Xbox Accessibility Guideline 116: Time limits

Goal

The goal of this Xbox Accessibility Guideline (XAG) is to ensure that players have adequate time to read, interpret, and interact with all the UI in the game.

Overview

At a high level, the implementation of a time limit in the UI requires the player to perceive the time-limit warning (visually or through screen narration), read and interpret the warning, determine what actions need to be taken, and physically complete the task that's required within the allotted amount of time.

There are many reasons that a player might need more than the alloted time to complete a task. For example, a younger player who can't read might need time to get a parent from another room to read the instructions to them. Players with disabilities such as blindness, low vision, dexterity impairments, and cognitive limitations might require more time to read content or to physically perform tasks such as filling out online forms. If functions are time-dependent, it can be difficult for some players to perform the required action before a time limit is up. This might result in negative consequences like lost progress, being signed out of an account unintentionally, or even rendering the game unusable.

It's important to remember that these guidelines only apply to interactions that are not considered to be core gameplay mechanics. For example, most time limits that are presented in a UI menu (for example, “You have been idle for 20 minutes; select ‘stay signed in’ or you will be automatically signed out in 20 seconds”) are applicable to this requirement. However, an actual gameplay mechanic (for example, a countdown timer of three minutes to finish a track in a racing game) isn't applicable to the guidance in this XAG.

Scoping questions

Does your game introduce countdown timers or other time limits in areas of the game that aren't related to core gameplay mechanics? Examples include experiences like the following:

• The player is signed out after being idle if they don't select “stay signed in” within a certain amount of time.

• The player’s character dies, and the player has 30 seconds to press “A” to respawn at the current point in their game. Otherwise, they're taken to the main menu and lose recent progress.

• The game includes on screen tutorials, notifications, or chat communication windows on screen that no longer appear after an allotted time.

Implementation guidelines

• When time limits are imposed for any UI interaction (not related to core game mechanics):

  • Time limits are used only when they're essential and unavoidable.

  • The player is informed (in multiple ways) when they're about to encounter a time limit.

  • There's a method to modify the time limit. The player can:

    • Request a longer session time limit, or no time limit for the session before the time limit begins.

    • Adjust the time limit before encountering it, up to at least ten times the length of the default limit.

    • Be warned before time expires and be given at least 20 seconds to extend the time limit with a simple action (for example, "press the A button"), and the player can extend the time limit at least ten times.

    • Turn off the time limit.

• When imposing time limits that control the duration that an important element appears on screen (for example, the amount of seconds a tutorial text window, speaker dialogue, or text-chat/speech-to-text communication window remains visible):

  • The player is able to adjust the number of seconds that these elements appear on screen before encountering them (such as in a settings menu), up to at least ten times the length of the default limit.

  • Alternatively, the player can disable duration limits. Elements can be dismissed or advanced to the next tutorial window or dialogue text on input.

• Exception: A time limit imposed by the content is exempt from this expectation if at least one of the following is true.

  • The time limit is a required part of a real-time event (for example, an auction), and no alternative to the time limit is possible.

  • The time limit is essential to the task.

  • The default time limit exceeds 20 hours.

Potential player impact

The guidelines in this XAG can help reduce barriers for the following players.

Resources and tools