Starting Point - Action-adventure
Whilst many of the modules in the SpecialEffect DevKit might be applicable to your game, we’ve compiled a selection of modules which may be considered particularly relevant for game developers who are looking to improve the motor accessibility of their action-adventure game for players.
This guide is primarily geared towards games where the player controls a single character from a third-person perspective, however many aspects might still be applicable to other action-adventure formats, such as isometric and top-down games where movement, puzzles, and combat are often present.
The modules listed below can be expanded to reveal information on how they might be applied to various mechanics typically found in action-adventure games. This can be used as a starting point when interacting with the DevKit, if suitable for your game.
1.2 Supporting Multiple Input Devices
“Give players a choice of different input devices to play your game.”
Aim to support as many of the input devices available on any given platform, as players may find different input devices more accessible or more comfortable to use than others. Those different devices may also offer additional input methods that players may prefer to use, from analog sticks and buttons, to touch or motion.
Many action-adventure games are designed around using a gamepad, which can be accessibile for many players and can also allow adaptive controllers to be used. Supporting additional devices like mouse and keyboard on platforms that support them, can also be beneficial and might allow the use of assistive mice, opening up the game to a broader group of players.
You might also consider allowing players to use multiple different input devices simultaneously for even more customisation. This can also be useful for players who might share the controls with other people, to cooperatively control a single player in the game.
2.2 Remapping
“Ideally, let players remap any action to any input, at any point in the game.”
Some players may struggle to physically reach or have accurate control over certain inputs so may prefer to use other inputs instead. By allowing players to change which inputs control which actions, you allow them to create a layout that suits them.
You can present remapping as changing the input that performs an action. For example, by letting the player decide which input to use for attack. Players may want to map the actions they consider most important to the inputs they find most easily accessible, so prioritise making the most critial actions in your game remappable.
If an action requires players to access multiple inputs at the same time, letting them remap each of those inputs can be beneficial. Or going a step further you might allow players to map the action to a single input if possible, since pressing two inputs simultaneously can still be difficult for some.
Often it is also best to include interchangeability between analog and digital inputs where appropriate. This might be useful for players who prefer pressing a button to moving a stick in certain directions to move a character, for example.
2.8 Reducing the Total Number of Inputs
“Help players by reducing the number of inputs required to play your game.”
Remapping allows players to use the inputs they prefer and have greater access to. Remapping can also help players by reducing the total number of inputs needed to play a game.
One way to let players do this is through contextual remapping. Allow players to use the same input for different actions if the actions they are bound to are mutually exclusive and you could never perform them at the same time.
Even something like looking at or being near an interactable object, such as a door, or your character being in mid-air could be considered a different context.
If your action-adventure game requires aiming, it may be suitable to offer a single stick mode by considering aiming as a separate context. In this mode, an analog stick used for movement could be used for camera movement while aiming, therefore a second analog stick is no longer required.
3.3 Continuous Holds
“Provide alternative options for actions that require an input to be continuously held.”
Some games will require you to hold an input down to continuously perform an action. An alternative to this interaction might be to press the input once initiate the action, and then again to complete it.
For instance, perhaps a puzzle in your game requires an object to be picked up by holding a button down, and moved to a specific position where the object is then placed by letting go of the button. You could provide an option that allows the player to just press the button once to pick up an object, and then again to let go, rather than holding the button down indefinitely. The same could apply to other types of actions in your game that might benefit from a toggle option, like drawing a bow and releasing the arrow for example.
Allowing an input to be pressed instead of being held could also extend to the movement within your game. You coulde provide an option that allows the player to toggle moving forwards instead of holding the stick in a certain direction. The player might decide to map this action to Up on the analog stick so that they only need to push the stick up once to toggle moving, and then again to stop moving. Alternatively they could map it to a button press, which might incedentally allow them to play with a single stick, depending on the game.
In addition to these types of in-game actions, holding a button down to keep a radial menu open can also be challenging. Therefore, a setting that lets you open this type of menu with a single press of the input and another to close it, can be necessary for some players.
