Sony is one step closer to accessibility. The Japanese company announces the upcoming release of a new feature in the PS Store of the PS5.
Accessibility has been at the center of concern for manufacturers and developers for several years. Microsoft has taken a first big step with the commercialization of its famous adaptive controller, while Sony is currently working on its own model intended primarily for the PS5: Project Leonardo. PlayStation Studios also pride themselves on continuing to push their game’s accessibility options. The Japanese company is announcing a new feature for the PS Store to make it easier for players to discover productions that offer such options.
Accessibility tags in the PS Store on the PS5
The PS5’s PlayStation Store will make it very easy to access the games. This week, Sony will launch Accessibility Beacons in the online store to allow developers to provide a detailed overview of the accessibility features in their games. On the player side it is then possible to show the accessibility options in the PS Store simply by pressing the triangle button, at least if the title in question supports these famous tags. In the event that the PS5 and PS4 versions of the same production are available, the accessibility features of each version can be compared via a scrolling menu.
The accessibility tags will therefore be released gradually this week. When this feature is released, several PS5 and PS4 exclusives will support it, including Gran Turismo 7, Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut, God of War Ragnarok, Ratchet & Clank Rift Apart and Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered. “ We are just beginning to roll out this feature and are working with many developers to roll this feature out to their PS5 game portals over the coming weeks and months.
Types of accessibility tags
In total, around 50 accessibility tags will be made available for PS5 and PS4 game developers, all divided into six categories:
- visual accessibility : This includes plain or enlarged text, alternate colors, audio cues, and directional cues.
- Audio : such as screen readers, alternate visual cues, volume controls, or mono sound.
- subtitle : contains, for example, size options, clear subtitles and enlarged subtitles.
- ordering options : including the ability to play without having to hold down keys or press keys quickly, and without motion detection. This category also includes button remapping, joystick sensitivity.
- playing style : contains options such as simplified QTEs, game speed adjustment, the ability to skip puzzles and of course difficulty settings.
- online communication : specifically includes voice chat text transcription and ping communications