The resounding response from fans of Hogwarts Legacy thus far is that it looks faithful to the experience they have wished for in an action-RPG based on the Harry Potter IP. Besides the fact that Hogwarts Legacy has its own unique era setting in the 1800s, it seems to still capture the magical essence of what being a student at Hogwarts would be like. In that way, Hogwarts Legacy can also arguably be defined as an immersive sim, since it gives players the freedom to choose many custom preferences for their character, such as what their character will look like.
It is unknown if Hogwarts Legacy will have a suite of accessibility features for players, as some modern games have done lately. This is certainly an avenue in the industry that could improve, it's paramount that more games offer elaborate and inclusive accessibility features. Because Hogwarts Legacy will have Acromantula spider enemies, WB Games Avalanche has the opportunity to implement an arachnophobia-safe accessibility feature and represent it as a considerate alternative for fans who share this common fear but still wish to play.
Grounded’s Arachnophobia Safe Mode Shows Its Merit in Accessibility
Grounded’s arachnophobia mode was a landmark accessibility feature that garnered a lot of praise. In order to compensate for players who may have a fear of spiders, Grounded offers a mode that lets players choose how much or little of the original arachnid they can see.
The slider provided lets players choose between spiders having four legs instead of eight at level one, spiders having no legs and thus only having abdomens and heads floating in midair at level two. Level three removes spiders’ mouths, leaving their heads with eyes only, while level four smooths out spiders’ facial features to round orbs. Lastly, at level five, spiders’ bodies become smooth orbs as well, turning the spider into a blobbing mass that no longer resembles a spider at all.
Especially when Grounded’s spiders are often much larger than the player, it is fantastic that a settings slider allows players to determine how much of a spider they are okay with seeing. If Hogwarts Legacy was to add a similar customization feature, it would be a great service to fans who enjoy Harry Potter but may be uncomfortable with what lurks in the Forbidden Forest.
Hogwarts Legacy Should Consider an Arachnophobia Safe Mode for Its Acromantulas
Spiders do not seem to be appearing rampantly throughout Hogwarts Legacy, and they have only been teased a few times in previous trailers. That said, it is highly likely that players will encounter a great number of them if they explore the Forbidden Forest, since that is where their colony nests.
Because there are many people who suffer from a deep fear of spiders, Hogwarts Legacy should take initiative and implement an arachnophobia-safe mode to address any of their concerns. It should also be noted that the horror of spiders may be heightened further in the game, since Hogwarts Legacy features people cocooned in webbing, whether they are corpses that have already been fed on, or are still living and writhing in an attempt to escape.
There is really no reason why Hogwarts Legacy would not be able to do this. Horror may be the precise tone that WB Games Avalanche is going for with its approach to the Forbidden Forest’s spiders, but it would be a shame if certain fans felt excluded because they were uncomfortable stepping into the forest. Still, fans may be completely satisfied with staying within the castle’s walls where they may not run into any eight-legged creepy-crawlies, though it is possible that scripted narrative events run them into spiders anyhow. The option for an arachnophobia-safe mode could only be a boon for Hogwarts Legacy, and if more accessibility features are revealed in the future, it would be great to see this feature among them.
Hogwarts Legacy releases February 10 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. A Switch version is also in development.