3.4 Set Duration Holds
“Let players modify interactions that require holding an input for a specific amount of time.”
Sometimes an input will only need to be held down for a certain amount of time in order to perform an action. This could be a significant amount of time or a very brief hold. For some players even a short hold can be difficult, so provide alternatives where possible.
A useful alternative to this type of interaction might be to let players press the input once, and for the action to activate automatically once the set duration has passed.
For example your action-adventure game might feature a crafting system that requires the player to hold an input for a short amount of time in order to craft an item. Providing an alternative option to allow just pressing the input once to craft the item can be beneficial for some players, and the same could apply to similar actions, like using a healing item or opening a door.
These interactions could also be designed so that if a player presses the input again before the action has activated, the timer will stop and the action will not be performed. As this is what typically happens when letting go of a button in hold interactions.
3.5 Repeated Presses
“Let players avoid repeated button presses in quick succession.”
If players are required to press an input repeatedly and in quick succession for a certain amount of time, an option to avoid this can be worthwhile.
For instance, in your game you might require the player to press a button repeatedly and at a certain rate in order to lift a heavy object and progress past an event. An alternative to this might be to let the player hold the button down instead to lift the object, as some players may struggle to press the input at the required rate.
As holding a button can still be difficult for some, providing other options can also be useful, such as reducing the number and rate of presses needed, or you might even consider reducing the interaction down to a single button press if possible.
There may also be points in your game where an action would ideally be performed in quick succession for an indefinite amount of time. For these actions, like firing a single fire gun, or performing an attack, alternative input interactions could be useful for some players.
4.8 Contextual Analog Settings
“Allow players to adjust analog settings individually by context.”
Letting players modify the relationship between the value the game receives from an analog input, and the value the corresponding action takes, enables them to customise a setup to suit their control and the type of input they use. This could include supporting a number of different settings that affect the analog sensitivity of an input, such as deadzone adjustments and different analog response curves.
Analog settings should also be adjustable on a contextual basis.
Perhaps your action-adventure game offers players a number of different playable characters that they can switch between, each with different abillities and movement styles. You could allow players to configure analog settings seperately for each character, as they may find certain adjustments improve their control for one character but not others, in terms of movement and aiming the camera for example.
5.2 Action Information
“Give players information about available actions and required inputs during gameplay.”
Informing players on the actions they can perform in the game, both generally and for specific contexts, can be useful for the player if they want to know which inputs are required to play.
Input prompts and reminders that show the required inputs and interactions needed to perform actions while actively playing can be an understandable way to present controls.
Since action-adventure games can often feature many different and unique actions, it might also be useful to remind the player of the set of actions they can perform at any given moment and which inputs they’re mapped to.
You could provide an interface that constantly displays a number of actions that the player can perform. This list of actions could change when the context the player is in, and therefore the available set of actions, also changes.
5.3 Game Information
“Support players during gameplay with optional status updates, warnings, hints and guides.”
Providing players with information about your game, the various systems it contains, and how best to approach certain situations, might help reduce the amount of overall input required to play.
There are of course many ways of presenting information about the game to the player, so think about what options you could provide to prepare players for any challenges they might face.
In an action-adventure game, this might include giving options that warn players about incoming danger that they may need to react quickly to, such as an enemies that are about to spot them. It could also be hints on which direction to take, or how to solve a puzzle, or even explicitly showing the optimal route they can take to get to an objective.
5.5 Settings Information
“Ideally, let players preview and adjust settings before starting, and throughout your game.”
For the player to make the most of the options and settings that your game supports, you should consider how easy and understandable it will be for them to find and adjust these settings throughout the course of your game.
Consider allowing players to adjust settings, and particularly accessibility settings, at the very start of your game. This is a great way of making players aware of the settings your game contains, and also means players will have immediate access to options they might require in order to play.
You could provide a dedicated setup menu that includes accessibility preset options that configure multiple settings at once. Which can be useful for players who would like to start with as many of the settings enabled that they might benefit from as possible, and then perhaps customise things as they become more familiar with the game.
