Gears 5 accessibility features

Feature check at a glance

Of the ten features we track, the official information for Gears 5 documents 7 in full and 2 in part.

• SubtitlesYes
• Subtitle size optionsYes
• Colour-blind modesYes
• Full control remappingYes
• Hold-to-toggle optionsYes
• Difficulty and assist optionsYes
• Audio cues for navigationPartly
• Text-to-speech or menu narrationYes
• Motion and camera-shake reductionPartly
• High-contrast modeNot stated

Notes on each feature

• Subtitles: Speaker names, radio indication and a contrast backplate.
• Subtitle size options: Adjustable subtitle size and UI font size.
• Colour-blind modes: Protanopia, deuteranopia and tritanopia modes for UI and gameplay.
• Full control remapping: Full controller remapping; left-handed sticks and triggers; face-trigger scheme.
• Hold-to-toggle options: Aim toggle; hold a button instead of rapid tapping.
• Difficulty and assist options: Difficulty levels and Target Lock auto-aim (availability depends on mode and difficulty).
• Audio cues for navigation: Fabricator ping in Horde and navigation ping in Escape mode only.
• Text-to-speech or menu narration: Narrator for menus and UI; chat text-to-speech and speech-to-text.
• Motion and camera-shake reduction: Camera shake toggle, limited to certain difficulties per mode.
• High-contrast mode: Not described in the official sources we checked.

Subtitles that name the speaker and flag the radio

The Coalition rebuilt subtitles for Gears 5. They sit on a backplate for contrast, identify every speaker by name and indicate when a voice is coming over the radio. Subtitle size can be changed, UI text can be scaled up or down, and the time text chat stays on screen is adjustable.

For multiplayer, text-to-speech reads game chat aloud and speech-to-text shows voice chat as text, so a Deaf player or a player who does not speak can still communicate with a squad. Narrator reads menus and UI at three coverage levels: Full, Partial or None. These options line up with the recommendations in our hearing guide.

Expanded audio options give separate volume sliders for master, music, effects, dialogue, cinematics and environment. Raising dialogue and lowering effects is a simple way to make speech clearer for players with mild hearing loss, before turning to subtitles.

Single-stick movement and face-button aiming

The motor options are extensive for a cover shooter. Sticks and triggers can be swapped for left-handed play, and sticks can also swap only while aimed. Single Stick Movement combines movement and rotation on one stick, and the Face Trigger Control Scheme moves aiming and shooting onto the face buttons for players who cannot use the triggers comfortably.

Aim can be set to toggle instead of hold, button-tap challenges can be completed by holding a button instead, and guns can reload automatically when empty. Controller vibration can be turned off. Xbox's store listing also mentions full Xbox Adaptive Controller support; see our Adaptive Controller guide.

Invert options are available on both the X and Y axes. Together with the face trigger scheme and single-stick movement, this gives a wide range of ways to reach the same actions, which is helpful when building a layout around an adaptive controller or a set of switches.

Settings that depend on mode and difficulty

Some Gears 5 options are not available everywhere. According to the publisher, Target Lock, which auto-aims the reticle while you aim down sights, is available at Beginner to Advanced difficulty in Horde, Escape and Campaign. The camera shake toggle works in Campaign at Beginner, and in Horde and Escape from Beginner to Advanced. If these are important, choose the difficulty with that in mind.

Audio cues are similarly mode-specific: a Fabricator ping helps players find the Fabricator in Horde, and a navigation ping highlights the exit path in Escape. Colour blindness modes cover protanopia, deuteranopia and tritanopia for UI and navigation, and a gore toggle removes blood splatter and executions. We found no high contrast mode in the official list. The PEGI 18 rating covers bad language and violence.

If a player relies on Target Lock or wants camera shake off in Campaign, keep in mind that both are tied to the lower difficulty; raising the difficulty later may switch those options off.

Choosing a Gears 5 mode that suits the player

Because some assists depend on mode and difficulty, Gears 5 rewards a little planning. Campaign at Beginner gives access to both Target Lock and the camera shake toggle. Horde and Escape offer both across Beginner to Advanced, and add their own audio pings, which makes them viable for players who rely on sound to find their way.

A second consideration is communication. Online modes involve voice chat, and the text-to-speech and speech-to-text options let a player who cannot hear or speak take part. A mature content toggle removes profanity from the campaign, and a text chat profanity filter is available, though the PEGI 18 rating still reflects the game's violence.

The Xbox Store lists eight accessibility features for Gears 5 and mentions full controller remapping, single stick movement, Adaptive Controller support and narrated menus. The publisher's page lists Xbox One and Windows 10 versions; the store listing also shows Xbox Series X|S and Xbox Cloud Gaming. Our motor guide covers how single-stick schemes can work with switches.