Ergotron make some of the best monitor arms around – reliable, capable and generally brilliant – but they’re also pretty pricey. That’s probably why Amazon hit up Ergotron to make its Amazon Basics monitor arms, which offer the same excellent quality in unbranded form for considerably less money.
Today though one of these arms is even better value than usual, as there’s a ridiculous 40% off voucher available on Amazon’s take on the Ergotron LX, dropping this high-end monitor arm from £81 to just £49. That’s a brilliant price for an arm that can support monitors up to 11kg in weight with full tilt, swivel, rotation and height adjustability.
Free is free and spooky shooter Metro: Last Light is currently free to keep from Steam. It has been made available by developers 4A Games in order to celebrate its 10th anniversary. The catch, sort of, is that this is the Complete Edition, a version that does not normally even show up in Steam search results. The slightly-improved Metro: Last Light Redux will still cost you a few quid or bucks.
We had a good time with Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope when it was released on the Switch in late 2022, and the game has just been recognised for its excellent soundtrack at this year’s Ivor Novello Awards, where it took home the prize for Best Original Video Game Score.
The award was presented to Gareth Coker, Grant Kirkhope and Yoko Shimomura for their work on the project, with Kirkhope releasing the following tweet to express his gratitude.
Supraland: Six Inches Under wasn’t really meant to exist—at least not like this.
Initially conceived as a DLC pack for the puzzle-filled sandbox adventure Supraland, creator David Münnich and his team improvised, experimented, re-scoped, and re-envisioned Six Inches Under into a bigger, fully standalone follow-up designed for anyone to dig into, whether they’ve played the first game or not. What’s even better, that creation is available to play starting today on Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and through Xbox Game Pass!
If you’re wondering whether Supra Games’ latest little big adventure is for you, here are five facets of Six Inches Under’s design that should help you decide.
It’s a Connected Underworld
Like the original, Six Inches Under is a first-person 3D “metroidvania”—a unified world filled with paths to discover, and secrets or sub-areas that can only be accessed once you return with a new ability or item.
Unlike the original, Six Inches Under takes place underground, and as such, the vibe’s a little different. Paths are more defined and distinct: caves and corridors connected by a central hub called Cagetown, where all the toy-people survivors of the dreadful Rakening dwell.
The developers characterize the game as “55% exploration, 40% solving puzzles, and 5% combat,” to give you a breakdown. Now on to that other 45%…
Puzzles Permeate Everything
In the world of Six Inches Under, you’re always on the lookout for puzzles—and you’ll quickly find yourself thinking of the environment, your abilities, and even physics itself as a puzzle-solving tool. To help with the design of the puzzles, creator and lead dev David Münnich concocted 13 rules as a guideline, which doubled as a 13-point “checklist” to help him and his team determine whether a puzzle was good or not.
David awards points for puzzles where players set the goal themselves without being told it directly, or puzzles that use a mechanic players are familiar with in an unexpected new way. The puzzle gets more points if players can quickly execute the solution once they have their “Aha!” moment, or if the result is more interesting than a door opening or an elevator turning on. For David, a good puzzle scores around 8–10, and anything above that is rare. (And he’s a stickler; the best puzzles in Six Inches Under top out at 12.)
That 5% Combat…It’s Over There!
In another directional shift from the original game, you’ll encounter enemies to fight in Six Inches Under, but here they’re hanging out away from the puzzles—that way, they won’t get in your way when you’re focused on figuring out how to fix that lever to connect that battery to power that machinery behind that fence that you’re not quite sure how to get through yet.
And sometimes, the combat is a puzzle of its own too, as you use your pickaxe and other combat tools and abilities in creative ways—but as with any good puzzle, it’s more fun if you figure those out for yourself.
The End is Just Getting Started
You can make it to the finish line of the “main quest” pretty quickly—but once the end credits roll, that signals a whole new beginning. Whole new areas open up to explore full of secrets and surprises. In fact, some of Six Inches Under’s most challenging and rewarding puzzles are entirely optional…including at least one of the team’s rare 12-point-ers. (Hint: Look for the showerhead on the beach.)
It’s a proving ground
Six Inches Under began its life as a project intended to get the Supra Games team up to speed for Supra Games’ next major now-in-development game (and full-on sequel) Supraworld. It quickly turned into a place to experiment, test, and run ideas through the wringer. The result was something unexpected: a content-packed game worthy of standing on its own as something not quite an expansion, not quite a sequel, and infused with the creative spirit indie-developed games are known for.
