FIFA is a game that’s popular with the people we help here at SpecialEffect, and has features and settings that can be used to make the it more accessible.
In this post we will be looking at options that may help with the motor accessibility of FIFA 22 [PEGI 3] on the PlayStation, but the control options are the same for the Xbox and PC when playing with a controller. They may not appear in the Nintendo Switch version of the game, however. When the PlayStation buttons are mentioned, the equivalent Xbox controls will be put in brackets afterwards, if there is a difference. Testing and screenshots were done on the PS4 version of the game.
The information in this post is correct to the best of our knowledge at the time of writing (November 2021).
Accessibility Menu
In the Accessibility menu you will find several options to help with input access to menus including remap buttons and stick functionality.
In FIFA 22 you can access it directly from the home screen by selecting the Accessibility icon.
You can also access it from the home menu by going across to the Customise tab > Settings > Accessibility. It can also be accessed during a match by pressing the Options button and selecting Settings.
Remap Right Stick Functionality:
Some of the menus in FIFA 22 require the right joystick for scrolling. Turning this setting on switches the functionality of the Right Stick to the Left Stick. As standard, there are only a few side menus in FIFA 22 that need the right joystick.
While turning on this setting means that you will never need to use the right joystick, the Left Stick for most of the main menus has been deactivated and you now need to use D-pad directions. This is different to previous other recent versions of FIFA.
This only applies to the menus and will not change the controls required for gameplay.
Remap L1/R1 Buttons and L2/R2 Button Functionality:
Turning this setting on switches the functionality of the L1/R1 (LB/RB) and L2/R2 (LT/RT) buttons in many of the menus to the Left Stick. This allows you to navigate through all the setting options with the Left Stick. Again, this only applies to the menus and will not change the controls required for gameplay.
Controller Settings
Customisable Controls:
FIFA 22 allows you to remap the buttons used in-game. This means that if you find a button hard to reach or press you could remap it to a button that you find easier. An example would be if you find it difficult to press Triangle (Y) for Through Ball and wanted to use this more often than Lob and could more easily press Square (X), you could swap these two controls.
You do this by going into Customise > Settings > Customise Controls >Press R2 (RT) (or using Left Stick if the menu accessibility setting mentioned above is being used) to show the controller layout.
You would then press the X (A) button on the control you want to change.
You then press Cross (A) again on the control you want to change it to.
Bear in mind that when swapping buttons, the original function of that button will be swapped. If you are swapping a button to a one you cannot activate on the controller, you will need to play the game without that button.
FIFA 22 has four preset control options – Classic, Alternate, Two Button and One Button. To change these, you need to go into Customise > Settings > Customise Controls. You then, by default, use the R2/L2 (RT/LT) to scroll through this menu until the controller mode you want is selected. If you then press back (Circle, or B for Xbox) the game will automatically save this mode selection.
Two Button Mode:
Two Button Mode enables you to play offline and online matches with just a Left Joystick and Cross (A) and Circle (B).
Your Pass button, which is X (A), will do a Ground Pass or a Through Pass depending on the direction of your pass and the situation with the player you are passing to. If you hold the pass button you will do a Lob or Cross. When you do not have the ball your pass button will become your Standing Tackle, and your Shoot button – Circle (B) – will become Sliding Tackle.
When you are out of possession you will need to press L1 (LB) to change player. By default, Auto Switch is set to Air Balls and Loose Balls. Auto Switching can be made full Auto which means that the game will switch player for you, removing the need for L1 (LB). Turning this option on is explained later in this post under ‘Auto Switching’.
In Two Button Mode, Auto Sprinting is always turned on. This means that the game will sprint for you when there is space to do so and the situation may benefit from it. However, if you have access to the Sprint button (R2 or RT) you can still use this to sprint manually.
One Button Mode:
One Button Mode enables you to fully play FIFA with just one joystick (Left Joystick) and one button which is Cross (A).
In a standard game, the Left Joystick acts as player movement. When you are in possession, the Cross (A) button is used for all types of kick, including passing and shooting. The type of kick played will depend on the situation you are in, the direction you are aiming and how long you hold the button for. Sometimes you may be expecting to shoot but a pass will be played instead, but with practice you learn in which situations a certain type of kick will likely be played.
