Night in the Woods Accessibility Report - Android, Mac, PC, PS4, Switch, Xbox One and iOS

Android

iOS

Mac

Switch

Wii

Wii U

PS4

PS5

Xbox One

Xbox X|S

Night
in the Woods

Accessibility Report

23 Accessibility Features

We've documented 23 accessibility features for Night in the Woods, including Large Subtitles, Large Text, Guaranteed Progress, Low Pressure and No Quick Reactions. Its accessibility is strongest in Reading and Getting Started but it also has features in Visual, Controls, Navigation and Audio to reduce unintended barriers.

This report is created with input from accessibility experts and the player community to help people find games that have the accessibility features they require. Once you have found potential games on the database, there are excellent specialist accessibility sites that offer in-depth reviews to guide your purchasing decisions.

Night in the Woods is a narrative adventure which follows college dropout Mae Borowski returning home to the crumbling former mining town of Possum Springs. Play involves exploring the town, interacting with the locals and working out what has happened now her friends have grown and changed. It stands out for how it captures the fleeting sentimentality of childhood in a mystery that weaves through well-realised characters.

External examiner, Angela Hickman Newnham, first checked Night in the Woods accessibility 2 years ago. It was re-examined by Angela Hickman Newnham and updated 2 years ago.

Accessibility Notes

Night in the Woods doesn't give you any guidance about where to go or what to do. While the journal does provide some reference for the events and information you've gained in the game, it is not organised in a clear way to make it easy to recap what you've already done.

The game has a very laid-back casual flow to it, but there are mini-games that sometimes include high-stress gameplay with loud noises, rapid button pushing/holding, flashes, camera shake, and vibration. Only vibration can be disabled in the options menu.

Doing well at these events is not necessary to progress. Characters are indicated by text colour and placement of the text box, with each main character having their own text colour. The lack of speaker names can make it harder to track conversations, especially if you are unable to differentiate the colours, so it may be useful to read the journal often.

Game Details

Release Date: 10/01/2017, updated in 2017

Out Now: Android, Mac, PC, PS4, Switch, Xbox One and iOS

Skill Rating: 11+ year-olds

Players: 1

Genres: Adventure, Narrative (Communication, Puzzle, Rhythm and Role-Play)

Accessibility: 23 features

Components: 2D Side-On and Hand-Made

Developer: Night In The Woods (@NightInTheWoods)

Costs: Purchase cost

Controls

We've documented 4 accessibility features for Controls in Night in the Woods which deal with how you control the game, different options for alternative inputs and whether you can remap these settings to suit your needs.

Gamepad

Can play with the following:

Multiple Buttons & Single Stick: Can play with multiple buttons and a stick.

Button Combinations

Specific button operation required to play

Holding Down Buttons Optional: Holding down buttons for prolonged periods (a second or more) is not required or can be switched to toggling the action on and off. This is in addition to the movement stick/button which is not considered a hold for this purpose.

Rapid Repeated Pressing Optional: Quick, repeated button pressing (more than 2 times a second) is not required, can be skipped or switched to holding a button to trigger a repeated action.

No Simultaneous Buttons: Only one button or key required at a time, in addition to direction stick(s).

Similar Games With More Accessibility Features for Controls

If you want to play Night in the Woods, but it doesn't offer the Controls accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Controls accessibility:

Wytchwood (19 Controls Features)
Saltsea Chronicles (18 Controls Features)
I Was a Teenage Exocolonist (16 Controls Features)
Hi-Fi Rush (12 Controls Features)

Difficulty

We haven’t documented any accessibility features for Difficulty in Night in the Woods which deal with how you can adjust the challenge of play, and whether this is locked once chosen or can be adjusted as you play. The following games are similar to Night in the Woods, and offer accessibility features for Difficulty:

Rainbow Billy (3 Difficulty Features)
Hi-Fi Rush (2 Difficulty Features)
I Was a Teenage Exocolonist (2 Difficulty Features)
Kraken Academy (2 Difficulty Features)

Getting Started

We've documented 5 accessibility features for Getting Started in Night in the Woods which deal with what support is offered to get started with the game. This includes customising the experience when you first open the game via any onboarding processes it provides as well as tutorials and other assistance when you first start playing.

Assistance Getting Starting

These features aid your play of the game in terms of cognitive load on learning controls, dealing with pressure and coping with the environment and challenges.

Reaction-Time Not Critical: Individual game actions don’t need quick reactions, or there are settings to lower the requirement for quick reactions. This means you don't need to quickly press a button in response to an on-screen prompt, target a fast-moving target or skillfully complete a scenario against the clock.

Low Pressure: Game tasks aren't time-limited or there's a low-pressure mode. This avoids the pressure of being put on the clock for overarching missions, or failing tasks because you didn't reach a destination in time.

No Jump Scares: No sudden loud noises or popping-up scary visuals that unexpectedly appear without warning, or the option to disable them.

Assistance For Progressing

These features aid your progress through the game offering different ways of maintaining your progression.

Guaranteed Progress With God Mode: There is no fail state for any game level, where you lose progress or have to start again. Or there are options to make failing impossible: infinite health or lives, unlimited time. Sometimes called God Mode or Unfailable.

Save Progress Anytime: The game automatically saves progress or you can save any time. This doesn’t mean you never lose progress, but it does mean you can stop whenever you want (without having to get to a save point) without losing progress.

Similar Games With More Accessibility Features for Getting Started

If you want to play Night in the Woods, but it doesn't offer the Getting Started accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Getting Started accessibility:

Lil’ Guardsman (9 Getting Started Features)
I Was a Teenage Exocolonist (9 Getting Started Features)
Frog's Princess (8 Getting Started Features)
Saltsea Chronicles (7 Getting Started Features)

Reading

We've documented 6 accessibility features for Reading in Night in the Woods which deal with how much reading or listening comprehension is required, how well the game provides visual and audible access to the text and whether subtitles and captions are a good fit for purpose.

