The Last of Us 2 Will Feature Dozens of Accessibility Options

Published: June 1, 2020 3:49 PM /

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The Last of Us 2 accessibility features cover

There will be "around 60" The Last of Us 2 accessibility features according to recent reports about firsthand experiences with the game.

While there are a fair few first impressions pieces floating around out there, The Verge decided to focus on one particular aspect of Naughty Dog's ambitious sequel to 2013's The Last of Us — accessibility.

The vast majority of gamers likely haven't had the need to turn on any accessibility features, but they're critical for some people to be able to enjoy gaming with as much fulfillment as we do. These features can include simple additions like subtitles for the hard-of-hearing or colorblind mode for visually-impaired gamers.

Aiming for greater accessibility is rooted in a letter from a gamer who had played Uncharted 2. Unfortunately, they were incapable of physically completing a quick-time event and that put a damper on the experience as a whole.

"They were able to play all the way to that point and then they were blocked from finishing the game," explained The Last of Us 2's Lead Game Designer Emilia Schatz.

The Last of Us 2 accessibility features high contrast
"High contrast" mode makes it easy to distinguish characters from the background. (Image credit: The Verge)

What Are The Last of Us 2 Accessibility Features?

Thanks to the letter from that one fan (and probably a heck of a lot of research and testing), Naughty Dog has a bunch of accessibility features in store for its next game.

Some of these features are relatively standard in most major releases like making the UI larger or adding a color-blind subtitle mode. Others, however, are much more ambitious than what most of the competition manages to provide.

As an example, a text-to-speech option will vocalize pretty much everything in the game, whether it's the menus or the notes that Ellie picks up. There are also audio cues that indicate when you are near a ledge that you can climb or an item that you can pick up.

Even the PS4's touchpad is being put to good use. Players who are visually-impaired can use it to zoom in, effectively acting as a virtual magnifying glass and making it easier than ever to discern details or read on-screen text.

The number of gamers who will actually need these features is a small portion of the whole, but it looks like Naughty Dog has put in a lot of work in ensuring that there are plenty of The Last of Us 2 accessibility features to accommodate them. Those who will need these features will surely be thankful for their inclusion.

What do you think of Naughty Dog going the extra mile to make The Last of Us 2 accessible to disabled gamers? Have you ever hit a wall in a game due to missing accessibility features? Let us know in the comments below!

Have a tip, or want to point out something we missed? Leave a Comment or e-mail us at tips@techraptor.net


A photograph of TechRaptor Senior Writer Robert N. Adams.
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One of my earliest memories is playing Super Mario Bros. on the Nintendo Entertainment System. I've had a controller in my hand since I was 4 and I… More about Robert N