It's December, the epic finish to an amazing year in gaming! While some savor the festive season, I'm here for a game-changer of another sort: the unstoppable momentum of accessibility in 2025!
This year didn’t deliver one seismic accessibility moment—oh no—it was packed with a steady stream of game-changing developments across beloved franchises and wildcard titles from both triple-A giants and indie innovators.
From my gaming chair, no single title reigned supreme in accessibility. Instead, 2025 became the year of meeting and exceeding what disabled gamers deserve from their new releases. It was a year of surprises and moments that flipped my critical perspective. Let's dive into some standout accessibility champs of 2025!
Runner-Up: and Roger
Beware: mild spoilers for and Roger ahead!
TearyHand Studio’s and Roger? Surprise, surprise! This unexpected gem clocks in at an hour-long, packing an emotional punch through its quick-time events. Journey through Sofia's poignant memories with her husband Roger as she battles dementia.
Don't be fooled by the seemingly mundane QTEs like brushing teeth or flipping through photos. With Sofia's dementia, every daily task transforms into a monumental challenge. Here's the twist: and Roger offers no accessibility features—no skipping, no automating those QTEs!
This feature void hit hard, especially during a scene where Sofia's push on Roger's hand demanded furious button-mashing—the struggle mirrored Sofia's own! And Roger might lack traditional accessibility, but it forced me to confront game experiences from a whole new angle.
This game hits emotional highs and lows that echo the genuine spectrum of disability. By wrapping the player's experience in Sofia's perspective, it opened my eyes to diverse narrative expressions. And Roger fiercely asserts itself as a must-play of 2025—and one of my all-time favorites.
Runner-Up: EA Sports FC 26
Confession time: sports games usually aren't my jam. Living in a sports-mad city hasn't quite converted me—yet EA Sports FC 26 scored an epic goal in accessibility.
Standard fare like customizable controls and subtitles are just the beginning. This game brought something fresh to the table, winning over even the most unlikely fans with its meticulous attention to accessibility.