How to turn on and off the narrator in Minecraft Java and Bedrock

For Minecraft players who may have disabilities or just trouble seeing parts of the screen, the in-game narrator function can be a huge help. This nifty feature will read the text on the screen, making it incredibly useful when paired with subtitles and other accessibility options.

The narrator can be customized to read specific text, all text, or be turned off. By default, this feature is disabled, but activating it only takes a few seconds at most. Minecraft players can use the settings menu to fine-tune their narrator to perform as needed or use a helpful keyboard shortcut instead.

Whatever the case, it may not be a bad idea to brush up on Minecraft's narrator in case it is needed in the future.

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How to Activate/Deactivate the Narrator in Minecraft Bedrock and Java

Minecraft's narration system is made to be as accessible and quick to use as possible (Image via Phoenix SC/YouTube)

Though the narration function is labeled differently between Minecraft's Java and Bedrock Editions, it serves the same function at the end of the day. Remember that since the narration feature operates in Bedrock Edition, it can also be applied to all Bedrock-compatible platforms, including Pocket Edition and the current console versions of the game. With just a few clicks in the settings menu or a quick keyboard command on PCs, players can activate their narration, set it to read out specific parameters, and ignore others if necessary.

Enabling Narration in Minecraft: Java Edition

1. Open Java Edition and the main menu.
2. Select the options button.
3. Select the accessibility settings button to the right of the screen.
4. At the top left of the accessibility settings screen, you'll find the narrator button. Click this button until it shows the setting you'd like to use for narration. The available options are to narrate all text, narrate chat inputs, narrate system messages, and turn the narration off.
5. Alternatively, you can use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + B to toggle the different settings of in-game narration at any time.

How to Enable Narration/Text-To-Speech in Minecraft: Bedrock Edition

1. Open Bedrock Edition, access your main menu and select the settings button.
2. If it isn't already selected by default, press the accessibility button at the top of the scroll bar to the left.
3. At the top of the accessibility menu to the right, you should find three sliders to enable text-to-speech for device settings, UI, and in-game chat. Activate the appropriate sliders so that the narrator reads what you would like it to, then exit the accessibility menu.
4. Once in normal gameplay, you can use the Ctrl + B keyboard shortcut to activate and deactivate the narrator. Keep in mind that this doesn't cycle through the available options like Java Edition, so you'll need to go back into settings to ensure you have your narration settings correct or if you'd like to change them.

That's all there is to it! Mojang strives to ensure that as many players enjoy the game as possible, which is exactly why accessibility settings like narration can be so helpful. Players can even make various other tweaks to the accessibility menu to create interesting combinations that work with the narrator.