6.2 Player Strength
“Give players options to power up their various abilities in the game.”
One way of assisting the player is to enhance the elements they have control over. There are any number of ways of increasing the power of the player depending on your game. You could increase the amount of damage a player deals for example, or the strength of their abilities.
If your action-adventure game gives the player a certain amount of health, you could consider adding an option to increase this amount. Which might mean the player is able to make more mistakes before reaching a fail state in the game. Or perhaps your game has a stamina system that determines how long the player can sprint or climb for. In a similar way to health you could increase the amount of stamina the player has, which means there is less pressure to sprint or climb in an optimal way.
6.3 Game Difficulty
“Let players reduce the difficulty of the game generally or in specific contexts.”
For elements in your game that are not controlled by the player, allow them to adjust the way they function and what level of challenge they provide.
Providing different difficulty levels that can encompass a wide range of changes can be a simple way for the player to alter the game experience to match the level they would like to play at.
While global difficulty presets can be useful, it can also be useful to provide individual options for each area of your game that a player might find difficult.
For instance in an action-adventure game you might have some sections that contain combat, some that contain puzzles, and some that are more focused on exploration.Allowing players to configure the difficulty independently for each section is useful if there’s a particular mode or area that the player is struggling with, but are otherwise having no difficulty progressing in other areas of the game.
And going further than that, you might consider giving the player a fine-grained control over each aspect of your game if suitable. For instance you might let the player configure how aggressive the AI is during combat, or how much damage they should deal - tailoring the game to suit their ability and to play the way they want to.
6.4 Timing Elements
“Let players reduce or remove the need for quick or precisely timed movements.”
At certain points in your game you may require the player to respond quickly to something, or to precisely time when an input is used. Some players may struggle to do this, so it can be useful to provide options that affect the level of precision, or speed of response needed to access those parts of your game.
Action-adventure games featuring events that require a quick response from the player, such as quick time events, can often be difficult for players who struggle to quickly use the required input when prompted. Providing options to increase the amount of time players have to respond to these events will increase the chance they’ll be able to successfully perform the event as they intended.
Going further than this you could allow the player to adjust the speed of multiple elements, or possibly the entire game. Letting players slow things down will give them more time to respond to events, and could also increase the window players might have to precisely time an input interaction, like dodging or parrying an enemy attack for example.
7.3 Automatic Digital Actions
“Allow players to automate certain digital actions.”
Even when certain accessibility features are provided, some players may find there are still too many actions overall for them to play successfully. In these cases it might be possible to reduce the number of actions the player needs to perform by partially, or fully automating them. Which could in turn reduce the total number of inputs required to play your game.
Perhaps your action-adventure game requires the player to climb up to a ledge, or vault over an obstacle that’s blocking their path. In this instance you could provide an option that automatically climbs or vaults when the player comes into contact with an object that’s traversible, therefore automating those actions for the player when in that specific context.
If your game has actions that require particularly complex input interactions to be performed successfully, automating these actions might also be a way to allow some players to access your game who otherwise couldn’t. For instance if your game contains quick time events, you could provide an option to have them be automatically carried out, allowing players to avoid input interactions which they might otherwise find too difficult.
7.4 Automatic Analog Actions
“Allow players to automate certain analog actions in a specific or optimal way.”
Analog actions can take any number of values, so you will need to decide how best to automate them given the current actions available in your game. You might decide to let players configure how analog actions are performed in a specific way, or you might have them be performed in an optimal way instead.
Depending on the nature of your game you might let the player move on a set or predetermined path to reach a particular objective. Once activated the game will adjust the player’s movements to automatically follow roads and paths until they arrive at their destination.
You could also automate analog actions in response to other actions. For players that might have difficulty moving two analog sticks at the same time, you could include the option to have the camera automatically adjust itself when the character attacks for example.
Or perhaps you might continuously update the direction of the camera to point in the direction that the character is moving to further support these players.
