Accessibility

How we make games accessible

Accessibility is core to the product, not an afterthought. It shapes the controls, the visuals, the difficulty, and the settings panel from day one — because bolting it on late is how players get locked out. Everything on this page is a tool we actually built into Luma Catch, our free browser game, and every one of them is adjustable in-game right now.

“Fun that never punishes.”

Designed in, not patched on
One-handed controls, shape-first orbs, and no fail states are the default — not hidden menu options.
Adjustable in-game
Ten settings sit in the game’s own Settings panel, one keypress away from play.
Every setting persists
Your choices are saved on your own device (localStorage) and are ready next time you return. No account, no sign-in.
“Anyone can play, everyone chooses how”
The defaults are forgiving. You tune the rest — speed, contrast, text, sound — to fit you.

Reading options on this page

These are site-wide — they apply here, on the landing page, and inside Luma Catch, and they are remembered on your device.

Text style

Theme

Narrator — reads this page aloud using your device’s speech voices · not supported in this browser

How we address different disabilities

Every player is different — even two people with the same diagnosis rarely need the same things. What follows is not a claim to cover every need: it is the honest list of tools we built, grouped by the needs players most often tell us about. All of them are adjustable in-game, and all of them are in Luma Catch today.

Motor and mobility

Play with one hand, at your own pace, and stop the moment you want to. Nothing in Luma Catch asks for fast or precise input, and a missed orb has no cost.

One-handed-friendly play — move with the ← and → arrow keys, or with two big on-screen hold-to-move buttons. Both hands are never needed at once.
Big catch zone setting — a wider paddle and a more forgiving catch radius, so you don’t have to be pixel-accurate.
Relaxed speed setting — orbs fall at a gentler pace (with more space between them) whenever you want it.
No fail states — no lives, no game over, no penalty for a miss. A miss just doesn’t score.
Pause any time — Esc (or Space) pauses instantly, with a Resume button waiting when you’re ready.
Short rounds — each level runs about 30–40 seconds, so a session fits in a spare moment.
Enter or Space starts the level you picked, so you never need a mouse to begin or to continue.

Vision

You should never have to tell the difference between two things by color alone, or squint at the screen to play. Shape, contrast, size, and text are all adjustable.

High-contrast mode — a black backdrop with bright shapes and thick outlines. If your device asks for more contrast (prefers-contrast: more) and you haven’t chosen a setting yet, it starts on; your own choice always wins and is remembered.
Colorblind mode — a high-distinction palette aimed at deuteranopia, protanopia, and tritanopia, plus extra in-shape marks. It layers on top of high-contrast mode.
Every orb differs by shape, never color alone — 6 kinds: Luma (circle), Nova (diamond), Hex (hexagon), Crescent (moon), Prism (square), Halo (ring). Power-ups carry their own shapes and labels too.
Light and dark theme — warm off-white in light, deep slate in dark, site-wide (page, game panel, and canvas).
Large, readable text with generous line spacing and letter spacing on every page and in the game HUD.
Text style toggle — Times New Roman (default) or Open Dyslexic, applied everywhere including the game’s canvas text.
Voice announcements — the game’s own text (level starts, catches, power-ups, pause, settings changes, scores) can be read aloud with your device’s speech voices. Independent of the sound toggle.
Captions — on-screen text for every event, on by default.
WCAG-minded contrast — our page palette targets at least 4.5:1 in both themes, and no pure black on white.
No flashing — nothing strobes or blinks, and Reduced motion calms screen shake and burst effects for players who need it.

Hearing

Nothing in Luma Catch depends on hearing it. If you play with sound off, or can’t hear the chimes at all, you still get every piece of information the game gives anyone else.

Captions are on by default — every catch, miss, power-up, streak, level start, level clear, pause, and settings change appears as text in the caption bar and in a screen-reader live region.
Nothing is conveyed by sound alone — score, level, progress, and power-up timers are drawn on screen as text and shapes; announcements also appear as banners and popups.
Sound is optional — “Sound effects” is a toggle (gentle chimes on catches). Turning it off changes nothing about play.
Voice announcements still work with sound off — they are a separate setting from sound effects, so you can mute the game and keep the narration, or the other way round.

