There's admittedly a lot of frustration within the Xbox community at the moment, but if there's one thing we can all (hopefully) get behind, it's the company's efforts when it comes to the creation of new accessibility devices.
During its Gamescom livestream yesterday, Xbox's accessibility team revealed four new offerings (including the Xbox Adaptive Joystick) as part of its "mission" to make gaming accessible for more than 425 million players with disabilities worldwide. These new options were created "in partnership with the Gaming & Disability community and nonprofit organizations".
Apart from the Adaptive Joystick, the new offerings include 3D printable files for adaptive thumbstick toppers (available now with Xbox Design Lab), and two "Designed for Xbox controllers" - including the previously revealed ByoWave Proteus Controller and also 8BitDo's Lite SE 2.4G Wireless Controller.
These products even come with accessible packaging, inspired by feedback from the Gaming and Disability community. It's also noted how Xbox has applied these insights to "redesign and improve the accessibility of the packaging for the three new Xbox Series X|S console options".
"Gaming with a disability is highly individualistic, and we will continue to invest in Xbox’s accessibility offerings – taking into account feedback from the millions of players with disabilities from around the world. Whether using an Xbox Adaptive Joystick, 3D printable files for adaptive thumbstick toppers, or one of the Designed for Xbox’s controllers, we are excited to offer even more choices that allow players with disabilities to customize their gaming setups and enhance their gaming experience with Xbox."
The Xbox Adaptive Joystick launches "early 2025" in "select Xbox markets worldwide" and will be sold through the Microsoft Store for $29.99 USD (or the regional equivalent). The 8BitDo Lite SE controller is available now for $59.99 USD and the ByoWave Proteus Controller is also available now for $299 USD.
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You can get the full rundown about all of these products on Xbox Wire.
[source news.xbox.com]
Comments 9
The Adaptive Joystick looks so much like a Wii Nunchuck.
NGL It would be interesting using that as a one-handed controller, which is very popular in Japan for visual novels and RPGs, for a variety of reasons, some of which I can't talk about.
But the general idea is that one hand plays the game while the other takes notes on a notebook or writing an actual journal when playing RPGs or other games that require taking such notes, especially in the olden days.
i hope it’s compatible with the wii mote , i actually need another nunchuk
Super news for those who this would be for very nice to see 👏
That looks similar to my VR controllers. Wonder if it has a gyro.
I like the look of the 8 Bit Do Lite
Xbox does a stellar job in this area! So important for so many that can not use a regular controller.
Since my disability affects mostly my fine motor skills, I use an Xbox Elite controller with the profiles to create my own southpaw modes in games. However, it would be even easier still if gyro usage was an option.
As an example, I remember being unable to actually play COD4 at one of my friends houses as a pre-teen, because even though the game had a southpaw control stick option, the buttons would still be in the same places. Just a few years later, however, with the introduction of Splatoon, Nintendo created a shooter with gyro controls as the primary input. Especially on the Wii U where controller layout changes were rarely a thing, those gyro controls were the only reason it was possible for me to play the game enjoyably. Still to this day, the fact that the right thumb stick only controls horizontal movement is a benefit to me, and is the reason that even gyro in Fortnite (on PlayStation) doesn’t work the same for me.
Also, the Adative Joystick does look like a nunchuk, to the point where I was describing it to someone as “it looks like a Wii nunchuk”.
Fair play once more to Xbox for doing this. Love how the 8BitDo Controller looks but can’t help think that the picture on the right looks like DJ Decks lol.
@Hydra_Spectre Haha! That got a hearty chuckle 😂
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