'Halo Infinite' New Features Offer Gamers More Accessibility Ahead of its Dec. 8 Launch

Sophie Webster, Tech Times 01 October 2021, 05:10 pm

Xbox — (Photo : GettlyImages/ Justin Sullivan) Halo Infinite

"Halo infinite" has new and improved accessibility features added by 343 Industries months before its official launch.

The gaming studio's goal is to make the latest addition to the "Halo" universe more accessible to as many gamers as possible.

Halo Infinite's New Features

According to Xbox's blog, 343 Industries wants players who are new to the "Halo" franchise to enjoy the game by removing certain barriers that had not been accounted for in the past, according to The Verge.

The new features include accessibility standards like having the ability to rebind mouse, gamepad controls, keyboard, and enhanced colorblind settings.

343 Industries also added new innovations to the game, like a steering feature that is assisted by the player's movements. It allows them to add more controls to help steer vehicles like the Mongoose and Warthog.

Also Read: 'Halo Infinite' Preview is Coming from 343 Industries, and It Would Focus on Battling With Bots

List of Halo Infinite's Accessibility Features

For the subtitles, you can now adjust the font size to your liking and adjust the background's opacity. You can also enable color coding of the dialogue box for the speakers during the game, according to Eurogamer.

Also, you can choose whether you would like subtitles to be displayed for all dialogue or if you want them displayed for some dialogues related to the narrative in the campaign.

As for the general gameplay, you can now customize the menu and the gameplay font size. The menu narration now has an adjustable narration speed that you can use if you use the screen readers.

Also, a new mode called "Linear Navigation" allows you to navigate through the UI without having to see how the controls are positioned on your screen before you access them.

You can also change the colors of your team and your enemies, and it is no longer the traditional "red vs. blue" only.

More UI settings are also added, like the Heads-up Display or HUD, and reticle opacity is also added, so it should be easier to identify information in the display.

There are text-to-speech and speech-to-text options for those that wish to participate in voice chat, and you don't need to send any synthesized voice or get a voice chat as a synthesized text.

There are new customizations for gamers to control the volume of the game via the new sliders. It has a variety of sounds that you can choose from.

You can customize the controller, the keyboard, and the mouse. You can rebind the keys, adjust the sensitivity, and change the taps, toggles, and holds.

A new feature called "Movement Assisted Steering" allows you to use more controls to help steer wheeled vehicles instead of the traditional look-to-steer mechanic.

The accessibility and inclusion in "Halo Infinite" are not limited to the settings. 343 Industries teamed up with Warfighter Engaged, a disabled service member group, to design prosthetic customization options for gamers who want to create their own Spartans.

In August, the PC requirements for "Halo Infinite" was revealed.

Xbox's Attempt at Enticing New Players

The new "Halo Infinite" features are a part of a new push at Xbox to be more accessible to gamers of all abilities. It is also something that the whole gaming industry is pushing for, according to GamesRadar.

Earlier this year, Microsoft launched a program where the developers could test their games and evaluate them for accessibility.

Xbox stated that since accessibility is a journey, 343 Industries will continue to update the game in ways that can empower as many gamers as possible. "Halo Infinite" will be available on Dec. 8.