A more accessible PS5 controller

Project Leonardo. © Sony Interactive Entertainment.

At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Sony pulled the curtain back on Project Leonardo, a PlayStation 5 controller designed to meet the needs of players with physical disabilities. Whereas Microsoft started producing its Xbox Adaptive controller in 2018, PlayStation’s only competing option was the inadequate DualSense. Developed “with key contributions from accessibility experts, community members, and game developers”, the Leonardo controller consists of a single arcade-style joystick and a control ring of eight large, white keys surrounding a massive circular input surface. The keys are customizable, and the device can lie flat without needing to be held. Players will be able to connect a series of existing external accessibility accessories to the four standard 3.5 mm AUX ports. There’s just one thing: this device doesn’t actually exist. Sony says that Project Leonardo is still a work in progress, and is sharing neither release date nor price. Which leaves us waiting, or resorting to the Xbox when patience wears thin.

⇨ YouTube, “Introducing Project Leonardo for PlayStation 5: Perspectives from Accessibility Experts | PS5”

⇨ Ars Technica, Kyle Orland, “Sony announces new controller aimed at gamers with disabilities.”

2023-01-05