Supraland: Six Inches Under is out today. Buy it for Xbox One or Xbox Series X|S, or play it on Xbox Game Pass.
Unearth what’s beneath the surface in Six Inches Under, a new first-person Supraland adventure full of puzzles, exploration, fun secrets to discover, hundreds of gags, and two funny ones!
In the miniature world, the dreaded Rakening has scattered the townspeople of Superland six whole inches below the surface of the sandbox! Fulfill your toybox fantasies as a brave Blue Plumber and use your skill and ingenuity to survive and rescue your fellows. You may be small—but this is bound to be one big adventure.
Underworld exploration
Unearth a connected underworld of toys who’ve survived past calamities. The caverns are filled with secrets to discover and new areas to uncover—once you’ve acquired the right tools and abilities to access them.
First-person puzzling
Solve problems in the environment with brains (and occasional brawn). Use skillful platforming to find secrets and hard to reach areas, and harness the power of physics to find creative ways to overcome obstacles.
It’s a small world
For the people of Supraland, little things make a big difference. Turn a matchstick into the lever that opens a door or a torch that ignites an obstacle. Power mighty machines with the latest AAA battery technology, cross cracks the size of chasms, and walk (literally!) on the razor’s edge.
A great place to dig in
Six Inches Under is a content-packed standalone follow-up (and not quite a sequel) to the original Supraland, designed for everyone! You can delve straight in and have a blast without having played the original.
More Supraland to love
If you dug the original Supraland, you’ll discover tons more of the puzzle-solving, metroidvania-style exploration you loved—plus more skills, a novel new approach to combat, more optional activities, and an original new soundtrack.
If you’ve started compiling a collection of digital games, you probably already know just how limited the Switch’s base storage capacity. The Switch and Switch OLED have 32GB and 64GB of internal storage respectively. Some of that is reserved for the OS. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom takes up over 18GB of storage all by itself. Other must-have titles like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Pokemon Sword or Shield tap out at 13.5GB each. There’s only one expansion slot in the Switch console so you want to make sure you get the biggest card you can afford.
The Lowest Prices on MicroSDXC Cards (Updated)
These Micro SDXC cards are 100% compatible with any Nintendo Switch, Switch OLED, and Switch Lite console. Some of them may be rated for higher speeds than the official Nintendo Switch branded memory cards. That doesn’t really matter though; the Nintendo Switch can only support U1 speeds, so a U3 speed will just be throttled back down to U1 speeds.
Steam Deck Owners Can Use These Cards Too!
The Switch isn’t the only gaming system that accepts these cards. If you’re a Steam Deck owner, you can also use this card, especially if you picked up the 64GB storage option.
For more deals, take a look at our daily deals for today.
The latest Humble Games Showcase aired today, where its publishing arm decided to spotlight some games on the way this year and beyond. If you missed it, no worries; here’s a recap of all the games Humble showed today, including Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical.
Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical
Today’s showcase gave us more insight into Stray Gods: the Roleplaying Musical ahead of its August 3 release date. Originally named Chorus: An Adventure Musical before being renamed, Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical is an RPG musical where players control a young woman who inherits the powers of the Last Muse in Greek Mythology named Grace.
#BLUD
As part of a new partnership with animation studio and developer Exit 73, #BLUD is a new dungeon crawler launching sometime next year on PC. Players assume the role of Becky Brewsyer as she balances school friends, and slaying monsters.
Wizard of Legend 2
A sequel to 2018’s Wizard of Legend, Wizard of Legend 2 is an indie roguelike that will support four-player online co-op. Dead Mage is developing Wizard of Legend 2. While not the original game’s developers, Contingent 99 is offering guidance to the studio.
Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus
Developed by Squid Shock Studios, Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus is a 2D Metroidvania platformer where players control Bō, a Celestial Blossom that can shapeshift. Similiar to Clover Studio’s Okami, Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus’ world and sotry is based on Japanese folklore and is slated to launch on PC in 2024.
Breeze in the Clouds
If you ever wanted to play as a Corgi with weather power, Breeze in the Clouds is right up your alley. Players control Breeze, a corgi that is using his newfound power to fight pollution. There is no release date yet, but today’s showcase gave us an interview with the game’s developer, SrBilyon, along with a colorful new trailer.
Cataclismo
Cataclismo is a fortress-building RTS game developed by Digital Sun, the same developer that created Moonlighter and The Mageseeker. Cataclismo will have you building fortresses as you fend off waves of enemies and lead an expedition as you try to rebuild humanity one stone at a time. Digital Sun has yet to announce a release date for Cataclismo.
