An easy mode for games like Dark Souls or Elden Ring is often proposed as the answer to this accessibility problem, but some fans of the series feel this would take away from the core of the games and would diminish the player experience. The answer could instead lie in the games’ controls.

RELATED: Elden Ring Update 1.04 Fleshes Out the Tutorial

This is what Reddit user SuavePirate has been working on, as they developed an AI-assisted control scheme that uses both voice commands and facial expressions as inputs for playing Elden Ring. In a clip posted to Reddit, the alternative controls can be seen working concurrently with traditional keyboard commands for moving the character around. All the other button inputs for the game have been swapped out for voice or expression macro instructions, which allow the player to attack, dodge, and even parry after getting used to the new control scheme.

The macro controls even help to streamline some of the Elden Ring inputs that can be a bit more finicky on a controller or keyboard. Simply saying “heal” or “mount” will have the character perform those actions in-game without having to hold down buttons and select the correct item in the game’s HUD. In the comments on the post, SuavePirate also explained that they added more macro commands, such as “quit” for exiting the game instantly and “get naked” for immediately unequipping all the character’s armor. Surprisingly, having to unequip all the character’s armor actually comes up in Elden Ring, when attempting to find the Three Fingers.

This new control scheme would surely seem alien for players that have grown up with controllers in their hands, but SuavePirate seems fairly adept with it, as they even manage to take on one of the game’s bosses. So perhaps it’s just a case of getting used to it. If a feature like this were to be adopted into all AAA games, it would be a real move towards the accessibility that many video games are now pushing for.

A problem now, even for games with accessibility features, is that alternate control schemes aren’t consistent across all games in the way they often are for controller or keyboard inputs. Players using a controller can usually very quickly get to grips with a new game’s controls as they are likely similar to every other game in that genre. But players using alternate controllers are often left to map their own inputs, which can be limiting in games like Elden Ring.

Elden Ring is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

MORE: Tunic Offers an Accessible Alternative to FromSoft’s Catalog