There is now a new update available for Forza Horizon 5 Supports various game scenarios in American Sign Language and British Sign Language.
For many deaf or hard-of-hearing players, subtitles can cause fatigue, so the team brought in actors from the deaf and hard-of-hearing community to sign parts of the story between drives, according to developer Playground Games. This includes taking on challenges, preparing for competitions, meeting other players, and driving through Mexico as planes fly overhead.
Playground Games decided early on to make accessibility a key pillar of the game, which won the Accessibility Innovation Award at The Game Awards 2021, and two Can I Play? Accessibility Award of the same year.
“We realized that by adding this feature we could help people enjoy our games more,” said Mike Brown, Creative Director of Forza Horizon 5. “These are key parts of the game that need to be preserved and protected.”
“I think it’s easy to develop a game like this and start thinking that you might be an expert in accessibility. I think we have to have real humility and the ability to move on, ask questions and try to get better.”
For Playground Games, the focus on accessibility encouraged a new process for applying siging to the game, which the team tested to make sure it actually worked. The studio is constantly consulting with the deaf and hard of hearing community, and they invite them back to play the game in response.
Forza Horizon 5 Playground Games producer Tarnya Smith said the first thing the team did was hire a company run by deaf people to audition and help cast the cast. But they quickly realized they needed more people, such as translators, to communicate with cast and crew and cast and consultants to make sure that what the cast signed was up to standard and in good language.
“We have to talk to them about the difficulties they have in the game,” Smith said. “For me, it was an eye-opener. We learned that while we think subtitles are great and helpful for everyone, they’re actually not that great for deaf or hard-of-hearing people who rely on signatures Help. That’s a big wake-up call for us.”
Sign language support was announced along with other accessibility features when the game launched in November.
