Sony has a brand new gaming controller designed to be customizable for folks with disabilities.
Venture Leonardo, unveiled Wednesday at CES 2023 in Las Vegas, is the codename for a brand new PlayStation 5 accessibility package that Sony Interactive Leisure CEO Jim Ryan mentioned “will enable gamers with disabilities to play extra simply, extra comfortably and for longer intervals.”
Like Microsoft’s comparable Xbox Adaptive Controller, Venture Leonardo is designed to work proper out of the field. The round hub options swappable elements equivalent to an analog joystick and eight buttons, in addition to a collection of software program choices for PS5. It may be used as a standalone controller or paired with one other Venture Leonardo controller or DualSense wi-fi controller.
Sony mentioned it collaborated on the venture with accessibility teams AbleGamers, SpecialEffect and Stack Up to make sure it is extremely configurable to vary of gamers with challenges equivalent to restricted motor management, issue holding a controller for lengthy intervals and issue urgent small clusters of buttons precisely.
“Our crew examined over a dozen designs with accessibility specialists, on the lookout for approaches that might assist handle key challenges to efficient controller use,” Sony designer So Morimoto mentioned in a weblog submit. “We lastly settled on a ‘cut up controller’ design that enables close to free-form left/proper thumbstick repositionability, can be utilized with no need to be held, and options very versatile button and stick cap swapping. The controller may also flexibly settle for mixtures of accessibility equipment to create a novel aesthetic.”
Sony did not announce a value or when the controller could be out there.
