Support multiple means of task completion

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

In this unit, you'll learn about accessibility best practice principles that are derived from the multiple means of task completion concept.

Provide multiple ways to navigate menus

Complex menu trees can 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 in a menu.

Accelerator prompts

One way to provide an alternative 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 accessibility settings menu.

Quick settings

Flexibility for menu navigation can also be supported at the platform level. For example, the following image shows the Xbox platform's Quick settings menu. This menu enables players to quickly turn accessibility settings on or off. Players can easily open this menu by using 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 that's currently open.

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 accomplish objectives.

Stardew Valley is an example of a game that allows players to complete tasks by taking multiple approaches:

• The game provides multiple ways to complete collectible-item tasks. The following image shows the Missing Bundle task. The game provides six items that can be collected to complete this task. Players need to collect only five of the six items to complete the task. If one of the items is too challenging to collect, they can bypass that item.

  

• The game also provides multiple ways to find these items. Players can 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 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

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

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

Provide multiple ways to meet input demands

Meeting player input demands can be challenging from both a hardware and a 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). Options for doing so include introducing settings that reduce input demands to a single button or that provide the ability to bypass QTEs altogether.

The following screen capture is from Assassin's Creed Valhalla. On this screen, players can choose between a one-time press, a hold, or repeated presses for QTEs. Another option allows players to bypass QTEs entirely in some boss encounters.

Input device support

Supporting multiple types of input devices for a single game or platform also helps 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 supports only keyboard and mouse input for a PC game. A player with a fine-motor disability who can't access keyboard and mouse input will be excluded from playing that game. If the game supports multiple input types, like controllers and game pads, the player can use assistive technology inputs through a device like their Xbox Adaptive Controller.