MADRID, Dec. 2 (Portaltic/EP) –
Electronic Arts (EA) has added six new patents at your initiative Commitment to player accessibility consisting of features such as a new machine learning system to improve the experience or automatic adaptations for color blindness.
The objective of this initiative, which the video game development company has been carrying out since 2021, is to provide other companies of the industry and developers the free access to patents and technologies related to accessibility, so that it reduce existing barriers in video games for people with some type of disability.
In this sense, as explained by EA, one of the new patents consists of a machine learning system that analyzes play style and is able to adjust controller settings to improve player experience and performance, based on the skills and tendencies of the user.
These settings have to be accepted by the player, but this will allow players with disabilities to discover the accessibility settings that best suit their needs.
Another of the patents highlighted by the company is a system diagnosis that automatically identifies the condition of color blindness of the player. To do this, it uses objects from the game itself through which it recognizes color blindness and adjusts the accessibility settings of the game according to the corresponding needs.
On the other hand, EA has also shared the patent of a technology that uses haptic feedback sequences to communicate to a player certain aspects that occur in the video game. That is, through vibration signals, the content that appears on the screen such as menu options, game characters or how to select each element is communicated.
Following this line, the commitment also includes technologies that focus on using the voice to interact with video games. The devices that would be controlled by voice would only have to be authenticated and the user could choose options or direct the video game characters, for example.
Related to this system, players will also be able to determine custom voice expressions for control the in-game actions of non-playable characters (NPC), thanks to one of these new patents.
Also, EA has added a technology already used in the FIFA video game Mobile, and which provides players with a virtual joystick that moves based on the position of the player’s thumb on a touch screen.
In this way, players will continue to use the control pad even if their fingers move away from their starting position, which is very useful if, for example, a player has a condition that affects their motor skills.
Finally, Electronic Arts has also reported a tool that it is working on under the name Fonttik. It is a function that makes it easier to read the text of video games by players with visual impairments.
The way Fonttik works would be to identify the text on the screen automatically and determine if that text has a correct size as well as a contrast ratio that is easy to view.
In this regard, the Electronic Arts Chief Experience Officer Chris Bruzzohas underlined the importance of inclusion for EA. “Everyone at EA believes that nothing should come between our players and our shared love of gaming, so we’re delighted to continue adding pioneering accessibility solutions.”
Thus, he has stated that if his teams devise a system that can help reduce or even eliminate accessibility barriers, they do not hesitate to “share it with the world” for others to use. “East exchange of ideas and innovation for the good of our gaming family is the core of our Accessibility Patent Commitment,” said Bruzzo.
In total EA has published up to eleven patents of technologies to share with other companies and video game developers. Among these functions, the Apex Legends Ping System which was shared last year and which allows players to communicate via controller inputs.
