The Oregon Trail's 5th big update adds improved accessibility, filters, & more

The Oregon Trail Traveling
The Oregon Trail Traveling (Image credit: Luke Filipowicz / iMore)

What you need to know

  • The Oregon Trail has a big new update in the App Store.
  • The fifth update adds new accessibility features and more.
  • Gamers will need to be Apple Arcade subscribers to download the game.

Apple Arcade hit The Oregon Trail has a big version five update out and it brings with it a slew of improvements, not least a few that make the game more accessible.

Those who have The Oregon Trail already installed and App Store auto-updates enabled might already have the update. If you have, you could have already spotted one of the big new features — visual filters that make the game look just the way you want it to. Prefer your game to be in black & white? No problem! Try them all out and see which suits you the best!

Alongside those new filters, you'll find a new music shuffle mode that can randomize songs when unlocked as well as the usual array of bug fixes and whatnot. Developer Gameloft has added a raft of accessibility improvements as well:

  • Increase accessibility by customizing your gameplay experience.
  • High contrast mode to improve the readability of text.
  • Ability to disable event timers and screen shake.
  • Never miss another raccoon when you enable the ability to automatically collect animals!
  • Event text is audible using Text-to-Speech.

There's more, too. The prolog has been "greatly improved and updated" while that prolog can now be skipped for the first time, too.

You can learn more about the update, and download the game afresh, from the App Store now. It's free for all Apple Arcade subscribers and there are no ads or in-app purchases to speak of, either.

If you want to upgrade your Apple Arcade gaming experience, check out our list of the best game controllers for mobile gaming.

Oliver Haslam
Contributor

Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too. Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.