Cognitive, learning, and reading

One control scheme, short sessions, no punishment for mistakes, and text you can change. If you forget something, the game shows you again instead of taking points away.

No fail states and no punishment — a miss costs you nothing but that orb’s points. The round ends on its own timer and you simply get your score.
A gentle ramp across 4 levels — First Light, Star Shower, Prism Drift, Halo Rush. Each adds one idea at a time (big orbs, then new shapes, then rare high-value halos with power-ups).
Speed settings — Relaxed, Standard, or Brisk change both how fast orbs fall and how often they appear.
Reduced motion — turns off screen shake and particle bursts for a calmer screen; it starts on if your device asks for less motion.
Captions and the narrator — read the events in text, hear them spoken, or both.
Dyslexia-friendly font option — switch the whole site and game UI to Open Dyslexic, with generous spacing kept on in either style.
Short sessions — one level is about 30–40 seconds, so it’s easy to play a single round and stop.
Simple, consistent instructions — one control scheme everywhere (← / →, Enter to start, Esc to pause), plus a Field guide in Settings that names every orb and power-up by shape.
Keyboard-only operation with visible focus rings — every button and setting can be reached and activated from the keyboard, with a 3px outline showing where you are.

Settings at a glance

Ten settings, one panel, opened with the gear button in the game (or reached entirely by keyboard). They persist on your device. Nothing here affects scoring except the speed you choose.

AbleArcade settings, what each one does, and the needs it helps with
Setting	What it does	Helps with
High contrast	What it doesBlack backdrop, bright shapes with thick outlines; starts on when your device asks for more contrast	Helps withLow vision, light sensitivity, low-contrast displays
Colorblind mode	What it doesHigh-distinction palette plus extra shape marks — never color alone	Helps withDeuteranopia, protanopia, tritanopia, other color vision differences
Captions	What it doesEvery catch, miss, power-up, streak, and milestone in text (on by default)	Helps withD/deaf and hard-of-hearing players, sound off, reading along
Voice announcements	What it doesReads the game’s own text aloud with your device’s speech voices	Helps withLow vision, screen-reader users; complements dedicated screen readers
Speed	What it doesRelaxed, Standard, or Brisk — changes fall speed and how often orbs appear	Helps withMotor, cognitive, first-time players
Big catch zone	What it doesA wider paddle and a more forgiving catch radius	Helps withMotor, mobility, tremor, limited reach
Reduced motion	What it doesTurns off screen shake and burst effects; starts on if your device asks for less motion	Helps withVestibular and sensory sensitivities, cognitive load
Light / Dark theme	What it doesWarm off-white light theme or the default dark theme, site-wide	Helps withLight sensitivity, visual fatigue, room brightness
Text style	What it doesTimes New Roman (default) or Open Dyslexic, site-wide	Helps withDyslexia, reading preferences
Keyboard only + focus rings	What it doesStart, move, pause, and open settings without a mouse; visible focus outline	Helps withMotor, vision, switch and keyboard users

What we don’t claim

Voice announcements complement dedicated screen readers — they don’t replace them. Our narrator is a lightweight layer that speaks the game’s own fixed strings using your device’s speech voices; it is not a full screen reader, and it doesn’t turn Luma Catch into a fully non-visual game. If you use a screen reader, keep using it: we aim to work alongside it, not to stand in for it.

We also make no certification or audit claims, and we don’t claim Luma Catch works for everyone. It’s a small game with a real set of tools — adjustable speed, contrast, colorblind mode, captions, narration, an Open Dyslexic text option, and keyboard-only play — and there are still gaps. AbleArcade is a tiny studio and we keep learning. If a setting you need is missing, or one of these is harder to use than it should be, tell us and it shapes the next build.

Feedback: ablearcade-89770a91@ctomail.io

Try it yourself

The best test of all this is thirty seconds of play. Luma Catch is free in your browser — no download, no sign-in. Open Settings in the game and change anything you like.

Play Luma Catch — it’s free How to play