Sony Interactive Entertainment has now revealed its new accessibility controller for the PS5, Project Leonardo.
Project Leonardo Makes a Flashy Entrance!
Project Leonardo was showcased at the recently concluded CES. According to a recent blog post, it was developed with key contributions from accessibility experts, community members, and game developers. Project Leonardo is currently a codename for its upcoming highly customizable controller kit to help many players with disabilities. It will make it easier, and more comfortable to play games with this awesome controller.
Organizations like Ablegamers, SpecialEffects, and Stack Up have joined to contribute to the design of this new customizable controller. It works with various third-party accessibility accessories and can easily integrate with the PS5 console.
Project Leonardo will be able to address the challenges that disabled players face when playing games like difficulty holding a controller for long periods, having trouble pressing groups of buttons or triggers, or having problems positioning fingers and thumbs like on a standard controller. This new controller aims to erase those issues.
Key Features
Highly Customizable Controller
(Hardware side) – Project Leonardo offers a lot of swappable components which include various types of analog stick caps and buttons in different shapes and sizes. They can make their own control layouts with an adjustable analog stick distance for easy access.
(Software side) – On the PS5 console, players will be able to choose various options that they can customize for their awesome play experience. They can map their buttons to their own liking and can even program one function to many buttons if they want. They can even have two functions on one button. They can also store their program button settings on control profiles for easy switching. Note that there are only three control profiles that can be stored and accessed by players from their PS5.
Easily Works Together with Other devices and Accessibility Accessories
Project Leonardo will work with other devices. Two Project Leonardo controllers and one DualSense wireless controller can be used together as one virtual controller if they want, but that would be the limit. Players with disabilities can use the Project Leonardo controllers while a relative can help out in gameplay with their own DualSense controller. They can be turned on or off at any time for convenience.
For support, this new controller can be expanded via four 3.5mm AUX ports. It can handle a variety of external switches and third-party accessibility accessories. They can easily integrate specialty switches, buttons, or analog sticks.
Design is Flexible
Project Leonardo‘s analog sticks can be repositioned as close together or as far apart as they like. It lies flat and does not need to be held by hand, which makes it easier to put on tabletops or a wheelchair tray.
When Can We Expect Project Leonardo to Launch?
Project Leonardo is currently in development and will continue to improve features with the help of feedback from the gaming community. No specific release date has been announced yet.