Game subscriptions like Xbox Game Pass make gaming more accessible for disabled gamers

Just a heads up, if you buy something through our links, we may get a small share of the sale. It’s one of the ways we keep the lights on here. Click here for more.

Gaming subscription services like Xbox Game Pass and PlayStation Now are gaining popularity in a world where subscriptions are everywhere. Digital streaming subscription services like Netflix and Disney+ have become an integral part of the entertainment industry, especially since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and the gaming industry seems to be following suit.

Microsoft’s premier gaming subscription service, Xbox Game Pass has been around for a few years now and is full of old and new titles that subscribers to the service can try out for as long as the games are on the platform. The service is available on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC, and Android. Microsoft is constantly adding and removing titles from the service, and the company has even released many games on Game Pass as soon as they launch.

PlayStation’s equivalent to Game Pass is called PlayStation Now. PlayStation Now is a little different, offering only titles from older consoles, but it has a huge, and still growing, library of games available. The service is available on PS5, PS4, and PC and offers access to over 700 titles from PS4, PS3, and PS2. However, Sony is working on its own subscription service to rival Xbox Game Pass.

Subscriptions make gaming more accessible for everybody

These subscription services are great for everybody. Not only can users stream games to multiple devices using the services, but these subscriptions also allow players to try a multitude of games all for one price instead of having to pay full price for each game. This is where these services shine the most.

For just about every gamer out there, being able to try out a multitude of games for a relatively affordable flat fee (Xbox Game Pass is around $15 a month and PlayStation Now is $60 a year) is great, but this holds true even more for disabled gamers who may not know if a game even has accessibility options that meet their needs.

For some gamers, it is imperative that a game have certain accessibility features, such as subtitles, colorblind mode, or customizable controls to even be playable. There’s not much worse than getting excited and buying a new game just to find out that the game is unplayable. While accessibility has certainly become more of a priority in the gaming industry, unfortunately, there are still some titles out there that are going to be unplayable by some people. This is where these subscription services can be really beneficial.

In addition to giving gamers unlimited access to a large library of games, gaming subscription services can give disabled gamers more financial security in the gaming world. Though the services are not necessarily cheap, the peace of mind that comes with them outweighs the costs.

Refund rules aren’t necessarily very friendly and are different depending on the platform. For example, per Steam rules, a game must be returned within two weeks of purchase and have less than two hours of playtime in order to receive a full refund. Sometimes a game may seem completely playable until after that time is up, meaning the user would have to eat the cost and be left with an unplayable game. Subscription services eliminate that issue altogether, making sure users won’t have to pay for something they cannot use.

More accessible gaming is a win for everybody

Game subscription services have finally become big in the gaming world, and their presence is a win for everybody. Giving gamers the option to play a vast library of games while giving them financial peace of mind is a great thing. Hopefully the accessibility movement in the gaming world will continue, and more disabled gamers are able to experience the wonders of gaming in the future.

Have any thoughts on this? Let us know down below in the comments or carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• Sony is so focused on huge hits like The Last of Us that some developers are quitting
• Deathloop is the latest AAA video game to see a COVID-19 related delay
• Abandoned, a PS5 horror title, is not a game from Hideo Kojima, regardless of what people think
• Twitch can now ban you for things that don’t even happen on Twitch

Just a heads up, if you buy something through our links, we may get a small share of the sale. It’s one of the ways we keep the lights on here. Click here for more.