We've documented 15 accessibility features for Odallus: The Dark Call, including Low Pressure, Play Without Hearing, Colour Blind Friendly, Speaker Indicator and Fully Subtitled (Or No Speech). Its accessibility is strongest in Controls and Reading but it also has features in Visual, Navigation, Getting Started 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.
Our accessibility examiner, Ben Kendall, first checked Odallus: The Dark Call accessibility 13 months ago.
Accessibility Notes
Text is fairly readable; all high in contrast and quite large, although not 1/20th the height of the screen. Although the game generally has good contrast, some elements and backgrounds can make distinguishing objects and characters difficult. There are sometimes backgrounds that can move in distracting ways; these cannot be disabled.
When starting the game on PC, the settings are in the game's launcher, where you need to use a mouse to navigate through the options, but the game itself uses only the keyboard.
There is no map, and many of the game's areas are very expansive and easy to get lost in, making navigation to the objective areas occasionally non-trivial.
You can disable, but not adjust granularly, both sound effects and music.
Game Details
Release Date: 15/07/2015, updated in 2020
Out Now: PC, PS4, Switch and Xbox One
Skill Rating: 13+ year-olds
Players: 1
Genres: Fighting, Platform (Action, Adventure, Narrative, Puzzle and Traversal)
Accessibility: 15 features
Components: 2D Side-On and Pixels
Developer: Joy Masher (@JoyMasher)
Costs: Purchase cost
Controls
We've documented 4 accessibility features for Controls in Odallus: The Dark Call 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.
Remap Controls
Can customise the controls for the game as follows:
Select Preset Controller Mappings: You can select preset button layouts from options provided by the developer.
Remap Mouse and Keyboard: Can remap mouse and keyboard key bindings, on systems that support these controls.
Similar Games With More Accessibility Features for Controls
If you want to play Odallus: The Dark Call, but it doesn't offer the Controls accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Controls accessibility:
- Greak: Memories of Azur (10 Controls Features)
- Ori and the Will of the Wisps (9 Controls Features)
- Celeste (9 Controls Features)
- Minishoot Adventures (8 Controls Features)
Difficulty
We haven’t documented any accessibility features for Difficulty in Odallus: The Dark Call 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 Odallus: The Dark Call, and offer accessibility features for Difficulty:
- Mr Sun's Hatbox (2 Difficulty Features)
- Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown (2 Difficulty Features)
- Minishoot Adventures (2 Difficulty Features)
- Kick Bot (2 Difficulty Features)
Getting Started
We've documented 1 accessibility feature for Getting Started in Odallus: The Dark Call which deals 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.
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 Odallus: The Dark Call, but it doesn't offer the Getting Started accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Getting Started accessibility:
- Celeste (7 Getting Started Features)
- Mr Sun's Hatbox (6 Getting Started Features)
- Minishoot Adventures (5 Getting Started Features)
- Frogue (5 Getting Started Features)
Reading
We've documented 4 accessibility features for Reading in Odallus: The Dark Call 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.
Simple Minimal Reading: Minimal reading is required. The quantity and complexity of reading are at a level that a primary/elementary student (9-year-old) could understand.
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.
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 Odallus: The Dark Call, but it doesn't offer the Reading accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Reading accessibility:
- Adventures of Pip (6 Reading Features)
- Metroid Dread (6 Reading Features)
- Greak: Memories of Azur (6 Reading Features)
- Rog & Roll (6 Reading Features)
Navigation
We've documented 2 accessibility features for Navigation in Odallus: The Dark Call 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
Digital Menu Navigation: Menu choices with Gamepad can be made without using an analogue stick to guide a cursor to a selection. For example, using D-Pad, buttons or the Stick to change menu selection in a single action.
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 Odallus: The Dark Call, but it doesn't offer the Navigation accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Navigation accessibility:
- Greak: Memories of Azur (6 Navigation Features)
- Selini (4 Navigation Features)
- Metroid Dread (4 Navigation Features)
- Cyber Shadow (4 Navigation Features)
Visual
We've documented 3 accessibility features for Visual in Odallus: The Dark Call which deal with how you can adjust the visuals to suit your needs, and offer additional information if you can't hear the game.
Visual Distractions
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.
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.
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 Odallus: The Dark Call, but it doesn't offer the Visual accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Visual accessibility:
- Cyber Shadow (7 Visual Features)
- Minishoot Adventures (6 Visual Features)
- Super Meat Boy (5 Visual Features)
- Mr Sun's Hatbox (5 Visual Features)
Audio
We've documented 1 accessibility feature for Audio in Odallus: The Dark Call which deals 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.
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 Odallus: The Dark Call, but it doesn't offer the Audio accessibility features you require, these similar games extend the Audio accessibility:
- Kick Bot (3 Audio Features)
- Dead Cells (3 Audio Features)
- Garlic (2 Audio Features)
- Super Meat Boy (2 Audio Features)
System Accessibility Settings
In addition to the accessibility features provided in the game, you can also use system-wide accessibility settings:
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.
Read more about system accessibility settings.
Accessibility Report supported by VSC Rating Board, PlayabilityInitiative and accessibility contributors Ben Kendall