Witch n' Wiz Accessibility

Witch n' Wiz attempts to be the most accessible Nintendo Entertainment System game of all time. I am somewhat limited in what I can do on such limited hardware, but I have done my best to make the most out of what is possible.

The game has been tested with multiple people, with various disabilities, but of course there is no silver bullet to solve all issues. If you find that something in Witch n' Wiz is preventing you from enjoying the game, I would love to hear about it, and hopefully come up with a solution.

E-mail me directly at: contact@matthughson.com.

Photosensitive Seizure Warning

During gameplay, the player may hold the B button to "undo" their previous moves. Doing so will cause the screen to strobe on and off. This has been identified as a potential Photosensitive Seizure trigger.

This is completely optional, and can be avoided by pressing the Select button to reset the entire level instead.

Accessibility Settings

These settings can be found in the Settings menu, in the Pause menu.

Camera Shake Control ("CAMERA SHAKE")

The game features some minor camera shake. This can be disabled if it makes the player uncomfortable.

High Contrast/Low Vision Mode ("HIGH CONTRAST")

Replaces all gameplay graphics with flat, high-contrast images. All superfluous graphics are removed.

Timed Challenges Control ("TIMED CHALLENGES")

The final section of the game includes a timed challenge where the player must complete a series of puzzles in a limited time. The limited time portion of this can be disabled if needed.

Additional Features

These features are on by default, and cannot be disabled.

Co-pilot

The simplest accessibility option is 'co-pilot'. This simply means that both Controller 1 and Controller 2 can navigate all menus and control the player. The idea is that while you can play some of the game using the primary controller, a second player can assist when needed using a second controller, without the need to pass a controller back and forth.

All menus in the game, regardless of visual layout, can be navigated with Up and Down buttons. Down button goes to the next item, while Up goes to the previous item.

Menu Flow

Here is a step-by-step description of the game's menus and how to navigate them.

  1. Title Screen. No functionality. Theme song will play in background. Press A button to advance to Save Slot Menu.
  2. Save Slot Menu. Player may choose between 3 save slots, each with its own progress saved. Press A button to select previously used save slot and advance. Hold select button for 2 seconds to delete currently highlighted save slot. Navigation is performed with Up and Down buttons.
  3. Level Select (NOTE: only shown if player has already completed the game). Player chooses the level they wish to play. Navigation is performed with the Left and Right buttons. Left moves to earlier levels, while Right moves to later levels. Press A to choose a level.
  4. Gameplay. During gameplay the d-pad moves the player. B button undoes the last move. Select button resets the level. The function of A button changes depending on which level you are on. Start button opens the pause menu.
  5. Pause Menu. There are 5 menu items in the pause menu. Navigation is performed with Up and Down buttons. By default the first element is selected. The menu items are as follows:
    1. Resume. Returns to gameplay.
    2. Change floor. Takes the player the Level Select menu described earlier in this document.
    3. Reset floor. Resets the current stage to its original state. Same functionality as pressing Select button during gameplay.
    4. Settings. Takes player to a sub-menu with options to enable and disable music as well as sound effects, as well as all accessibility options. The settings are in the following order:
      1. Music – Off/On
      2. Sound – Off/On
      3. Contrast – Off/On
      4. Cam Shake – Off/On
      5. Boss Time – Off/On
  6. Quit. Returns the player to the title screen described earlier in this document.

Known Issues