Where “BC2” shines in accessibility is in its controller configuration options. It begins by dividing stick and button layouts, offering four options for each and a total of 16 possible combinations. It then offers three separate categories for soldier, land and air configurations, each with their own unique settings, resulting in a vast number of total controller layout options. While allowing players to remap their controllers is still the best solution for accessibility, EA and Dice have at least given players a significant number of options which is at least a step in a more accessible direction.

However, much like “MW2,” “BC2” makes extensive use of nearly every button, bumper, trigger and stick. While it is possible for people who only have use of one hand to play these games, it is likely to be a very difficult and frustrating experience. Likewise, players with concerns related to reaction times or precision are likely to be frustrated. Precision is important and you will engage in sniping, driving a vehicle in a semi-timed event (there isn’t a clock, but if you take too long, the mission will restart), firing weapons from moving vehicles at moving targets and so on. Keep in mind that this game is very similar in timing and in many activity types to “MW” and “MW2,” so players who have enjoyed those games shouldn’t experience a problem.

Unfortunately, that is about the only aspect of the game that merits any sort of recognition for even attempting to be accessible.

Sub-titles appear enabled by default, but they’re small and hard to read. They don’t identify the speaker, nor are sound effects and ambient noise sub-titled. Furthermore, the characters talk to each other during the game – the conversations aren’t about anything important, but they create an atmosphere of camaraderie and help flesh out the computer-controlled allies as people – and those talks don’t appear to be sub-titled either. Finally, and perhaps most frustrating, it seems that pausing the game during a cut-scene – which is sub-titled – will remove the sub-titles when you resume play.

The game also presents issues for the color-blind. While “BC” used a numeric value to indicate health and provided players with an auto-injector to heal themselves, “BC2” uses red blood spatter in combat to indicate health, much like “MW2” does. During a sequence when a player must run from house to house during a blizzard, that spatter then becomes a mass of white which begins to block out peripheral vision which may create problems for color-blind gamers because some combat may occur during those times and the difference between freezing and combat spatter may be difficult to distinguish. Like “MW2,” some weapons in “BC2” make use of red-dot sights, potentially presenting challenges for color-blind players when sighting against certain backgrounds. The heads-up display (HUD) is another concern, because it often uses a green marker to identify a destination against a white background. Furthermore, even with corrected vision, it can be difficult to read the HUD correctly.

All of these accessibility problems are truly a shame, because there is a lot to appreciate about “BC2” as a game – both in its own gameplay and in its commentary about other games in the genre. However, while there’s a lot to enjoy, a large amount of it – instead of being challenging – might simply frustrate gamers with accessibility concerns. In short, this is a game for gamers with accessibility concerns to rent and try, if even that.

Accessibility Review Break Down

Precision: You will need a significant amount of precision to play this game. Areas for concern include sniping enemies at long range, semi-timed events involving driving vehicles, sneaking up behind enemies and using your knife to kill them quietly, and firing weapons at moving targets from unsteady moving vehicles as a few examples. Recommend rating of 0 out of 10 for single-player and online multiplayer.

Deaf Gamers: The game appears to be subtitled by default, but omits sound effects, ambient noise and character conversations that are not related to the objective. Furthermore, pausing the game in the middle of a cut-scene will remove the sub-titles when the game is un-paused, creating a slight accessibility concern. The objective location is still marked on screen and the current objective can be accessed through the Pause Menu, although the Pause Menu can be difficult to read on a standard definition television. Recommend rating of 3 out of 10 for single-player, 0 out of 10 for online multiplayer.

One-handed: The game uses controls which are substantially similar to “Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2,” suggesting that it is possible for games with use of one hand to play it but that it would be difficult, even with the AI-controlled squad-mates. However, “Battlefield: Bad Company 2” provides four different layouts for buttons and four additional layouts for sticks for each of three separate scenarios: controlling the player character, land vehicle and air vehicles. While remapping controllers is still preferable, the game provides a large number of total configuration options. A number of tasks in the game require using both sticks or both triggers. Recommend rating of 3 out of 10 for single-player campaign, 0 out of 10 for online multiplayer.

Subtitled: The game appears to be subtitled by default. The subtitles can be difficult to read on a standard definition television screen. Sound effects and ambient noises are not subtitled, the speaker is not identified, character conversations not related to the objective do not appear to be subtitled, and pausing the game during a cut-scene will remove the sub-titles when the game is un-paused. Recommend rating of 3 out of 10 for single-player campaign, 0 out of 10 for online multiplayer.

Color Blind: The game uses shades of green to indicate some locations on a white map, potentially creating difficulties for gamers with some form of color blindness. In addition, the game often uses red-dot scopes on weapons which may also present concerns for missions occurring in snow, desert or jungle with primary background colors of white, tan to red, and green. Recommend rating of 3 out of 10 for single-player campaign, 3 out of 10 for online multiplayer.