Support multiple ways of task completion

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Support through multiple ways is another important foundational accessibility concept. Providing players with multiple ways to complete a single task can support player success for a host of different game scenarios and experiences.

In this unit, learn about accessibility best practice principles derived from the concept of multiple ways of task completion.

Provide multiple ways to navigate menus

Complex menu trees can commonly introduce inaccessible experiences for players. Navigating through nested menus to locate a specific setting can be demanding for players with cognitive, visual, or physical disabilities. The following approaches provide players with multiple paths to locate desired settings within a menu.

Accelerator prompts

One way to provide an alternate means of navigating through menu trees is by using onscreen shortcuts or accelerator prompts. For example, the following image from the Forza Horizon 4 start screen provides players with a prompt to select the X button to open the settings menu. This option allows players to immediately open the accessibility settings menu.

Screenshot that shows the start screen from Forza Horizon 4 with the option to select A to start the game and X to open the accessibility menu.

Quick settings

Flexibility for menu navigation can also be supported at the platform level. For example, the following image of the Xbox platform's Quick settings menu allows players to quickly toggle accessibility settings on or off. Players can easily open this menu through a two-step process. They can select the Guide button, and then select the View button. Players can adjust accessibility settings without having to close the game or application they currently have open.

Screenshot that shows the Quick settings screen on Xbox. The Night mode setting is highlighted and turned off.

Provide multiple ways to complete objectives

Game objectives might require players to complete a series of actions in a specific order. Consider creating alternative paths to help ensure that players with disabilities can still achieve objective completion.

Stardew Valley is an example of a game that allows players to complete collectible item-based tasks through multiple approaches:

  • The game provides players with multiple ways to complete collectible item tasks. The following image shows The Missing Bundle task. The game lists six potential item options that can be collected to complete this task. Players only need to collect five of the six items for task completion. If one of the items is too challenging to collect, they can bypass that item and still complete the same task.

    Screenshot that shows the interface in Stardew Valley for The Missing Bundle in-game activity.

  • The game also provides multiple ways to find these items. Players can traditionally acquire collectible items by farming, fishing, or defeating enemies. They can also purchase some of the items at various locations in the game.

Provide multiple ways to engage in combat

The complexity and speed of in-game combat situations can introduce inaccessible experiences for players. When games provide multiple ways to defeat enemies, players can approach combat-related tasks in ways that align with their needs and preferences and still succeed.

Long-range weapon options

Some players might find close-combat scenarios inaccessible. These situations often require players to rapidly press controls to generate short-range attacks like punches or swinging a sword. When games provide alternate ways to inflict enemy damage, such as long-range weapons, players can slowly defeat enemies from afar.

In the following image from the game Minecraft Dungeons, players can defeat enemies face-to-face with their melee weapon. They can also choose to level up their long-range weapons like arrows and explosives to defeat enemies from afar, and then take breaks when needed.

Screenshot that shows a wizard in Minecraft Dungeons standing in a frozen dungeon.

Provide multiple ways to meet input demands

Completing any game task first requires some form of input from the player. Meeting input demands can be challenging from both a hardware and software perspective. Consider providing players with multiple ways of meeting these input demands.

Quick time events

Game events that require a player to rapidly press a specific combination of buttons, or select specific areas on their screen, can introduce barriers to access. These types of events place high demands on a player's hand-eye coordination, visual acuity, finger dexterity, and cognitive processing.

Consider providing players with multiple ways to complete quick time events (QTEs). Alternative options that are less physically demanding include settings to reduce input demands to a single button or the ability to bypass QTEs altogether.

In the following screen capture from the Assassin's Creed Valhalla game, players can choose between a one-time press, a hold, or repeated presses for QTEs. Another option has been added to bypass QTEs entirely in some boss encounters.

Screenshot that shows the Assassin's Creed Valhalla Quick Time Events Input Type settings. The options provided are Repeated, Hold, and One-Time.

Input device support

Supporting multiple types of input devices for a single game or platform also works to support accessible experiences for more players.

Game experiences might traditionally rely on input devices that are specific to the type of platform on which the experience is running. Consider the following examples:

  • Mobile games are designed to optimize touch-screen input.
  • Console games are optimized to support game controllers.
  • PC games are often optimized for a mouse and keyboard.
  • Virtual reality experiences can be heavily motion based.

Imagine a scenario where a developer only supports keyboard and mouse input for their PC game. A player with a fine-motor disability who can't access keyboard and mouse input would be excluded from playing that game. If this game supported multiple input types, like controllers and game pads, this player could then use their assistive technology inputs through a device like their Xbox Adaptive Controller.

Check your knowledge

1.

Which of the following is not an example of providing players with multiple ways of task completion?

2.

Which of the following isn't an example of supporting multiple inputs?