Interestingly, Half-Life: Alyx, which is a virtual reality game requiring the use of a headset, possesses some limited accessibility features including some not listed here, like playing with only one controller or reducing the intensity of lighting effects, which would benefit those with motor impairments and who experience negative reactions to flashing lights.Īlthough it didn’t make it into the top-rated games (the PC version scored the highest on Metacritic at 85/100), Cyberpunk 2077 was the biggest digital game launch of all time. While games which also appeared in the most accessible games list, like The Last of Us Part II and Microsoft Flight Simulator, offer distinct modes to support vision-impaired users, other popular games like F1 2020: Spelunky offer no setting options at all, and instead rely on what can be changed on the console. It’s immediately clear that games with support for colour deficiency aren’t as widespread as they could be. The following games were the top rated in 2020 and have been ranked by how they stack up when it comes to supporting those with vision impairments: While the top games of all time offer some of the best accessibility, it doesn’t necessarily mark a trend in the gaming industry. In some views, you’re able to change the field of view (a measure of how wide your peripheral vision is), and filters are included for Protanopia, Deuteranopia, and Tritanopia. WoW’s lack of need for adjustments, like first-person shooters, makes it accessible from the start.įor players on the Nintendo Switch, Into the Breach provides a strategy game with slow gameplay and easy-to-read interfaces, and although its top rating is for PC, it’s available on the smaller, transportable console as well.įor Xbox One players, Microsoft Flight Simulator is the most accessible game, though it’s rated higher on PC due to the complex control requirements. The game also doesn’t require a need for aim or real focus on field of view, which can hinder the ability of those with a visual deficiency from playing. With a resizable interface and customisable controls, the accessibility options make WoW a great game for those with limited vision. The next most accessible game, World of Warcraft, is only for PC players, but is one of the longest-standing games on the list, having been released in 2004. The Last of Us Part II is, however, only available on PlayStation 4. The colour deficiency support includes filters for Protanopia, Deuteranopia, and Tritanopia, as well as customisable HUD colouration. It’s no surprise that 2020’s The Last of Us Part II proved the most accessible: the publisher, Naughty Dog, set out to create a game accessible for as many as possible, and as well as the vision accessibility options, the game includes a wide variety of hearing and motor accessibility setups.Īs well as offering the most complete selection of accessibility options, the game is also one of very few in the industry with native support for Text-to-Speech and offers a number of specific gameplay features to skip puzzles, avoid falling, and hide from enemies that are designed to meet the needs of those that are visually-impaired. HUD Scaling:Whether the user interface can be changed to a different size.Ĭontrast Setting:Whether there is an inbuilt control over the level of visual contrast (difference between dark and light colours). The table below highlights the most accessible games and have been scored on what options they offer players:Īdjustable Font Size:The ability to change the size of text in-game. The supporting features we analysed ranged from the colour deficient options, the ability to resize the user inference, and the ability to change the controls to ensure that all needs are met.
The most popular games for 2020 were also anaylsed to find out how equipped they are for disabled players and highlight their lack of accessibility. We gathered data from the highest-rated games on Metacritic that offered support for colour deficient players and took a look at the different features they offered gamers to find the most accessible video game.
To make gaming more widely accessible, experts at Lenstore have conducted a study into which top-rated games offer the most support for those with visual impairments. Whether it’s small text, colours that don’t support those with limited colour vision, or low contrast, it can be difficult for many people to enjoy the same range of activities available to those with 20/20, uncorrected vision. The most accessible games for the Visually-Impairedīoard games and video games are often created with those with perfect vision in mind.