Images and gameplay for Naughty Dog's upcoming remake of The Last of Us have leaked, showcasing the title's numerous accessibility features. The game is slated to release on PlayStation 5 and PC this September.
In addition to combat settings (such as hostages not escaping or enemies not flanking the player) and screen reader cues, the remake features accessibility options for traversal, the ability to skip puzzles, and the ability to adjust field of view for motion sick players. Players can also toggle enemy accuracy, slow motion, and a tinnitus sound effect.
Naughty Dog introduced a breadth of options for The Last of Us Part II in 2020, including presets that allowed players to tweak the game to suit their needs. At the time, Naughty Dog said that many features were designed "to work well in concert with one another," and allowed players to tweak those presets even further.
More options for players of all kinds
Over the years, more games have begun to introduce different accessibility options to appeal to a wider variety of players. Titles such as Back 4 Blood feature a colorblind mode, while others like Celeste incorporate an assist mode to help players traverse particularly difficult sections. In 2018, Microsoft launched an accessibility gamepad for Xbox users with limited mobility.
The original Last of Us in 2013 lacked much in the way of accessibility options, but Naughty Dog began to make its games more expansive beginning with Uncharted 4: A Thief's End in 2016. Back then, Josh Straub, the editor-in-chief of website DAGERS (Disabled Accessibility for Gaming Entertainment Rating System), was brought in to advise Naughty Dog on how to increase its accessibility options.
"The brief period of escape is why accessibility is so crucial [to video games]," said Straub, offering his take at the time. "Because the more games that offer that, the more people with disabilities will be able to escape and have better lives." In his review of Uncharted 4, in which he disclosed his involvement with the game's development, he called it "completely barrier free" for players who have fine motor, visual, or auditory disabilities.
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