Skip to main content

Ubisoft is making strides towards more accessible games

Solo or squad | How to level fast and reach the endgame in The Division 2
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Ubisoft has been working on improving accessibility in its games for a while now and during Global Accessibility Awareness Day, accessibility project manager David Tisserand shared details of a much larger upcoming initiative. This includes involving community experts in the development process before a game launches, training new developers with best practices, instructing developers all over the world, and ensuring that new technologies are as compatible as possible for upcoming titles.

The new initiative spearheaded by Tisserand, included an accessible design workshop that took place six months ago. Developers, disabled content creators, and accessibility advocates all came together to talk about how games can be made more accessible and how the overall experience can be improved for everyone. “The first thing was to create a framework, which was divided into three different categories,” Tisserand said. “Informing our staff, supporting developers to deliver accessible products from production, design, and programming standpoints, and listening to the community.”

Image used with permission by copyright holder

The main idea is to instruct existing and upcoming developers as much as possible, while also involving accessibility advocates in early stages of development. Ubisoft has started sending out review copies to content creators with disabilities and accessibility sites so that they can inform their audiences prior to launch. In addition, there have been workshops where they invite players in for one to two days sessions to provide feedback about upcoming projects. “Getting feedback early is way more efficient than fixing later if you realize you made a mistake,” Tisserand added.

The quality assurance department is also working on accessibility, and have been doing so for almost two years, providing feedback whenever possible. Tisserand says that one of his goals is to ensure that Ubisoft is”100% committed to it by the end of 2019.”

According to the feedback, the most demanded and impactful feature is button/key remapping for both PC and consoles. This has been implemented for both Assassin’s Creed Odyssey and Far Cry: New Dawn, and developers are looking to follow up on this in future titles as well.

Image used with permission by copyright holder

Another aspect they actively look into is making sure Ubisoft games are colorblind friendly. This can be implemented with filters, like the ones in The Division 2 or through design like in For Honor, where the team used the colors orange and blue for each players’ team, instead of the usual red and green.

“It becomes a loop: We receive feedback, we add this to the initiative, and then we try to work on it as efficiently as possible in the different areas. Or, in the case of The Division 2, try to act on it and improve the title with updates,” Tisserand said. At the moment, there are no extra features to announce coming to The Division 2, but he ensured the developers are aware of the received feedback from players.

Tisserand is the only Ubisoft employee with an official accessibility role, but more than a hundred people are working on improving accessibility across more than 40 studios in the company. He sees this as a “spread initiative” and hopes that even more developers at Ubisoft start to make these pre-emptive efforts in accessibility “second nature.”

Editors' Recommendations

Diego Arguello
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Diego Argüello is a freelance journalist from Argentina who spends most of his time reading in public transport and thinking…
Every blockbuster reveal from the Xbox leak: new consoles, Bethesda games, and more
Xbox's logo used during the Extended Games Showcase

Unredacted documents submitted and made publicly available to view as part of the ongoing Microsoft vs. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) trial just led to what may be the biggest leak in video game history.
A flood of files have revealed deep secrets about Xbox's upcoming plans for the bulk of the decade, giving us unprecedented insight into what's on the horizon for the gaming giant. That includes information on upcoming hardware refreshes, next-gen consoles, and unannounced Bethesda titles, as well as a further peek into Microsoft's acquisition ambitions. It's a lot to trudge through, so we've rounded up five key revelations that you'll want to know.
A new Xbox Series X model is coming next year
https://twitter.com/stephentotilo/status/1704121068519133313
The most shocking thing to leak as part of the trial is a new Xbox Series X model. Referred to as "Brooklin -- Xbox Series X Refresh" in the leaked documents, this is a diskless, cylindrical version of the Xbox Series X with 2TB of internal storage, a USB-C port, and smaller technical improvements to the system's Wi-Fi, PSU, standby mode, and more. An upgraded Xbox Series S code-named Ellewood may also be in the works and released before Brooklin.
If Microsoft still follows the plan laid out in this "Roadmap to 2030" document created in May 2022, it would release Brooklin in late October 2024 for $500. If Microsoft still plans to release Brooklin next year, it does contradict recent statements from Xbox chief Phil Spencer, who acted bearish on the idea of a mid-gen refresh in Gamescom interviews. It's possible Microsoft's plans have changed since these leaked documents were made, but if not, we now know what to expect in terms of Microsoft's console refreshes.
A new Xbox controller is in the works
https://twitter.com/charlieINTEL/status/1704088621475598345
Throughout that Brooklin leak, a new version of the Xbox Series X controller is also teased. The Xbox Series X controller is great, but lacks the unique features of controllers like the DualSense or Joy-Cons, so it makes sense Microsoft would want to change that. Referred to as "Sebile -- The New Xbox Controller," this controller can seamlessly pair and connect to the cloud.
It also will feature haptic feedback, an accelerometer gyro, quieter buttons, modular thumbsticks, a rechargeable and swappable battery, and the ability to wake just by being picked up. The same road map that lists Brooklin and Ellewood's release windows says the Sebile controller will launch sometime in late May 2024 for $70.
First details on Microsoft's next-gen console leak
https://twitter.com/AR12Gaming/status/1704102055206322389
It's hard to believe we're almost already three years into this console generation and that Microsoft is planning for its next major console release, but that is the case. Unfortunately for Microsoft, its current technical ambitions for the platform were included in this leak. A leaked document states that Microsoft's ultimate goal is to "develop a next-generation hybrid game platform capable of leveraging the combined power of the client and cloud to deliver deeper immersion and entirely new classes of game experiences." 
In practice, a list of technical improvements lays out that we can expect an ARM64 CPU that balances big and little cores, a GPU co-designed with AMD, and an NPU that balances "the desire for flexible, programmable ML silicon versus high-performance silicon for targeted workloads," as well as support for better ray tracing, global illumination, micropolygon rendering, and an ML-based Super Resolution. Microsoft also mentions a "thin OS" meant for cheaper consumer and handled devices, likely to play games via the cloud.
This next-gen console is currently slated for a 2028 launch.
Several upcoming Bethesda games leak

