Madden NFL 17 Adds Colorblind Filter and Other Accessibility Options

Electronic Arts is the latest developer to announce accessibility options for its upcoming title, Madden NFL 17. Over on its website, the company cited an example of a player with vision problems who was unable to play a game in the high-profile American football franchise, and said that accessibility options will be Madden NFL's "best new feature yet."

Here are the options that made it in:

Enlarge On-Field Graphics

First up is enlarging on field graphics. Any in-world icon that is prompting user interaction (pass, catch, tackle battle, etc.) will be about twice as big. Augmented UI banners will gracefully enlarge, but will still be prevented from filling too much of the screen. The kick meter is larger and it pins itself to the screen, instead of being placed in the world. These changes have been tested by internal Madden NFL developers that also have vision issues, such as macular degeneration.

Colorblind Support

We estimate that over half a million current Madden NFL users are colorblind*. Bright primary colors are used all over Madden NFL, so there were issues with many menus and on-field art. Filters seemed to be a great way to go, as they cover the entire game, including all menus. Red, green, and blue weak colorblindness are all supported and tested, with great results.

Brightness and Contrast Controls

Many games already support brightness and contrast controls, and it’s time Madden NFL upped its game. There are 5 levels of brightness and 5 levels of contrast. There's much more about the settings, including where to find them when Madden NFL 17 launches Aug. 23 on PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One.