The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) has unveiled the Accessible Games Initiative, a pioneering "tag" system designed to enhance video game accessibility information for consumers. Announced at the Game Developers Conference, this initiative was developed by a coalition 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 initiative, which aims to make gaming more inclusive by providing clear information on accessibility features.
Under the Accessible Games Initiative, participating companies will label their games with specific "tags" chosen from a curated list of 24. These tags will appear alongside the game's project information on digital storefronts and product pages, offering consumers a quick way to understand the accessibility features available. Tags will cover a range of features, including "clear text," "large and clear subtitles," "narrated menus," "stick inversion," "save anytime," "difficulty levels," "playable without button holds," and more.
Stanley Pierre-Louis, ESA's president and CEO, emphasized the significance of the 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 initiative is voluntary, and over time, more tags or modifications to existing ones may be introduced to further enhance accessibility.
Accessible Games Initiative Tags:
Auditory Features
Tag: Multiple Volume Controls
Description: Separate volume controls are available for different types of sounds, including music, speech, sound effects, background audio, text-to-speech audio, accessibility audio cues, and voice chat. Additionally, all game sounds can be adjusted simultaneously with a single volume control.
Tag: Mono Sound
Description: This feature allows players to experience the game with mono audio, sending the same audio to all channels, such as both left and right headphones, providing a unified audio experience.
Tag: Stereo Sound
Description: Players can enjoy stereo audio, where sounds indicate their position from left to right but not from above, below, ahead, or behind.
Tag: Surround Sound
Description: This option enables surround sound, allowing sounds to convey their location in any direction, enhancing the immersive experience.
Tag: Narrated Menus
Description: Players can use screen readers or voice narration for menus and notifications, with all menu items accessible and interactions announced through narration, allowing for sequential menu navigation.
Tag: Chat Speech-to-Text & Text-to-Speech
Description: This feature supports both text-to-speech and speech-to-text for game chats, enabling real-time narration of text chats and text transcripts of voice chats.
Gameplay Features
Tag: Difficulty Levels
Description: Players can choose from multiple difficulty settings, with at least one option designed to reduce the intensity of challenges. The differences between levels are clearly described.
Tag: Save Anytime
Description: Players have the ability to manually save their progress at any time, with exceptions during game saving or loading, and scenarios where saving might disrupt gameplay or block progress.
Input Features
Tag: Basic Input Remapping
Description: Allows players to rearrange button controls, either by swapping or other methods. The "Full Input Remapping" tag extends this to all game controls and input methods.
Tag: Full Input Remapping
Description: Players can assign any game action to any control across all supported input methods, including keyboard, mouse, controllers, and virtual on-screen controls, with the ability to swap controller stick functionality.
Tag: Stick Inversion
Description: Players can adjust how directional inputs, such as thumbsticks or flight sticks, affect game movement in vertical and horizontal directions.
Tag: Playable without Button Holds
Description: The game can be played without holding down buttons, though some analog inputs may still require holding.
Tag: Playable without Rapid Button Presses
Description: Eliminates the need for repetitive button actions, such as button mashing or quick-time events.
Tag: Playable with Keyboard Only
Description: The game can be fully played using only a keyboard, without the need for additional devices.
Tag: Playable with Mouse Only
Description: The game can be played using only a mouse, including with adaptive technology that maps to mouse inputs.
Tag: Playable with Buttons Only
Description: Players can control the game and menus using only digital inputs, such as buttons or keys, where pressure does not affect the controls.
Tag: Playable with Touch Only
Description: The game can be played using only touch controls, without requiring any non-touch inputs.
Tag: Playable Without Motion Controls
Description: Players can enjoy the game without the need for motion controls.
Tag: Playable Without Touch Controls
Description: The game can be played without using touchpads or touchscreens.
Visual Features
Tag: Chat Speech-to-Text & Text-to-Speech
Description: This feature supports both text-to-speech and speech-to-text for game chats, enabling real-time narration of text chats and text transcripts of voice chats.
Tag: Clear Text
Description: Text in menus, control panels, and settings is of a reasonable size, with adjustable contrast and less stylized fonts to enhance readability.
Tag: Large Text
Description: Players can choose a large font size for text in menus, control panels, and settings, relative to the device’s screen resolution and typical viewing distance.
Tag: Large & Clear Subtitles
Description: Subtitles for all dialogue are available, with adjustable size, transparency, and non-overlapping placement, using less stylized fonts for better clarity.
Tag: Color Alternatives
Description: Important information is not communicated solely through color or can be adjusted to use shapes, patterns, icons, or text instead.
Tag: Camera Comfort
Description: The game avoids camera effects that may cause discomfort, such as shaking, swaying, or motion blur, or provides options to turn these effects off or adjust them.