Lost Skies
A co-op survival adventure game by Bossa Games, Lost Skies is set in a vast sky filled with floating islands. With support for up to six players, Lost Skies tasks players with finding and crafting their own skyship by using ancient technology and fending off enemies they may encounter.
Supraland: Six Inches Under
A metroidvania set in the first-person perspective. Supraland: Six Inches Under initially launched last year on PC. But today’s showcase confirmed a shadow release for PlayStation and Xbox consoles, with the game also available in the Xbox Game Pass library.
Taylor is a Reporter at IGN. You can follow her on Twitter @TayNixster.
A sequel to Hawken was certainly not on my 2023 bingo card. Five years after the multiplayer mech FPS shut down on PC, now requiring a fan-made fix even just to play offline against bots, I didn’t expect to ever again dash around its cool sci-fi cityscapes as a charmingly scrappy little stomper. So I was excited when publishers 505 Games announced singleplayer follow-up Hawken Reborn on Monday then launched it into early access two days later. Having now played it, oh dear. You know, it’s okay for the dead to stay dead.
Bossa Games, developer of I Am Bread, I Am Fish, and Surgeon Simulator, has announced its next game. It’s called Lost Skies, and in many ways, it’s a significant departure from Bossa’s previous humorous sandbox efforts.
Lost Skies is an upcoming open-world, co-op adventure where up to six players work together to explore a world composed of floating islands, build flying ships, and take on gigantic monsters. It’s planned for a PC launch in 2024, but will enter what Bossa calls “open development” later this year, allowing the community to access and test vertical slices and offer feedback to shape Lost Skies’ development.
Expecting the Unexpected
According to Bossa Games CEO Henrique Olifiers, Lost Skies is able to be played single player as well as co-op, and single player play is in fact incentivized at times to assist the overall cooperative efforts of a group. He tells us that combat includes two components. One is “ground” combat, where “ground” is used a bit loosely because, per Olifiers, everyone will be hook-shotting around “Spider-Man-style” in very vertical spaces. The other is ship combat, with customizable flying ships built to tackle much larger creatures that serve as both enemies and puzzles.
While he’s not willing to share too many deep details about gameplay just yet, Olifiers described the two “drivers” of gameplay as surviving the world, and fighting these massive “guardian” creatures with friends, one in each of Lost Skies’ regions. With those two drivers, Olifiers adds that he wants players to feel a sense of freedom – similar to the freedom of Bossa’s previous smaller sandboxes – that they are “always looking at something on the horizon” that sparks curiosity and strategy. He wants players to feel they can do anything they can imagine.
“I have this saying that ‘A good game is when something that you didn’t expect took place,’ ” he says. “The fondest memories I have of multiplayer games was when in Ultima I was standing there when someone exploited the [fire field] bug to kill Lord British in the game, or when I go into raids in World of Warcraft, and my friends ask, ‘Who’s got the potions?’ and we look at each other: ‘What potions?’ That’s what we go to the pub later to talk about. So we want to create those in Lost Skies. Every hour one of those [experiences] happens, and the only way for us to craft that is to give players the means to play in the way they want.”
When we spoke with Olifiers ahead of Lost Skies’ announcement, we asked why the studio was going in such a grander, more adventurous direction after years of games where you play as a slice of bread trying to make its way to a toaster through a room full of hazards. Olifiers acknowledged that Lost Skies was a shift in “form and theme” from previous Bossa games, and said the studio’s reasoning came out of its long-standing development process of constantly doing internal game jams.
According to Olifiers, every Bossa game is made out of a game jam, and the studio has dozens of internal prototypes that never see the light of day. But, he continues, this means that all of Bossa’s games historically have been started from scratch: because they’re not building on the foundation of something else, development takes a lot of time.
So Bossa Games wants to focus, and through discussion the team found that many of its members were excited by co-op survival games and building such as Valheim, Project Zomboid, and 7 Days to Die. In focusing on that space and game jamming in it very specifically for a time, Bossa came up with Lost Skies.
Returning to Worlds Adrift
Notably, Lost Skies is meant to take place in the same universe as its previously shuttered MMO, Worlds Adrift. Worlds Adrift entered early access in 2017, but was discontinued two years later due to the game no longer being commercially viable. We asked Olifiers why Bossa was revisiting that universe despite the struggles its first endeavor had.
