuit respected his audience’s intelligence. He knew they could handle nuance, detail, and complexity, and he never dumbed it down. That’s something I carry forward on this site. Whether I’m discussing disability rights, data protection, or the psychological impact of being ignored by the very systems meant to support us, I write for people who think. People who don’t want sugar-coating. People who’ve had enough of being underestimated.
A Legacy That Lives On
John Bain passed away in 2018 after a public battle with bowel cancer that eventually metastasised to his liver. It’s a particularly sobering detail for me, as someone living with ulcerative colitis – a condition that carries its own increased risk of colorectal cancer. And yet, even during chemotherapy, even while fighting for his life, he kept creating. He kept speaking. He kept giving. His passion never gave in, even when his body was under siege.
That kind of resilience isn’t something you mimic. It’s something you carry with you as a reminder of what’s possible. Of what matters. Of why we do this in the first place.
The Reasonable Adjustment doesn’t exist because of TotalBiscuit. But it exists how it does because of him.
I don’t carry the torch. But I do try to ensure the spirit of his work lives on.
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