International Day of Persons with Disabilities is observed each December to promote awareness and understanding of people with disabilities in all aspects of society and development. To celebrate, Xbox announced several updates in support of its continued commitment to the Gaming & Disability community, including:
- New remapping options for the Xbox Adaptive Controller and Elite Series 2 Controller, such as:
- Toggle holds help make using a controller even easier by supporting players who have difficulty holding prolonged button presses. Similar to sticky keys on a computer, this allows players to keep any button or port to stay ‘pressed.’
- Map stick movement to button presses, allowing players to map directional movements (up, down, left, and right) on their controllers to button or keyboard presses. For example, moving the stick in the “up” direction can be mapped to the equivalent of pressing the “B” button on a traditional controller.
- Map mouse inputs to a controller, allows players to use their controller as the equivalent of a mouse and keyboard for both gaming and non-gaming purposes on PC. For example, players could use an Xbox Adaptive Controller to view a game guide on YouTube during a break in the action, make a PowerPoint presentation or check email.
- Map hat switches to an alternate joystick, where players can map the hat switch to operate as the opposite stick when attached to an Xbox Adaptive Controller.
- Spotlighting notable accessibility features in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Diablo IV – both of which were recently nominated in the “Innovation in Accessibility” category for the 2024 Game Awards.
- Highlighting the Reven pack that’s available in World of Warcraft and was inspired by a Norwegian WoW player with Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
Check out how Xbox is recognising International Day of Persons with Disabilities via Xbox Wire, and it’s ongoing commitment to the disability community.