“We tried well to put to good use all the hindsight that we had with Worlds Adrift,” he says. “What worked, and what didn’t work, and to create a brand new game in that universe that so many people fell in love with and we never could fully realize…Hindsight is super useful. You have the advantage of going back and doing something again, but, with that experience, it’s like riding a bicycle. You never ride a bicycle well the first time you do it.”
You never ride a bicycle well the first time you do it.
One way Bossa is working to ensure the success of Lost Skies is by releasing it early in “open development.” Olifiers says that currently Bossa has a group of a few hundred community members with full access to game builds who are giving feedback and actively discussing with Bossa devs what they want to see from Lost Skies. The plan is to slowly grow this community over time.
While this might seem like a risky strategy, Olifiers says it’s one Bossa has a lot of experience with in its past games. It has a website, Bossa Presents, where it shows off “weird and wonderful prototypes” for community feedback, and Olifiers says I Am Fish specifically was the result of a game jam prototype that community members fell in love with.
“I remember we were watching videos of people doing things in Surgeon Simulator that we never thought possible, and then going back to the game, updating it, and putting achievements if someone else did that,” he says. “So, this kind of positive feedback loop is what we are trying to do on Lost Skies from day one.”
Lost Skies is currently in development for a full PC release sometime in 2024, and Olifiers says Bossa is still considering a potential console release. And there are big plans long-term, too. Bossa has a “huge post-launch roadmap” in mind for long-term Lost Skies support, in hopes the game will sustain them for years to come.
“It’s meant to be our bread and butter, going forward, right?” Olifiers says. “Our life.”
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You can find her on Twitter @duckvalentine.
Soapbox features enable our individual writers and contributors to voice their opinions on hot topics and random stuff they’ve been chewing over.Today, Jim wants to spread the love for a certain Hylian in need of support…
Global Accessibility Awareness Day is an exciting moment for Xbox to recognize the importance of accessibility, celebrate the players and developers with disabilities that are part of our vibrant, global gaming community, and highlight recent accessibility work at Xbox. To meet the needs of over 427 million players with disabilities, and create a platform where everyone feels welcome, safe, and represented, we know that accessibility awareness and support is something that has to happen every day and has to be part of the community culture. What this support resembles will vary based on the player, but ultimately, accessibility at Xbox is all about creating gaming experiences that everyone can enjoy.
Gaming is all about the power of connection and play. And it has been incredible these last several months watching the energy our community has put into learning about game accessibility, especially as we continue our own accessibility journey and push for a more inclusive games industry. On Global Accessibility Awareness Day 2023, we’re excited to share with you some of the work we’ve been doing in support of our Gaming & Disability communities, including updated accessibility support pages, new accessibility features on PC, and recognizing the achievements of thousands of Xbox Ambassadors who are showing how easy and fun it can be to learn about game accessibility by completing over one million Accessibility Explorer Path missions!
A Community Dedicated to Accessibility
Xbox Accessibility Ambassador Explorer Path – 1 Million missions completed!
The Xbox Ambassador program is home to a group of global Xbox players where each member celebrates the uniqueness of everyone who loves to play, promotes a safe gaming environment, and above all else, makes gaming more fun. Last year, when Xbox asked Ambassadors if there was interest in learning more about accessibility, the answer was a resounding yes! This inspired the team to create the Xbox Ambassador Accessibility Explorer Path, a gamified experience that allows Ambassadors to learn more about accessibility in gaming, as well as try out new gaming accessibility features across PC and console. Through the Explorer Path, Ambassadors are given specific quests and missions to complete, all while leveling up and having fun.
Since the Xbox Ambassador Accessibility Explorer Path’s launch just 7 months ago, over 110 quests were posed to the group and today we are excited to announce that Ambassadors collectively completed over 1 million missions centered around accessibility, with over 18,000 individual Ambassadors contributing. Check out some stories from Ambassadors below:
ctrlaltcraft
How would you describe the experience of following the Accessibility Explorer Path?
Highly informative! And very exciting. It’s exciting to see a business like Microsoft and Xbox taking accessibility so seriously. It draws from a myriad of resources and articles. It wasn’t just slapped together like a business faking interest in accessibility to seem on-trend. You can tell the team that put all this together actually really cares about this cause.
ItsMileyGirl
What impact did the Accessibility Explorer Path have on how you think about accessibility in gaming?
Before I started the Accessibility Explorer Path I was just starting to learn and advocate for accessibility in gaming, but reading more about accessibility options and how they work and the importance they have in gaming and media made me appreciate them even more. Now I’m an even fiercer advocate!
