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Xbox Adaptive Controller
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Xbox Adaptive Controller
The Xbox Adaptive Controller (XAC) is a video game controller designed by Microsoft for Windows PCs and the Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S video game consoles. The controller was designed for people with disabilities to help make user input for video games more accessible.
According to Phil Spencer, Microsoft had started to take more interest in accessibility features for gaming following the Kinect motion sensing input device first introduced in 2010. While it was successful on the Xbox 360, the Xbox One version, released in 2013, failed to make as strong as an impression, and Microsoft eventually dropped Kinect for gaming areas, though has continued to use its technology in more productivity-related applications. However, the company was contacted by parents of disabled or impaired children that positively commented on the ability of the Kinect to help their children enjoy video games without need of a traditional controller.
Matt Hite, an engineer for Microsoft, spotted a custom controller made by Warfighter Engaged on Twitter in 2014; Warfighter Engaged is a nonprofit started by Ken Jones in 2012 that provides gaming devices to injured veterans. Hite contacted Jones and in 2015, a team of engineers at Microsoft's Xbox and gaming division began working on a prototype controller to help improve accessibility for video game input. Initially, the team developed a controller that used the Kinect motion-sensing technology to track the player's gestures and movements and translate them to controller inputs.
Although the motion-tracking controller was not further developed, it was recognized by corporate leadership and inspired another employee team later that year to build a controller attachment with interfaces that allowed non-traditional input devices for gamers who had difficulty using the standard controller. In 2016, Microsoft released the Copilot feature, which linked two controllers to act in tandem as if it were a single controller, allowing one gamer to assist another; this further built momentum for accessibility features for gaming. The prototype device/input hub was designed and refined during several internal hackathon events where they built a controller that could use third-party accessories familiar to disabled gamers. In 2017, Microsoft decided to turn the prototype into a product and began collaborating with accessory manufacturers and nonprofit groups in the gaming accessibility field such as SpecialEffect, Warfighter Engaged, and The AbleGamers Foundation. The gaming division also collaborated with a handicapped gamer known as Randy "N0M4D" Fitzgerald.
The Xbox Adaptive Controller was announced in May 2018. The controller was released with a retail price of US$99.99 on September 4, 2018. The co-creator of the XAC, Bryce Johnson, emphasized the importance of making the controller affordable: "We did a lot of homework around other assistive technologies and were upset by how much they could be ... [we] made deliberate choices to make sure we kept [the price under $100]."
In November 2018, Microsoft released a holiday-themed television commercial entitled "Reindeer Games" to promote the controller, featuring a group of children racing to another child's home to witness him play a game with the Adaptive Controller. The commercial starred Owen Sirmons, a 9-year-old child with Escobar syndrome. A second commercial entitled "We All Win" was broadcast during Super Bowl LIII, which featured testimonials from Owen and his family on the positive impact of the device.
Microsoft's electronic voting system ElectionGuard includes an Xbox Adaptive Controller in its base alongside its touchscreen.
The Xbox Adaptive Controller has a slim rectangular frame, measuring 292 mm × 130 mm × 23 mm (11.50 in × 5.12 in × 0.91 in) (L×W×H); the controller alone weighs 552 g (19.5 oz). The face of the controller has two large, domed buttons that can be mapped to any function using the Xbox Accessories app; these are each 4 in (100 mm) in diameter and their default mapping is to the A (left, closer to D-pad) and B (right) face buttons on a standard controller. Each of the two large dome buttons make a different sound when depressed to help players distinguish between them. The face also includes a large D-pad, menu button, view button, and the Xbox home button that are featured on a standard Xbox Wireless Controller. In addition, a button allows the player to select one of three saved profiles.
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Xbox Adaptive Controller
The Xbox Adaptive Controller (XAC) is a video game controller designed by Microsoft for Windows PCs and the Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S video game consoles. The controller was designed for people with disabilities to help make user input for video games more accessible.
According to Phil Spencer, Microsoft had started to take more interest in accessibility features for gaming following the Kinect motion sensing input device first introduced in 2010. While it was successful on the Xbox 360, the Xbox One version, released in 2013, failed to make as strong as an impression, and Microsoft eventually dropped Kinect for gaming areas, though has continued to use its technology in more productivity-related applications. However, the company was contacted by parents of disabled or impaired children that positively commented on the ability of the Kinect to help their children enjoy video games without need of a traditional controller.
Matt Hite, an engineer for Microsoft, spotted a custom controller made by Warfighter Engaged on Twitter in 2014; Warfighter Engaged is a nonprofit started by Ken Jones in 2012 that provides gaming devices to injured veterans. Hite contacted Jones and in 2015, a team of engineers at Microsoft's Xbox and gaming division began working on a prototype controller to help improve accessibility for video game input. Initially, the team developed a controller that used the Kinect motion-sensing technology to track the player's gestures and movements and translate them to controller inputs.
Although the motion-tracking controller was not further developed, it was recognized by corporate leadership and inspired another employee team later that year to build a controller attachment with interfaces that allowed non-traditional input devices for gamers who had difficulty using the standard controller. In 2016, Microsoft released the Copilot feature, which linked two controllers to act in tandem as if it were a single controller, allowing one gamer to assist another; this further built momentum for accessibility features for gaming. The prototype device/input hub was designed and refined during several internal hackathon events where they built a controller that could use third-party accessories familiar to disabled gamers. In 2017, Microsoft decided to turn the prototype into a product and began collaborating with accessory manufacturers and nonprofit groups in the gaming accessibility field such as SpecialEffect, Warfighter Engaged, and The AbleGamers Foundation. The gaming division also collaborated with a handicapped gamer known as Randy "N0M4D" Fitzgerald.
The Xbox Adaptive Controller was announced in May 2018. The controller was released with a retail price of US$99.99 on September 4, 2018. The co-creator of the XAC, Bryce Johnson, emphasized the importance of making the controller affordable: "We did a lot of homework around other assistive technologies and were upset by how much they could be ... [we] made deliberate choices to make sure we kept [the price under $100]."
In November 2018, Microsoft released a holiday-themed television commercial entitled "Reindeer Games" to promote the controller, featuring a group of children racing to another child's home to witness him play a game with the Adaptive Controller. The commercial starred Owen Sirmons, a 9-year-old child with Escobar syndrome. A second commercial entitled "We All Win" was broadcast during Super Bowl LIII, which featured testimonials from Owen and his family on the positive impact of the device.
Microsoft's electronic voting system ElectionGuard includes an Xbox Adaptive Controller in its base alongside its touchscreen.
The Xbox Adaptive Controller has a slim rectangular frame, measuring 292 mm × 130 mm × 23 mm (11.50 in × 5.12 in × 0.91 in) (L×W×H); the controller alone weighs 552 g (19.5 oz). The face of the controller has two large, domed buttons that can be mapped to any function using the Xbox Accessories app; these are each 4 in (100 mm) in diameter and their default mapping is to the A (left, closer to D-pad) and B (right) face buttons on a standard controller. Each of the two large dome buttons make a different sound when depressed to help players distinguish between them. The face also includes a large D-pad, menu button, view button, and the Xbox home button that are featured on a standard Xbox Wireless Controller. In addition, a button allows the player to select one of three saved profiles.
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