PlayStation has announced that accessibility tags for games on the PS5 PlayStation Store will be rolled out globally from this week, allowing players to view the range of accessibility features available in games prior to purchase. At launch, a variety of games including God of War Ragnarök, Gran Turismo 7, and Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut will support the tags, according to an official PlayStation blog post.
Accessibility tags can be viewed by pressing the ‘triangle’ button when browsing games that support the feature on the PlayStation storefront, providing a more detailed breakdown of what accessibility features each game offers.
PlayStation has also confirmed it’s collaborating with a number of developers to implement the tags in their own game hubs in the store over the coming weeks and months, to increase the number of games this information will be readily available for.
At launch, there will be more than 50 accessibility tags available for developers to choose from, across six different categories, including:
- Visual accessibility features, such as large text and clear text, colour alternatives, audio cues, and directional audio indicators.
- Audio features, including volume controls, screen reader, and visual cue alternatives.
- Subtitle and caption options, including subtitle sizing, clear captions, and large-size captions.
- Control options, including thumbstick sensitivity, button remapping, and options for players to remove button holds, rapid button presses, or motion control from their gameplay.
- Gameplay options, such as difficulty settings, skippable puzzles, and game speed.
- Online communication options, including text or voice chat transcription and ping communication.
PlayStation described the move as part of its journey to ‘make gaming more accessible’ for all players, off the back of the recent announcement of Project Leonardo, the customisable accessible controller kit currently in development.
First-party games like The Last of Us Part 2 (and the PS5 remaster of Part 1) have previously been celebrated for their extensive accessibility options, and it looks like PlayStation is continuing to put in the work to make its games and consoles more accessible for everyone.
Read: How inclusive design in video games benefits everyone
Accessibility tags will be available only for the PS5 version of the PlayStation storefront, but tags will apply to all PS4 and PS5 games on the platform.
The global rollout will gradually begin from this week onwards, and it looks like plenty more games will soon join the host of first-party titles supporting this new accessibility-focussed feature.