If you haven’t done any of the Accessibility Explorer Path missions yet, all I can say is do it! You’ve got nothing to lose but a ton to gain. You get sweet XP, a new badge for your profile, get the tools to be an effective accessibility advocate and you learn more about accessibility options and their importance. It’s a win-win-win!
Players can access the full list of support pages via the support.xbox.com accessibility site, within the accessibility tab on Xbox App on PC, Xbox.com, and coming soon to Game Bar.
New Accessibility Settings on Xbox App on PC
In March, the Xbox App on PC rolled out a new accessibility settings menu that features two brand new settings: Disable background images and Disable animations. These settings are designed to help players reduce visual components that could cause disruption, confusion, or irritation. Links to additional accessibility settings and a link to learn more about accessible gaming are now also available in the new settings menu.
It’s easier than ever to find your next favorite Xbox games! A new update on the Microsoft Store on Xbox.com now allows users to filter and search games based on their accessibility needs and preferences, as well as search for games based on their Supported Language, with over 17 supported languages. For example, let’s say a player is looking to find Action & Adventure games that have adjustable difficulty settings and spatial audio support. The improved Xbox.com experience allows users to do just that – and more – by applying different filters, including 20 accessibility filters, to find their next great game across Console, PC, and Cloud. Try it out here.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor Xbox Plays Livestream
Cal Kestis and the Mantis crew are back to stand against the Darkness in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor. Tune in to the Xbox Twitch channel on May 18th at 11 AM PT to watch Lead UI/UX Designer Jordan DeVries and Tara Voelker, Sr. Accessibility Lead at Xbox, play Jedi: Survivor and delve into the game’s accessibility features and how the team strived to ensure that as many players as possible could embrace the fantasy of being a Jedi Knight in Star Wars Jedi: Survivor.
Viewers will have a chance to win a collector’s edition of Star Wars: Jedi Survivor.
Progress Made on Existing Accessibility Offerings at Xbox
Microsoft Game Accessibility Testing Service (MGATS)
In February 2021, Xbox launched the Microsoft Game Accessibility Testing Service (MGATS), a program developed for publishers and developers to validate the accessibility of their games, and since launch, Xbox has added information for developers around how to validate Accessibility Feature Tags in their games. To make it easier for developers to understand the criteria behind those tags, Xbox has added 119 test steps and 124 examples to Accessibility Feature Tags – Microsoft Game Dev | Microsoft Learn. Guidance includes screenshots from As Dusk Falls, Flight Simulator, Forza Horizon 5, Grounded, Halo Infinite, Minecraft and Sea of Thieves to provide examples of meeting criteria.
In addition, since launch, MGATS has added a ‘Player with Disability’ offering with focused feedback on core game and communication features. We are excited to share that over the past year, players with disabilities have logged over 13,000 hours of testing across the program, all in an effort to make games more fun and accessible for everyone.
Game Accessibility Feature Tags
Microsoft’s Game Accessibility Feature Tags were created to make it easier to find games that have accessibility features players need to enjoy a game. At launch two years ago, games with over 4 tags were showcased at our Accessibility Spotlight, a location on the Xbox store where customers can find games that include a variety of accessibility features. Since then, more and more developers have tagged their games, raising the bar for what it takes to be featured in Accessibility Spotlight. Now, games must have 6+ tags to be spotlighted, due to the sheer number of titles with multiple tags. In addition, we have added new features on the Xbox App on PC that allows players to discover Game Accessibility Feature Tags for different games, as well as filter options.
Xbox Celebrating Accessibility Around the World
Xbox partners with Korea’s National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art
From May to September, Xbox will partner with Korea’s National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art (MMCA) for an art exhibition titled “Game Society”, showcasing contemporary visual art works embodying games’ imagination and realism. One of the exhibitions will spotlight game accessibility and will include the installation of the Xbox Adaptive Controller for visitors to use.
XboxNL and HiPerks Foundation spotlight the Xbox Adaptive Controller
In 2018, Xbox launched the Xbox Adaptive Controller as part of our mission to empower gamers around the world to play the games they want, with the people they want, on the devices they want. In honor of GAAD, Xbox Netherlands is excited to partner with Paul Van Der Made, a player with a disability, and the HiPerks Foundation to release a new video series showcasing the impact the Xbox Adaptive Controller continues to have for players with disabilities.
