Uncharted 4's wonderful accessibility options
Good Naughty Dog!
Naughty Dog included a raft of superb accessibility options in Uncharted 4 that most players probably skipped over.
Which is why it's great to see the video, below, go into detail on the work the developer did to make the PlayStation 4 exclusive more accessible.
Naughty Dog game designers Emilia Schatz and Alex Neonakis talk about inclusion, innovation and implementation of accessibility features, in part inspired by Disabled Accessibility for Gaming Entertainment Rating System (D.A.G.E.R.) editor-in-chief Josh Straub, who met with Neonakis at the Game Developers Conference.
Straub explains that he was frustrated by his inability to finish Uncharted 2 because near the end you have to tap buttons quickly in a QTE.
Naughty Dog took notice. Accessibility options in Uncharted 4 include the ability to press and hold down a button instead. This works for melee, too. So, you can hold down Square and Nathan Drake with keep on punching.
Elsewhere, there's an option to have the camera snap to a target, and face the direction of a target. The idea here is to make Uncharted 4 playable without the right thumbstick. It's all fantastic stuff. Well played, Naughty Dog!
It's worth noting Naughty Dog isn't the only developer doing good work when it comes to making games more accessible.
In March Eurogamer reported on the blind gamer who plays fighting game Killer Instinct. That game's developer, Iron Galaxy, added audio options to help make it easier to play.
