We've documented 21 accessibility features for Reigns, including Low Pressure, No Quick Reactions, No Button Combos, No Repeated Pressing and No Holds. Its accessibility is strongest in Controls and Visual but it also has features in Reading, Getting Started, Audio and Navigation 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.
Game Details
Release Date: 11/08/2016
Price: 50% off
Out Now: Amazon Fire, Android, Mac, PC, Switch and iOS
Skill Rating: 7+ year-olds
Players: 1
Genres: Adventure, Strategy (Narrative and Puzzle)
Accessibility: 21 features
Components: 2D Side-On, Hand-Made and Text
Developer: Devolver Digital (@DevolverDigital)
Costs: Purchase cost
Controls
We've documented 7 accessibility features for Controls in Reigns 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.
Mouse And Keyboard
Can play with the following:
Keyboard Alone: Can play with just the keyboard.
Mouse Alone: Can play with just the mouse/mouse-button/mouse wheel.
Touchscreen
Can play with the following. Additional gestures may be required for games played with a screenreader like VoiceOver.
One Motion Targeted: Can play with touchscreen, tap and swipe or hold gesture.
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 Reigns, but it doesn't offer the Controls accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Controls accessibility:
- Wildermyth (11 Controls Features)
- Gubbins (10 Controls Features)
- Barbearian (10 Controls Features)
- Bad North (10 Controls Features)
Difficulty
We haven’t documented any accessibility features for Difficulty in Reigns 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 Reigns, and offer accessibility features for Difficulty:
- Wildermyth (3 Difficulty Features)
- Monorail Stories (2 Difficulty Features)
- Card Shark (2 Difficulty Features)
- Black Book (2 Difficulty Features)
Getting Started
We've documented 2 accessibility features for Getting Started in Reigns 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.
Similar Games With More Accessibility Features for Getting Started
If you want to play Reigns, but it doesn't offer the Getting Started accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Getting Started accessibility:
- Gubbins (7 Getting Started Features)
- Card Shark (7 Getting Started Features)
- Monorail Stories (6 Getting Started Features)
- Barbearian (6 Getting Started Features)
Reading
We've documented 3 accessibility features for Reading in Reigns 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
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
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.
Similar Games With More Accessibility Features for Reading
If you want to play Reigns, but it doesn't offer the Reading accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Reading accessibility:
- Monorail Stories (7 Reading Features)
- Pentiment (6 Reading Features)
- Orwell's Animal Farm (6 Reading Features)
- The Kingdom of Istyald (6 Reading Features)
Navigation
We've documented 1 accessibility feature for Navigation in Reigns which deals 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.
Clarity
Large Clear Navigation: The in-game navigation and maps are clear to read. They offer large text and offer markers that are large and of high contrast. Where text or information is small, there are settings to zoom-in and increase visibility.
Similar Games With More Accessibility Features for Navigation
If you want to play Reigns, but it doesn't offer the Navigation accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Navigation accessibility:
- Thousand Threads (8 Navigation Features)
- Monorail Stories (5 Navigation Features)
- Wildermyth (5 Navigation Features)
- Suzerain (4 Navigation Features)
Visual
We've documented 6 accessibility features for Visual in Reigns 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.
Visual Distractions
No Flashes: No flashing strobe effects or you can disable them. This includes the absence of flashing from dramatic visual effects, explosions or weather effects like lightning.
No Screen Shake: No screen shake effect or it is included but it can be disabled. This includes the absence of screen shake for dramatic effect as well as to indicate hits on a target.
No Busy Backgrounds: No distracting backgrounds or you can make them static or blank. This includes the absence of other movement elements in the background that might distract or confuse the action. Where foreground contrast is high, this includes games with some movement in the background that doesn't make it overly difficult to distinguish what is happening.
Colour Options
Colour Blind Friendly: Game doesn’t rely on colour or can switch to colour blind friendly mode with double coding or similar way to avoid colour dependance.
Similar Games With More Accessibility Features for Visual
If you want to play Reigns, but it doesn't offer the Visual accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Visual accessibility:
- Knights of San Francisco (8 Visual Features)
- Gubbins (7 Visual Features)
- Majotori (7 Visual Features)
- A Case of Distrust (7 Visual Features)
Audio
We've documented 2 accessibility features for Audio in Reigns 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 Reigns, but it doesn't offer the Audio accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Audio accessibility:
- Wildermyth (3 Audio Features)
- The Kingdom of Istyald (3 Audio Features)
- Thousand Threads (3 Audio Features)
- Children of Morta (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.
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.
Accessibility Report supported by VSC Rating Board, PlayabilityInitiative and accessibility contributors Jonah Monaghan