Forza Motorsport is set to launch this year with groundbreaking features that enable more people to play. Apart from building the most technically advanced and authentic racing game, the game’s developer, Turn 10 Studios, wants to make it the most accessible title in the history of video games.
One of the innovative accessibility features coming to the Gran Turismo rival is Blind Driving Assists, designed for players who are blind or have low vision. The feature set provides supplemental audio cues that help low/no vision players navigate the tracks of Forza Motorsport.
Players can listen to detailed descriptions in the video game, as well as a preview of each audio cue they will encounter on-track, and get information about their position and orientation on the track, approach and progress through turns, and information about the car, such as how much deceleration is needed. The feature set was driven by the audio team at Turn 10 and developed in close partnership with its accessibility consultant and blind gamer, Brandon Cole.
Another new feature is One Touch Driving, which allows players to race with whatever amount and combination of inputs they need. The feature allows players who may have trouble pressing multiple buttons simultaneously, gripping a controller, or maintaining button pressure to customize their car control with automatic shifting, enhanced steering and braking assists, throttle and pit entry assists, and more.
Forza Motorsport also offers Screen Narration, a solution that can be adjusted to suit an individual’s preferences and informational needs to help them navigate and play the game. The narrator’s voice and volume, pitch, and speed controls can be customized.
Other accessibility features include Dynamic Audio Description, Text-to-Speech/Speech-to-Text, UI Colorblindness Modes, World Colorblindness Filters, and many more.
Forza Motorsport is coming to Xbox Game Pass, Xbox Series X|S consoles, Windows PC and Steam, and Cloud Gaming (Beta) this year. However, an official launch date has yet to be announced.
