SpecialEffect's accessible GameBase

The people at Apple Industrial Design are a clever bunch. Through the thin, shiny, clean-lined design of their devices, year on year they have people clamouring to buy, at a premium, an incremental improvement over what they released just a few short months before. What’s even more remarkable is how they convince the masses to buy what is essentially a larger version of an iPod, instead of more practical and powerful laptops or notebooks. [editor: read on... all will become clear]

Xbox 360 – SpiderMonk Entertainment/ SouthPeak Interactive

This is a falling block game that can be played comfortably with one hand. Apart from navigating the menus, you don’t need use of the anolog sticks or d-pad (it is worth noting however, that there’s only one configuration of buttons and no option to re-map).

The game-play essentially consists of guiding different coloured shapes through a series of platforms, by using the left and right bumper buttons to rotate the platforms so the shapes can fit through their corresponding holes. A star won’t fit through a circle hole just like a circle won’t fit through a star shaped hole.

Title:
The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim (Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda)

Tested On: XBox 360

Subtitles Available? Yes

Full Captions Available? No

Other Notable Aids:

Title: The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim (Bethesda Game Studios/Bethesda)

Tested On: XBox 360.

Full Re-mapping: Yes-full button remap available

Stick Layout Options: None

Stick Sensitivity Options: 11 levels of sensitivity

Look type: Normal and inverted are available (vertical).

Xbox 360/PS3 - EA Sports

As fans start to come to terms that this won't be their teams 'season,' and the initial (unfounded) expectations slowly die down,  it is just about the right time for the latest incarnation of EA's FIFA to let us suspend our disbelief a little while longer and pretend that our boy's can indeed beat Man U away, whilst waiting for news on that latest tweaked transfer offer for a certain Barcelona number 10.

As ever, FIFA is more than happy to help you achieve your club's virtual targets with it's ever increasing wealth of customisable gameplay options.

Standard settings including the excellant difficulty and speed settings remain, as does the assisted/manual option for passing, cross shot etc Controller wise, the two-button control option which reduces essential controls to just the left thumbstick and two face buttons. Button re-mapping is featured for the standard and alternative layout, but not the two button mode.

Xbox 360/PS3 (tested on XBox 360) - Codemasters

With a strong release in the game accessibility stakes in the form of Dirt 3 earlier in the year, expectations were high for Codemaster's latest Formula 1 installment; F1 2011.

F1 2010 itself had many useful driving assist features to make F1 racing accessible to a wide range of players and F1 2011 retains them with aids such as Braking Assist (which brakes automatically at corners), traction control and dynamic racing line options making a welcome reappearence. Sensitivity settings for steering which could be helpful for some are not included in the options, neither is the 'auto steer' assist featured in Dirt 3, which acted like a magnet to help keep your car near the racing line.

Full button and control stick (including d-pad) re-mapping is again available allowing for personalised control layouts.

I am probably going to have a hard time trying to describe Child of Eden but here I go...

C of E comes from Tetsuya Mizaguchi the designer behind Sega Rally and Rez. The game-play is similar to that of Rez, if you haven’t played Rez before the free trial game is on Xbox Live. This game is a first person, on-rails shooter. You control the aiming reticule and have the ability to move the screen about, but the game always takes you in the direction it wants you to go.