Enough about hardware -- several upcoming Bethesda games also leaked. A document from 2020 outlining Bethesda's game road map through fiscal year 2024 includes some games we don't know about. Alongside games we know of like MachineGames' Indiana Jones project, the list also includes several code-named projects, remasters of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion and Fallout 3, a GhostWire: Tokyo sequel, Doom Year Zero, and Dishonored 3.
Another document also confirmed that The Elder Scrolls VI won't launch until at least 2026. Some of these games have missed the release windows listed in the documents, so it's very possible that these dates are no longer accurate and that some may not be released at all. Still, it lays out a clear picture of what was in development at Bethesda just a few years ago and provides insight into the lineup that enticed Microsoft to purchase Bethesda in the first place. 
Microsoft considered acquiring Nintendo and Warner Bros. Interactive
https://twitter.com/tomwarren/status/1704021807341203802
A leaked email from 2020 gives some insight into Spencer's acquisition ambitions at that point. Namely, it sounds like he'd love to acquire Nintendo as it would be a "career moment" for him.
"I totally agree that Nintendo is THE prime asset for us in gaming, and today gaming is a most likely path to consumer relevance," he wrote. "I've had numerous conversations with the LT of Nintendo about tighter collaboration and feel like if any U.S. company would have a chance with Nintendo, we are probably in the best position ... At some point, getting Nintendo would be a career moment and I honestly believe a good move for both companies."
Ultimately, Spencer didn't want to do a hostile takeover of Nintendo, so he settled for playing the "long game" when it came to acquiring it. This same email also reveals that Microsoft was interested in acquiring Warner Bros. Interactive around the same time as Bethesda, although the lack of any WB IP ownership was its undoing, Spencer is also as intrigued about acquiring Valve as it was Nintendo.
It's worth noting that this email is from over three years ago, and these acquisition ambitions might have been quelled following changing economic conditions and the rocky and expensive process of acquiring Activision Blizzard. 

Read more
You can pay more to play this fall’s biggest games early, but there’s a big catch
Players fight in a vault in Payday 3

I spent some time on the other side of the country for work last week. I was more disconnected than usual from the standard game release cycle during that time, but tuned in just enough to see Mortal Kombat 1 impressions going live across social media. When I flew back to New York on Friday night, I decided to unwind from a long trip by dropping $70 on a digital copy and enjoying some good old-fashioned violence.

Those plans were killed faster than Johnny Cage. I’d try to launch the game only to be greeted by a countdown screen. Assuming it was a mistake, I reloaded the store page and noticed that I had absent-mindedly preordered the fighter instead of buying it. If that was the case, then how was everyone online playing it already? It turned out I hadn’t ponied up enough. Had I spent $110 for a Premium Edition, I would have gotten a chance to play it starting on September 14, the day before I landed. Instead, I would have to wait until Tuesday, September 19, to get access. I was so frustrated, I nearly ripped my own spine out.

Read more
Persona 5 Tactica is making the tactics genre more approachable than ever
Gameplay from Persona 5 Tactica

After being a beloved series in the RPG community for almost 15 years, Persona 5 finally launched the wider Persona franchise into the mainstream in 2017 thanks to its over-the-top, slick, and stylish presentation. Since then, developer Atlus has tastefully built off that success. We’ve received an updated version of Persona 5 with its Royal edition, Joker joined the fight in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and the Phantom Thieves starred in a variety of spinoffs that dipped into the action-RPG and rhythm game genres. Now, the Persona 5 crew is taking on the tactics genre in the fittingly titled Persona 5 Tactica.

While my PAX West demo of Persona 5 Tactica was brief and did not contain any story content, it still showed me how the strategy game is making itself approachable for casual players in a way that’s not so different from what Persona 5 did for RPGs so many years ago.
New genre, same strategy
I love tactics games, but I’m admittedly not very good at them. I almost always enjoy a good challenge, but the genre tends to be heavy on complex management that can leave me overthinking every choice. Battles can be long and slow too, so if I end up losing, I feel like I lost a lot of time. That said, I love the strategy behind many tactics games, which usually lets me push past that friction.

Read more