Like most accessibility initiatives in gaming and elsewhere, the true intent of these tags could take years to fully realize. Instead of being chosen by hand, the titles featured on that page will be chosen based on the number of accessibility tags each game has unless feedback on the feature takes it in another direction. It’s a landing hub designed to showcase the most accessible titles overall, rather than a promotional space. ![]() “Our hope is that the number of people that are frustrated that they don't quite meet it, or now that there are specific criteria that we're enforcing to have these feature tags, is smaller relative to the number of people that are going to take it as a challenge to take on,” she says. Setting strict conditions for each tag also prevents game developers from wrongfully tagging their games just to make them appear in the store as well, because each participating title must meet the standards. Ultimately, Mortaloni says “it would be a disservice to the community” to not have strict guidelines for the tags because each tag has to be demonstrably accurate to account for the wide range of possible accessibility needs and conditions. “The hope is that it inspires developers to go the extra mile to include those accessibility features.” “We want to get more people into the gaming field, specifically gamers with disabilities.” “It's intentionally a little bit aspirational because it's our chance to kind of reach for the stars in a way,” Mortaloni explains. Instead, the product must feature customizable subtitles that can be resized up to 200 percent, a qualification met by few games being made today. To be tagged for “subtitle options,” for example, it’s not enough for a game to simply include subtitles. Microsoft has also implemented fairly strict guidelines to make a game worthy of any given tag. Shutterstockīut categorizing games according to their base accessibility is only one part of the process. Xbox is proving to be a leader in terms of accessibility in games. Category tags that parse digital content by genre are familiar to us all by now, but Microsoft has taken that concept one step further by implementing a new classification system to champion the industry’s most accessible content.Īhead of the full launch which will expand the tags to, PC, and Game Pass in the coming months, Inverse spoke with Mortaloni to learn more about how the feature works, the measures the team is taking to ensure it remains a reliable resource, and how it can make video games a more welcoming pastime in the years ahead. The accessibility team at Xbox has been working for the past few years on its first attempt at a solution to this ongoing problem. “There really is nothing more frustrating than thinking you found a really cool game that you want to play and then finding out you can't within seconds,” she adds. “We want to make it easy for people to find the next game that they can play because it meets their needs and that they will love. ![]() ![]() “Most people want to play the games, and not just search for a whole bunch of games that they may or may not be able to play,” Mortaloni tells Inverse. That’s largely because major digital storefronts don’t present clear details about accessibility features, says Xbox Director of Accessibility Anita Mortaloni. ![]() It's a feeling that’s all too familiar for millions of players with disabilities. We’ve all bought games we never got around to playing.īut buyer’s remorse can be a particularly bitter pill to swallow upon realizing you quite literally cannot play a particular game.
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