Skip to main content

PlayStation reveals new features and UI for its PS5 Access Controller

Sony's Project Leonardo controller sits on a table.
Sony

Sony revealed new details about its PlayStation 5 accessibility controller, which has been renamed from Project Leonardo to the Access Controller. A new blog post details what comes with the controller and offers a glimpse at the UI interface that players will use to customize it on the PS5.

Sony surprise revealed its “Project Leonardo” at CES earlier this year (Digital Trends named it the best gaming tech of the show). The circular pad features a unique design meant to make it easier for people with disabilities to customize controls to their needs. While it still doesn’t have a price or release date, Sony has opened a new website for its newly renamed Access Controller and shared new details on it.

It’ll ship with three different analog stick cap shapes and four button cap shapes (pillow, flat, wide, and overhang). It’ll also come with swappable markers so players can keep track of what they have mapped to each button. It’ll feature four 3.5 AUX ports as well, which players can use to connect their own specialty devices to the Access Controller.

UI for PS5's Access Controller shows how to remap buttons.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Sony also shared a first glimpse at the PS5 UI that players will use to customize the controller. Screenshots show a menu that allows players to orient the controller a full 360 degrees, create different profiles, remap each button, adjust stick dead zones, and more. Players will also have the option to set toggle mode, which will hold a button down when pressed so players don’t have to (they can just click a button once in a racing game to toggle acceleration on, for instance).

The PS5 Access Controller doesn’t have a price of release window, but head over to its website to register for updates.

Editors' Recommendations

Giovanni Colantonio
Giovanni is a writer and video producer focusing on happenings in the video game industry. He has contributed stories to…
Bethesda finally confirms that Hi-Fi Rush is coming to PS5
Key art for Hi-Fi Rush.

Microsoft and Bethesda finally confirmed that Hi-Fi Rush is going multiplatform. In particular, it was announced that the rhythm action game is coming to the PS5 next month.

Rumors of Hi-Fi Rush going multiplatform began in January, spurring some discourse about a change in Microsoft's first-party strategy. Although Xbox eventually addressed the concerns in a February 15 podcast, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer would not say then if Hi-Fi Rush was one of the games; instead, he only teased that four games were going multiplatform and that the announcements were coming soon. During the Nintendo Direct: Partner Showcase this morning, we learned that Obsidian Entertainment's Pentiment and Grounded were coming to Nintendo Switch on February 22 and April 16, respectively.

Read more
PS5 themes: Can you customize your homescreen?
A person plays Crash Bandicoot using a PS5 DualSense controller.

There's a lot to love about PS5, but it's missing one key feature from the old PS4 -- themes. On the old console, themes were used as a way to customize your homescreen and were often inspired by iconic games or beloved characters. Unfortunately, themes aren't available on PS5, though Sony has implemented a cool new feature that modifies the background as you browse your collection of games.

Here's a comprehensive look at how you can customize your PS5 homescreen and whether you can change its background.
Does the PS5 have themes?

Read more
You need to check out this killer action game on PS Plus this month
A character in Rollerdrome skates in an arena.

Of the three games available for no additional cost with a PlayStation Plus Essential subscription this February, the best game isn’t the highest-profile one. A lot of attention is going to Foamstars, the odd multiplayer game Square Enix launched free on PS Plus, but the real gem of February 2024’s PS Plus Essential lineup is Rollerdrome from Roll7 and Private Division.

First released for PS5 and PC in August 2022, I previously described this game as Max Payne meets Skate. Essentially, Rollerdrome is a sports combat game where players must roller-skate around and do tricks in order to accrue ammo used to shoot enemies with guns. It’s a simple gameplay loop and premise that Rollerdrome gets the most out of, and it's a must-play for those looking for some simple yet satisfying action.
Blood sport
In Rollerdrome, players control a character named Kara Hassan as she ascends the ranks in the titular sport, which sees “players” combat each other with deadly weapons. While many of the enemies Kara takes on are mostly static, she can skate around on a pair of rollerblades. Rollerdrome features a full-on combo system like a Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater or Skate titles, although it’s not as punishing if you mess up an input or chain together a combo properly.

Read more