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The first wave of Microsoft’s Creators Update has begun rolling out to members of the Xbox Insider Program, the company announced yesterday. Chief among them is the new Copilot feature that will help make the console more accessible to players with disabilities.
The Copilot feature allows two controllers to act as one, effectively allowing for multiple controller configurations depending on the players’ needs, whether that’s with hands apart, hand and chin or hand and foot to give just a few examples.
"Imagine that someone needs to control their gameplay with a hand, or chin, or foot, or they need a little bit of extra help from someone else," Xbox partner group program manager Scott Henson explained to Eurogamer.
"That feature actually works not just for people that have maybe disabilities, but people who might just need help getting through their games."
Microsoft is also adding improving its Magnifier and Narrator features as well, giving players more options over audio output and custom rumble settings on the controller.
The Creators Update will also see the introduction of a new Home menu. This will simplify the appearance of the Home menu and increase its overall speed. Games will have smaller icons, too, as well as a few options for exploring each title’s respective game hub, viewing achievements and interacting with clubs. When players aren’t using custom backgrounds, the new Home menu will display art from the game they’re currently playing instead.
Other updates include a beta for Blu-ray bitstream passthrough, which will allow players’ receivers to decode audio natively, as well as support for Dolby Atmos for Home Theatre, Dolby Atmos for Headphones and Windows HRTF support to streaming media applications and games. Cortana is also getting a new reminder and alarm function.
The Xbox One Guide feature is getting a big overhaul as well. This will now appear as a left-hand overlay for Xbox Insiders, regardless of what they’re doing. The start page has also been redesigned so players can pin their games, apps, Home, Store and recently played games and apps to the top of the menu, and there will also be quick access media controls for when they’re playing background music.
