The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) has launched the Accessible Games Initiative, a groundbreaking "tag" system designed to enhance video game accessibility for consumers. Announced at the Game Developers Conference, this initiative is the result of collaboration among industry giants including Electronic Arts, Google, Microsoft, Nintendo, Sony, and Ubisoft, with additional support from Amazon, Riot Games, Square Enix, and WB Games. The ESA will oversee the management of this initiative.
Under this new system, participating video game companies will use a set of 24 approved tags to label their games, providing clear information about accessibility features. These tags will be displayed alongside the game's details on digital storefronts and product pages, making it easier for players to find games that meet their accessibility needs.
The tags cover a wide range of accessibility features, including "clear text," "large and clear subtitles," "narrated menus," "stick inversion," "save anytime," "difficulty levels," and "playable without button holds," among others. This initiative aims to break down barriers for the tens of millions of Americans with disabilities, allowing them to enjoy the joy and connection that video games offer.
Stanley Pierre-Louis, ESA president and CEO, emphasized the importance of this initiative, stating, "Tens of millions of Americans have a disability and often face barriers to experiencing the joy and connection that comes with playing video games. We are immensely proud to announce the Accessible Games Initiative in partnership with industry leaders. This initiative demonstrates how impactful we can be when we work together in our industry-wide pursuit of helping more people experience the power of play."
The rollout of these tags will be gradual, implemented on a company-by-company basis, and initially available only in English. The ESA plans to continuously evaluate and possibly expand or refine the tags to better serve the gaming community.
Tag: Multiple Volume Controls
Description: Separate volume controls are available for different types of sounds, allowing players to adjust music, speech, sound effects, background audio, text-to-speech audio, accessibility audio cues, and voice chat independently. A master volume control is also available to adjust all game sounds at once.
Tag: Mono Sound
Description: This feature enables players to experience the game with mono audio, where the same audio is sent to all channels, providing a single, combined audio channel.
Tag: Stereo Sound
Description: Players can enjoy stereo audio, where sounds indicate their left or right origin but do not convey depth or height.
Tag: Surround Sound
Description: This tag indicates that the game supports surround sound, allowing sounds to communicate their direction from any angle.
Tag: Narrated Menus
Description: Screen readers or voice narration are available for menus and notifications, allowing players to navigate and understand game interfaces through audio cues.
Tag: Chat Speech-to-Text & Text-to-Speech
Description: This feature enables real-time conversion of text chats to speech and voice chats to text transcripts, enhancing communication for players with different needs.
Tag: Difficulty Levels
Description: Players can choose from multiple difficulty settings, including at least one that reduces the intensity of challenges, with clear descriptions of the differences between levels.
Tag: Save Anytime
Description: Players can manually save their progress at any time, except during specific scenarios like saving or loading, or when it could lead to game-breaking issues.
Tag: Basic Input Remapping
Description: Players can rearrange button controls, either by swapping or using other methods. This is distinct from "Full Input Remapping," which allows remapping of all game controls across various input methods.
Tag: Full Input Remapping
Description: This feature allows players to assign any game action to any control across all supported input methods, including swapping controller stick functionality.
Tag: Stick Inversion
Description: Players can invert the direction of movement for thumbsticks and similar directional inputs.
Tag: Playable without Button Holds
Description: The game can be played without holding down buttons, though some analog inputs may still require holds.
Tag: Playable without Rapid Button Presses
Description: This tag indicates that the game does not require repetitive button actions like button mashing or quick-time events.
Tag: Playable with Keyboard Only
Description: The game can be played using only a keyboard, without the need for other input devices.
Tag: Playable with Mouse Only
Description: Players can use only a mouse to play, including with adaptive technology that maps to mouse inputs.
Tag: Playable with Buttons Only
Description: The game and menus can be controlled using only digital inputs like buttons or keys, where pressure does not affect the controls.
Tag: Playable with Touch Only
Description: Players can use only touch controls to play, without the need for non-touch inputs like buttons or analog sticks.
Tag: Playable Without Motion Controls
Description: This feature allows players to enjoy the game without using motion controls.
Tag: Playable Without Touch Controls
Description: Players can play without using touchpads or touchscreens.
Tag: Clear Text
Description: Text in menus, control panels, and settings is displayed at a reasonable size with adjustable contrast, using less stylized fonts or options for font change.
Tag: Large Text
Description: Players can adjust text in menus, control panels, and settings to a large size relative to the device's screen resolution and typical viewing distance.
Tag: Large & Clear Subtitles
Description: Subtitles for all dialogue are available, with options for size, background transparency, and font style, ensuring they do not overlap with important game elements.
Tag: Color Alternatives
Description: Important information is communicated using shapes, patterns, icons, or text instead of color, or color can be adjusted.
Tag: Camera Comfort
Description: The game includes no camera effects that may cause discomfort or harm, or these effects can be turned off or adjusted, including shaking, swaying, bobbing, motion blur, camera speed, and forced narrative-based movement.
This initiative marks a significant step forward in making video games more accessible to a broader audience, ensuring that everyone can enjoy the immersive world of gaming.
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