> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://devdocs.xbox.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# XAG 101: Text display

> Optimize text readability with minimum default sizes, configurable style and color, and adequate spacing so players with low vision can read everything.

## Goal

Ensure text readability is optimized for all players, including those with low vision, by displaying text at minimum default sizes and spacing and providing configurable style and color options.

## Overview

Roughly **2.9 billion people** have some degree of low vision — blur, cloudiness, or partial vision loss that glasses can't fully correct. Situational impairments (a screen far away, a small mobile display, muted TV, noisy room) also make text hard to read.

If a player can't read menu text, they can be blocked before gameplay even starts. Text also carries HUDs, objectives, hints, NPC lines, and player chat — losing it means losing the game.

## Scoping questions

Is reading required in your game?

* Are navigable menus text-based?
* Does text appear on-screen during gameplay (HUD, objectives, waypoints, NPC lines)?
* Can players communicate via text chat, chat wheels, STT/TTS?

## What "text display" covers

* **Size** — how large or small text can be
* **Face** — bold, italic, light
* **Weight** — thickness
* **Style** — font family
* **Spacing** — between letters, words, lines
* **Alignment** — horizontal alignment
* **Case** — sentence case, all caps
* **Color** — visibility against background (see [XAG 102: Contrast](/build/game-principles/accessibility/xag-deep-dives/xag-102-contrast))

<Tip>
  The best approach is **player choice**. Provide configuration so each player can tune text to their needs.
</Tip>

## Measuring text size

Font size in the XAGs is **body height** — the pixel distance from the lowest descender to the highest ascender.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Capture the text">
    Screenshot the text in-game and open it in Microsoft Paint.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Find the tallest ascender and lowest descender">
    Locate a word with letters like `g`, `y`, `h`, `b` to establish the full body height.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Handle outlines">
    Include colored-outline pixels only if their contrast to the background exceeds **2:1**. Softer anti-aliasing pixels are not counted.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Draw a selection">
    Draw a rectangular selection from the highest ascender to the lowest descender. Paint reports the pixel height in the lower-left — that number is the font size.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Key areas that must be accessible

* **Menu screens** — labels, sub-labels, descriptors, interaction prompts
* **Gameplay environments** — HUD meters, instructional cues, inventory keys
* **Chat input fields** — placeholder text and typed messages
* **Chat windows** — sent and received messages
* **Chat wheels** — pre-written comm-wheel options
* **Subtitles and captions**
* **Error messages, toasts, and notifications**
* **Loading screens** with valuable tips

## Implementation guidelines

### Minimum default text size

Measured as body height (descender + x-height + ascender).

<Note>
  These are **minimum defaults at launch**. Provide the option to scale larger or smaller at the player's discretion.
</Note>

| Platform                         | Resolution / DPI | Minimum body height |
| -------------------------------- | ---------------- | ------------------- |
| **Console**                      | 1080p            | 26 px               |
| **Console**                      | 4K               | 52 px               |
| **PC / VR**                      | 1080p            | 18 px               |
| **PC / VR**                      | 4K               | 36 px               |
| **Mobile / XBOX Game Streaming** | 100 DPI          | 18 px               |
| **Mobile / XBOX Game Streaming** | 200 DPI          | 36 px               |
| **Mobile / XBOX Game Streaming** | 400 DPI          | 72 px               |

Mobile devices have much higher DPIs than TVs or PC displays, so comparably sized text needs more pixels. A 5.5" 1080p screen is roughly 400 DPI. Scale linearly as DPI increases.

<Warning>
  Platform-provided screen magnifiers are **not** a substitute for meeting minimum text size.
</Warning>

### Icons and glyph sizes

* Text **inside** icons and glyphs (e.g. the `X` in an X-button glyph) meets the same minimum sizes above.
* Icons and glyphs scale with text scaling up to **200%** of the minimum default.
* To keep glyphs inside text containers, you may need to grow the surrounding text so the whole glyph fits on the line.

### Text scaling

* Players can resize text up to **200%** of the minimum without losing content, functionality, or meaning.
* Large header text remains visually differentiated from body text when scaled.
* Text that scales off-screen has a way to be read (scrolling text, popouts, or appropriate abbreviations).
* Scaling never forces two-axis scrolling within a single UI. One-direction scrolling is fine.
* Allowing text to be **smaller** than the default is acceptable when the user opts in.

### Font style

* Include at least one **sans-serif** typeface option.
* If stylistic fonts are used (dripping blood, gothic, etc.), provide a non-stylized alternative.
* All fonts include complete character sets for every supported language.

### Text spacing

Greater spacing improves clarity, especially at large sizes. For blocks of text longer than two lines at standard font size:

* Prefer letting players configure line width, line spacing, paragraph spacing, letter spacing, and word spacing themselves.
* If configuration is not offered, meet these minimums:

| Property                   | Minimum                                                                |
| -------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Line width**             | ≤ 80 characters (40 for CJK), measured at 100% scale, excluding spaces |
| **Line spacing (leading)** | ≥ 1.5× within paragraphs, measured ascender-to-ascender                |
| **Paragraph spacing**      | ≥ 2× the line spacing                                                  |
| **Letter spacing**         | ≥ 0.12× the font size                                                  |
| **Word spacing**           | ≥ 0.16× the font size                                                  |

### Case and alignment

* **Case** — provide the ability to display text in sentence case rather than ALL CAPS or all lowercase. One- or two-word labels are exempt.
* **Alignment** — text is left/right aligned per the player's language preference (not centered or fully justified), or players can adjust it.

## Potential player impact

| Player                                                                       | Impacted |
| ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- | :------: |
| Players with low vision                                                      |     ✔    |
| Players with little or no color perception                                   |     ✔    |
| Players without hearing                                                      |     ✔    |
| Players with limited hearing                                                 |     ✔    |
| Players with cognitive or learning disabilities                              |     ✔    |
| Players reading on a small / distant / glare-affected / low-contrast display |     ✔    |

## Resources

* [Clear Text (accessible.games)](https://accessible.games/accessible-player-experiences/access-patterns/clear-text/)
* [Distinguish This From That (accessible.games)](https://accessible.games/accessible-player-experiences/access-patterns/distinguish-this-from-that/)
* [Allow the font size to be adjusted (Game Accessibility Guidelines)](http://gameaccessibilityguidelines.com/allow-the-font-size-to-be-adjusted/)
* [Provide a choice of text colour, low/high contrast as a minimum](http://gameaccessibilityguidelines.com/provide-a-choice-of-text-colour-lowhigh-contrast-choice-as-a-minimum)
* [Use simple clear text formatting](http://gameaccessibilityguidelines.com/use-simple-clear-text-formatting/)
* API: [XGameStreamingGetStreamPhysicalDimensions](https://developer.microsoft.com/games/xbox/docs/gdk/Xgamestreaminggetstreamphysicaldimensions) *(NDA)*


## Related topics

- [XAG 102: Contrast](/build/game-principles/accessibility/xag-deep-dives/xag-102-contrast.md)
- [XAG 123: Mental health best practices](/build/game-principles/accessibility/xag-deep-dives/xag-123-mental-health-best-practices.md)
- [XBOX Accessibility Guidelines (XAG)](/build/game-principles/accessibility/xbox-accessibility-guidelines.md)
- [XAG 104: Subtitles and captions](/build/game-principles/accessibility/xag-deep-dives/xag-104-subtitles-captions.md)
- [XAG 103: Additional channels for visual and audio cues](/build/game-principles/accessibility/xag-deep-dives/xag-103-additional-cues.md)