Electronic Arts was granted a patent, "Automatic Controller Setup Recommendation System," which was filed in late 2020. That's right. Why "git" an algorithm when you can "git" an algorithm?

The abstract of the patent outlines how the software involves "determining a user profile of a user, consisting at least of skill level and user input tendencies, based on controller input." The software then explicitly makes adjustments to the controller settings "intended to improve the user's performance as it relates to the software, and the controller settings include at least one of the controller sensitivities or controller assignments." [This is not a new concept; adaptive systems have been working since the early 80s to assist players who find certain games difficult; the 1986 shooter "Zanuck" for the MSX PC, called the "Automatic Difficulty Control" (ALC) system.

Also, for decades now, games have incorporated a system that asks the user if they want to try a different difficulty setting after a certain number of deaths; EA's patent is in this spirit, "including obtaining user approval to implement a proposed adjustment to a controller setting It states that the system "includes. An interesting element of this is the suggestion that a bespoke solution could be provided to each user, recommending specific settings based on the style in which a particular user plays (and linking this to a user profile would, in theory, (which would bring such learning to any game).

While nothing is imminent just because a patent has been granted, another interesting element in this regard is EA's industry-leading accessibility pledge: in 2021, the publisher will be able to license accessibility-related patents under a royalty-free license to commitment to make them publicly available, allowing any developer to take advantage of the range of software patents listed here. This particular patent is not yet listed, but was granted just a few weeks ago and is related to accessibility. The impact on users who have difficulty with standard output or who use custom controllers is obvious.

Who knows: with this, I might finally win an online match on the latest version of FIFA... sorry EA Sports FC, I'm just not sure how much I'll be able to do...