Ubisoft is proud to announce it is a founding member of the Accessible Games Initiative, a cross-industry effort introduced by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) that strives to provide players with clear information about accessibility features in different video games.
"The Accessible Games Initiative is the first time so many game companies are collaborating openly on accessibility," says David Tisserand, Accessibility Director at Ubisoft. "It answers a pressing need from players by providing a consistent way of identifying which games are catering to their needs, regardless of which platform they use or which company made the game. Its hope is to offer a common language that developers and publishers alike can use to convey the accessibility considerations that their games have implemented."
Until now, there has not been a common language in the industry to describe different accessibility features in games, and the Accessible Games Initiative aims to help get everyone on the same page through a series of tags. These tags will help clearly identify which accessibility features are available in specific games, and were developed directly with players with disabilities, accessibility advocacy groups, and game development teams. As tags are rolled out and the community provides more feedback, existing tags will evolve and more tags will be created.
At launch, there will be 24 tags available in English, each with a clear definition of what that tag means. Definitions for each tag can be found on the Accessible Games Initiative website; some examples of tags include clear text, large and clear subtitles, narrated menus, stick inversion, and save anytime. In time, founding and participating companies will add applicable tags to specific games on digital storefronts and catalogues as well as product pages to help players make informed purchasing decisions.
Ubisoft is actively planning the integration of these tags into its product pages and will have more to share soon. For more information, visit www.accessiblegames.com.
