Blizzard has shared accessibility details about Diablo IV. In the news article they share how accessibility has been a continued focus during development. With every feature intended to break down barriers, the features highlighted in the article all have seem to have some level of customization to better fit the player’s needs.
“The only limitation to adventuring in Sanctuary should be interest, not capability,”
Lead accessibility designer Drew McCrory
Lead accessibility designer Drew McCrory explains how they built on the work done in Diablo II: Resurrected. The aim for any new accessibility features was providing use for disabled players, without altering the core gameplay. These efforts result in over 50 accessibility features in Diablo IV.
Customizable accessibility
Full button remapping is available whether you play on keyboard and mouse, or a controller. For controllers it is also possible to swap the left and right stick to aid in controlling the most important actions with one hand. Casting skills and activating a choice on the action wheel can be set to a toggle, avoiding the need to hold down buttons for a long time. Players can enable persist target lock to keep their actions focused on their intended target.
Diablo IV has subtitles enabled by default. To further fit players’ needs, they can adjust the color, size and background opacity. It is also possible to change the UI text size and the cursor size, with a choice of three sizes.
To improve their visibility, highlighting is available for players, enemies, objects, and NPCs. Players can select the color which makes this feature useful for colorblind players as well as low vision players. Highlighting can also be beneficial to players with cognitive needs, by making it less difficult to spot important elements.
Audio cues and and screen reader support
Audio cues are available in different situations. One will play when hovering the cursor over items, helping players to locate them. Additionally ambient audio cues play when there are items on the ground. Audio cues are different depending on the rarity. Players can adjust which items and rarity will trigger an audio cue, allowing for more efficient gameplay.
Diablo IV has a built-in screen reader, and support for third party screen readers such as JAWS and NVDA. Screen readers read out the text so players can take in the information presented through text, essential for blind players. To further accommodate their needs, players can adjust the volume, speed, and type of voice of the screen reader.
Last but not least, speech to text is available so players can use their voice to participate in chat. Especially useful when coordinating quickly in multiplayer.
For more detail, including images and several videos showcasing the features, be sure to read Blizzard’s news post here. Player feedback is welcome, in case players run into any issues navigating Sanctuary, there is a dedicated accessibility email available. Be prepared when Diablo IV is released in 2 weeks, on June 6th!