Reading Level

How much reading is required to play the game's main path or story and how complex the language is. The presence of voiced characters doesn't reduce this requirement, as it's recorded as a separate datapoint.

Moderate Reading: Moderate reading required. The quantity and complexity of reading are at a level that a high school student (14-year-old) would appreciate.

Text Visibility

Large Clear Text: All essential text is large and clear or can be adjusted to be. The general text used throughout the game in menus, instructions and other key information (excluding subtitles that are assessed separately) is at least 1/20 (46 pixels on 1080 screen) the height on landscape screens and at least 1/40 height on portrait screens. We base this on the full line-height, including the space above and below the letters.

High Contrast Text: Text colour contrasts to the background or can be adjusted to be. The text in menus, instructions and other information is presented in high contrast with a solid background.

Subtitles

Large Clear Subtitles: Subtitles are large, clear and of good contrast. They are at least 1/20 (46 pixels on 1080 screen) the height of a landscape screen and at least 1/40 height on portrait screens, or can be adjusted to be. We base this on the full line-height, including the space above and below the letters. Considered separately from the general text of the game, the subtitles are large, clear and of good contrast.

All Speech Subtitled (Or No Speech In Game): All spoken content has subtitles, or there is no speech in the game. This means there is no requirement to hear spoken dialogue or narrative to play the game.

Captions

Speaker Indicator: Textual captions indicate who is speaking (or there is only ever one person speaking). This can also be indicated visually in the game with character icons or placing text in speech bubbles next to the person speaking.

Similar Games With More Accessibility Features for Reading

If you want to play Night in the Woods, but it doesn't offer the Reading accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Reading accessibility:

Lil’ Guardsman (7 Reading Features)
Hi-Fi Rush (7 Reading Features)
Return to Monkey Island (7 Reading Features)
The Artful Escape (7 Reading Features)

Navigation

We've documented 2 accessibility features for Navigation in Night in the Woods which deal with how the game provides guidance and assistance to navigate its worlds. These are only for games that have traversal and exploration in 2D and 3D spaces.

Menu Navigation

Menu Audio Cues: Navigating menus provide an audio cue for each selection.

Menus Don't Wrap: Menus don't wrap and stop the cursor at the bottom of the list if you press down. Or menus do wrap but make it clear that you are back at the top of the list with sound or narration.

Similar Games With More Accessibility Features for Navigation

If you want to play Night in the Woods, but it doesn't offer the Navigation accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Navigation accessibility:

The Good Life (7 Navigation Features)
Wytchwood (6 Navigation Features)
Lil’ Guardsman (5 Navigation Features)
Beacon Pines (4 Navigation Features)

Visual

We've documented 5 accessibility features for Visual in Night in the Woods which deal with how you can adjust the visuals to suit your needs, and offer additional information if you can't hear the game.

Contrast

Medium Contrast: Game uses generally well contrasting and bright visuals, or has a slider to make this the case.

Interactive Elements

Large Game Elements: Game characters and other elements are large and distinguishable. Enemies and player characters are at least 1/6 of the height of the screen. Or there is a zoom feature to make them larger.

Audio Cues for Visual Events

Audio Cues for Visual Events: Audio is provided to indicate visual events. Game events or progress highlighted by visual icons, effects or animations are also accompanied by audio to signify that progress. This is useful for blind players.

Menu Audio Cues: Navigating menus provide an audio cue for each selection.

Motion Sickness Friendly

Motion Sickness Friendly: Doesn't have 3D movement elements that may trigger motion sickness, like motion blur, depth of field and field-of-vision. Or includes the ability to disable motion blur, depth of field and field-of-vision effects.

Similar Games With More Accessibility Features for Visual

If you want to play Night in the Woods, but it doesn't offer the Visual accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Visual accessibility:

Neurodeck (9 Visual Features)
Frog's Princess (9 Visual Features)
Lil’ Guardsman (8 Visual Features)
I Was a Teenage Exocolonist (7 Visual Features)

Audio

We've documented 2 accessibility features for Audio in Night in the Woods which deal with how you can adjust the audio of the game and whether audio cues compensate for aspects of the game that are hard to see.

Adjustable Audio

Balance Audio Levels: Set music and game sound effects separately. This enables you to select your preference as well as ensure critical game sounds aren't obscured by other audio.

Play Without Hearing

Play Without Hearing: No audio cues are necessary to play the game well.

Similar Games With More Accessibility Features for Audio

If you want to play Night in the Woods, but it doesn't offer the Audio accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Audio accessibility:

Lil’ Guardsman (3 Audio Features)
Hi-Fi Rush (3 Audio Features)
Oxenfree II: Lost Signals (3 Audio Features)
Dodgeball Academia (3 Audio Features)

System Accessibility Settings

In addition to the accessibility features provided in the game, you can also use system-wide accessibility settings:

Android
Android has accessibility settings including ways to navigate and interact, although not all games support this.

Nintendo Switch
Nintendo Switch has some built-in features, including a lockable zoom, that can be used on all games.

PC
Windows has extensive accessibility features. Some, like colour correction, work with games. Lots of accessibility software can be used with PC games, from voice recognition to input device emulators.

PlayStation 4
PlayStation 4 has a range of accessibility settings. Some are system only, some work in games (invert colours and button mapping).

Xbox One
Xbox One has a system features, the excellent co-pilot share controls mode and adaptive controller support for all games.

iOS
iOS has a very extensive suite of accessibility settings including ways to navigate with voice and comprehensive screen reading, though most of the features don't work with games.

Read more about system accessibility settings.