Check out the video series at the following links:
Xbox is meeting athletes at the Special Olympics World Games Berlin 2023
For the past two years, we’ve had the pleasure of partnering with Special Olympics to showcase the power of inclusion in two epic Gaming for Inclusion esports tournaments. This year, we’re excited to continue our support of athletes and Unified partners at the Special Olympics World Games Berlin 2023. In June, Xbox and the inclusion specialist Humanelektronik will be providing Xbox gaming stations in the athlete’s lounge in Berlin. Athletes and Unified partners will be able to sit back, unwind from competition, and try different Xbox accessibility features and games while connecting with other participants from around the world through the universal language of play.
More Ways to Play: Increasing the Accessibility of Our Games
Forza Motorsport
Last month, Turn 10 Studios shared how they are creating their most accessible Forza Motorsport ever, which includes an innovative accessibility feature set called Blind Driving Assists (BDA), built for players who are Blind or have Low Vision. Blind Driving Assists work by providing a set of supplemental audio cues designed to help Low/No Vision players navigate the tracks of Forza Motorsport. The features were built in close partnership with the Disability community over two years, including Accessibility Consultant and Blind gamer, Brandon Cole.
Other notable accessibility features in Forza Motorsport include one touch driving, a customizable narration system, Colorblindness Modes, and more. For more information on the accessibility features in Forza Motorsport, click here.
Minecraft Legends (Available with Xbox Game Pass, Cloud, Console, and PC)
Minecraft Legends is a new action strategy game, where players must lead their allies in heroic battles to defend the Overworld from the destructive piglins. The game, released last month, includes a host of accessibility features, including:
Text to Speech (both natively as well as within game menus)
Controller Options
Swap AB buttons
Swap XY buttons
Wrap toolbar navigation.
Other controller features include adjusting the placement, aiming sensitivity, and toggle modes for building and sprinting.
Text size options
Including the ability to set text at 100%, 125%, or 150%
Colorblindness Mode, including:
Deuteranopia
Protanopia
Tritanopia
Subtitles
Available both in-game and in pre-recorded video files (FMVs) used in the video game.
Hi-Fi Rush (Available with Xbox Game Pass, Cloud, Console, and PC)
In January, Xbox released Hi-Fi Rush where players star as wannabe rockstar Chai, fighting back against a sinister robotics enhancement conglomerate using rhythm-amplified combat where everything – from the motion in the environment to the blows of combat – is synced to the music.
Hi-Fi Rush was designed to provide as many players as possible with the opportunity to live out their own rock star fantasy through game customization and accessibility features. This includes Rhythm Visualization, which allows players to visualize the beat pulse in the environment and UI, allowing the game to still be completed when playing without sounds enabled, an Auto-Action Mode for users that have difficulty performing complex button, four different difficulty settings, the option to adjust font size and subtitles, and more. Check out Hi Fi Rush’s full accessibility guide.
Deathloop (Available with Xbox Game Pass, Cloud, Console, and PC)
In Deathloop, two rival assassins are trapped in a mysterious timeloop on the island of Blackreef, doomed to repeat the same day for eternity. The game, released last year, comes with a slew of accessibility features, which can all be found within a dedicated Accessibility category within the options menu. These include gameplay settings that allow players to further customize combat in Single-Player Mode, such as increasing or decreasing combat difficulty, adjusting the number of Reprises, and slowing game speed.
The game also includes a new HUD and subtitle options, including the ability to change the size, opacity and color of various text and graphical elements. Check out Deathloop on Xbox today.
Elder Scrolls Online (Available with Xbox Game Pass)
In Elder Scrolls Online, players are invited to experience limitless adventure within the Elder Scrolls world. In February, Elder Scrolls Online was updated on Xbox to include a screen narration tool which allows the majority of the game’s menus to be narrated and can be automatically enabled when the game is put into Accessibility Mode. Players can also control both the speed and volume of narration.
Adios is a cinematic first-person game centered around a pig farmer in Kansas who decides he no longer wants to work for the mob. A partner of the ID@Xbox Developer Acceleration Program, the game was created by GB ‘Doc’ Burford, a disabled game developer whose lived experiences ultimately inspired parts of the game.
“I remember when I was working on Adios, I designed all of the scenes to accommodate people with ADHD,” Burford shared. “(For example,) there’s a scene in Adios where you actually play a game of horseshoes while having a conversation at the same time.” Because so much of the game involves dialogue, Burford wanted “things you could fidget with, things you could do, things that keep you acting while (dialogue is happening), but not so intense that you can’t pay attention to both at the same time.”
As a game developer with a disability, Burford shares that he frequently experiences chronic pain, but “when I make a game, I get to go somewhere else. I get to be somebody else. Writing is one of the few jobs that is completely disability-friendly. It’s perfectly suited for me.”
