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Windows Central

Technology

Cole Martin

Black Ops 6 continues Call of Duty's commitment to accessibility with new features

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Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 accessibility settings at launch.

What you need to know

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, developed by Treyarch Studios and published by Activision, is set to launch on October 25.
In a blog post, the Call of Duty team shared details on new accessibility features coming to Call of Duty: Black Ops 6.
The new accessibility features include intelligent movements, high contrast visuals, and arachnophobia settings.

When it comes to Call of Duty, it may not be people's go-to for an accessible game. However, the franchise—known for high-octane and competitive gameplay—has been and continues to be committed to accessibility. Activision reports that the accessibility settings menu is accessed by nearly half of the game's player base. The Call of Duty team shared a new blog post ahead of the release of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 that detailed the accessibility features players can expect to find in the latest title on launch.

Asymmetrical Hearing Settings in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6. (Image credit: Activision)

Black Ops 6 will be the first Call of Duty title to introduce Asymmetrical Hearing Compensation settings, an option that allows players with asymmetrical hearing loss to create a custom audio profile with unique settings for each ear. This feature can be further improved on with the existing audio settings, which were detailed in a recent announcement about Black Ops 6's audio improvements. This includes the option to reduce the tinnitus sound and to adjust the audio from Concussion and Flash grenades.

High Contrast Mode, which was previously introduced in Modern Warfare 3's accessibility settings, has been improved for Black Ops 6 and expanded to Zombies mode in addition to Black Ops 6's campaign. The mode's settings will now allow players to customize the color outlines of allies and enemies alike, which will improve accessibility to users who need High Contrast Mode but may also be impacted by color blindness or other vision impairments. A new "Dark Background" setting has also been introduced.

Intelligent Movement offers settings to improve accessibility by limiting the number of button presses players need to maneuver with Omnimovement. (Image credit: Activision)

While there's ample excitement around Call of Duty: Black Ops 6's new Omnimovement, which provides players the ability to slide or dive in any direction, there is a noticeable learning curve to using it. To help, Black Ops 6 has introduced Intelligent Movement, a new series of settings that allows players to customize four elements of Operator movement. This includes Sprint Assist, Mantle Assist, Crouch Assist, and Corner Slice. With new Intelligent Movement settings, players can reduce required inputs, which is ideal for minimizing fatigue and pain for those with physical limitations that may be aggravated by repeated button presses. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 is the first in the franchise to allow players to customize the game's HUD Settings with a variety of layout presets. Players can further customize their HUD with color adjustment options, reducing visual clutter and improving the visibility of important elements.

Arachnophobia Settings in Black Ops 6. (Image credit: Activision)

Black Ops 6's Zombies mode is also getting some mode-specific accessibility features this year. Arachnophobia Settings have also been introduced to minimize the spider-like appearance of Black Ops 6's new Zombies variant. Players in Solo matches will also be able to Pause and Save while in Zombies, as well as load into a previous game with full health.

Players who utilize the Xbox Adaptive Controller or the Sony Access Controller will be able to utilize their devices in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 immediately at launch. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 launches on October 5, with players gaining access at midnight for those in the Eastern Time Zone. If you're trying to pass the time, we have 7 tips on what to do while you wait for Black Ops 6 to launch.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 releases October 25 (at midnight for the East Coast. It's not that much longer, guys. C'mon!) on Xbox, PlayStation, and PC via Steam, Battle.net, and the Microsoft Store. Black Ops 6 will also be available on select Xbox Game Pass plans and via cloud streaming from NVIDIA GeForce NOW and Xbox Cloud Gaming. Today is the final day to preorder and receive preorder benefits.