It’s difficult to quantify the extent to which accessibility has evolved for the better. From the release of PlayStation’s first accessible controller in 2023, to industry titans like Nintendo, EA, Microsoft, and Sony forming a coalition to create a tag system for accessible features in games in 2025, disabled players are increasingly welcomed and supported. In 2020, Geoff Keighley unveiled the Innovation in Accessibility Award for The Game Awards to honor a game or device that allows more people to take part in the experience. The inaugural award was presented by former Nintendo of America head Reggie Fils-Aimé to Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us Part 2, one of the first games to be fully accessible for blind and low vision players and featuring dozens of options for players to customize the game.
The PS5 and Series X era promised inclusion, but the reality is more complicated