When out of posession the button will act as both sliding and light tackle depending on the circumstance. When out of possession the game will auto switch control to your player nearest the ball.
When your player has the space to run, sprint will be activated whether you are in or out of possession.
In both One and Two Button mode you still need to press the Options button (Pause button) to start the game.
One and Two Button Modes will work for offline and online play. They will also work in matches in all of the different game modes in FIFA (Volta, Career etc) but you might find you need some additional buttons in menus and certain game modes, such as Skills games.
Auto Switching:
Auto Switching is a controller setting that enables you to dictate how much the game helps you to switch player when you are not in possession of the ball. If you have your controller set to Classic, then Auto Switching will default to Air Balls and Loose Balls. This means that the game will switch player during Lobs, Crosses and Loose Balls. In all other situations you will need to press the L1 (LB) button to change player.
If you want to play in Classic Mode but find switching your player difficult you can set the game to switch player for you. You can find this option under Settings > Customise Controls > Auto Switching and scroll right to select Auto.
Timed Finishing:
Timed Finishing has the potential to increase a shot’s accuracy and power and can enable you to score from positions that may not be possible with standard shooting. To trigger a timed finish, you need to be able to press the Shoot button twice, with good timing. The precision and timing of the second button tap determines the result; a perfectly timed tap will increase the shot’s accuracy, while a poorly timed tap makes the shot more likely to miss. Some players may prefer to turn this to Off, to reduce the accuracy of the timing required.
Legacy Defending (offline only):
Tactical and Legacy are two different types of defending available in FIFA 22. Tactical Defending gives you the ability to time your tackles and maintain your position. However, timing and player position are a lot more important in this mode.
Legacy Defending (available in offline modes only) gives you the familiar defending controls of past FIFA titles. The position of players is less important, and it is the easier of the two defending options, but it is also easier for the game to predict your movements. If you are a beginner, it might be worth starting with Legacy Defending and then moving on to Tactical.
Assisted Passing Options
You can change how much assistance your various passes can have. The pass options that can be altered are Ground, Through Ball, Shot Assistance, Cross and Lob. Having Assisted turned On means that pass direction and power will be assisted to help play passes to the receiver’s path and will avoid opponent players. Having Shot Assistance set to Assisted means that shot direction will be assisted to always aim towards the goal.
Game Settings:
There are some gameplay settings that can be changed to make the game more accessible. These options are available for offline play and when you are playing against the computer. To access game settings, from the home screen you need to go into Customise > Settings > Game Settings.
Difficulty Level (offline only):
If you are new to playing FIFA or have a new controller layout you can change the difficulty of the game to lower or raise your AI opponents’ abilities.
Game Speed (offline only):
This option allows you to slow down or speed up the gameplay to suit your needs.
Gameplay Customisation Sliders (offline only):
If you move through the Game Settings menu by pressing R2 (RT) you will come to the User Gameplay Customisation menu and CPU Gameplay Customisation. These menus use sliders which enable you to speed up and slow down how quickly your team and the computer do things such as sprint, take shots or how powerful they are etc. They will only take effect in offline game modes.
By changing these sliders, you can give yourself an increase in your team’s abilities or a decrease in your AI opponents’ abilities to balance the competition level or gain an advantage.
In the User Gameplay Customisation menu there is also an option for Power Bar. This modifies how quickly/slowly the power bar fills up when you pass or shoot. If an individual seems to be putting too much power into their shots, so they are flying over the goal, it might be helpful to turn this down.
Practice Arena
If you are not used to your controls or are new to FIFA, a good place to start is in the Practice Arena. This game mode allows you to run freely around the pitch and practice dribbling, shooting and free kick skills. There is no time pressure, and you can take as many shots at goal as you like. You can access the Practice Arena from Play>Quick Play Modes>Practice Arena.
We hope that this post has been useful. If you have any questions related to the motor accessibility of FIFA 22, please get in touch via the ‘Contact Us’ page.
Developer Resource:
For more video examples of how developers have improved the motor accessibility of their games, please visit https://specialeffectdevkit.info/
