Accessible Games Initiative tags now show up at six of the biggest names in games, which means checking for big subtitles or a no-button-mashing option no longer takes a forum dig. The Accessible Games Initiative, an Entertainment Software Association project, announced on November 2 that Electronic Arts, Google (YouTube Playables), Nintendo of America, Riot Games, Ubisoft and Xbox are all using the same labels.
The tags describe 24 features, and every one comes with a written definition and criteria behind it. A “Large & Clear Subtitles” label at Nintendo is supposed to mean the same thing as one at EA. That shared yardstick is the point.
“Finding a game with the accessibility features you prefer should be straightforward,” said Daniella Decker, the initiative’s executive director.
Xbox.com Has an Accessibility Browse Page
If you want one place to start, Xbox has it. The accessibility browse page on xbox.com collects games carrying the tags, so you can hunt by feature instead of opening store pages one at a time.
Nintendo Puts Them Under “About this item”
On Nintendo.com, scroll a game page to the “About this item” section to see its tags. Nintendo of America also keeps a full tag list on its store, handy for parents checking a Switch game before a birthday.
Ubisoft Tagged 80 Games, Plus EA, Riot and YouTube Playables
Ubisoft lists 80 games in its catalogue that now carry the tags, with each label shown on the game’s purchase page. EA puts them on game pages in the EA app and on EA.com. Riot keeps its tagged titles on its accessibility page, and YouTube Playables shows them per game under “Game Info” on mobile and web.
Rapid Button Presses, Mono Sound and 22 More
The full set lives on the AGI tags page, and a few are worth knowing by name:
- Large & Clear Subtitles and Large Text for readers who need bigger words on screen.
- Narrated Menus and Chat Speech-to-Text & Text-to-Speech for players who would rather listen than read.
- Playable Without Rapid Button Presses and Playable Without Button Holds, the ones to check if mashing or holding a trigger hurts.
- Full Remapping, Basic Remapping and Buttons Only Option for control setups.
- Mono Sound and Multiple Volume Controls for players with hearing differences in one ear, or anyone who wants dialogue louder than the music.
- Save Anytime, Difficulty Levels, Camera Comfort and Color Alternatives round out the list.
The Tags Are U.S.-English Only and Voluntary
There are limits. The tags are only in U.S.-English for now, and adoption is voluntary, so a missing tag does not always mean a missing feature. Companies can also run them next to their own accessibility labels. When a game has no tags at all, the developer’s own accessibility page is still the best check.
The initiative is inviting the rest of the industry to adopt the tags too. As more stores add them, “does it have big subtitles?” becomes a five-second question before you buy.