Sony reveals PS5 accessibility controller ‘Project Leonardo’

Sony has announced Project Leonardo, a new customisable controller aimed at players with disabilities.

Announced during a CES presentation on Wednesday, Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan said Project Leonardo would help players with disabilities to play more easily and comfortably.

The controller is highly customisable, with a “robust kit” of buttons, Ryan said, and can be used as a standalone controller or paired with a DualSense controller.

Sony says that it’s gathering “valuable feedback from the community,” as it proceeds with the development of the controller.

“Through conversations with accessibility experts and incredible organizations like AbleGamers, SpecialEffect and Stack Up, we’ve designed a highly configurable controller that works in tandem with many third-party accessibility accessories and integrates with the PS5 console to open up new ways of gaming,” a PlayStation blog post states.

According to the post, “Project Leonardo is expandable through four 3.5mm AUX ports to support a variety of external switches and third-party accessibility accessories.

“This enables users to integrate specialty switches, buttons or analog sticks with the Project Leonardo controller. The external accessories can be dynamically connected or disconnected, and each can be configured to act like any other button.”

This mirrors Microsoft‘s Xbox Adaptive Controller, which launched in 2018 and allows players to use various third-party control methods with Xbox consoles.

Project Leonardo can be used as a standalone controller or paired with additional Project Leonardo or DualSense wireless controllers. Up to two Project Leonardo controllers and one DualSense wireless controller can be used together as a single virtual controller.

The controller can be placed on flat surfaces, according to the blog, “so players can lay it on a tabletop or a wheelchair tray.

It can be easily secured to AMPS mounts or tripods, and can be oriented 360 degrees for the most comfortable use. Players can also program the “north” orientation on the analog sticks to match their preferred controller orientation.”