Ubisoft shares Chroma tool to help make games accessible for colorblind players

Ubisoft has made available to the general public their Chroma tool, designed to enhance the accessibility of video games. Essentially, Chroma is a device that simulates color blindness, enabling game developers to better tailor their creations for people with color vision deficiencies.

As an analyst, I utilize an open-source tool that lays a color filter over the game screen for me. This allows me to assess and ensure the visual content is accessible to individuals with various forms of color blindness, enhancing inclusivity in our gaming environment.

Ubisoft has been developing Chroma since the year 2021. From its inception, Chroma has incorporated features like dual screen compatibility and hotkey support.

For several years now, Chroma has demonstrated exceptional efficiency within our team at Ubisoft, according to David Tisserand, our Accessibility Director.

Our new tool, Chroma, has significantly sped up and broadened our ability to evaluate the color accessibility of our games for colorblind users. As we see accessibility as a continuous process rather than a competition, we’re excited to introduce Chroma to the entire gaming industry. We encourage everyone to use it, share their feedback, and help shape its future.

Chroma allows for the replication of the primary forms of color blindness, specifically Protanopia, Deuteranopia, and Tritanopia. By utilizing this tool, developers have the ability to evaluate and enhance their game’s accessibility by adjusting and optimizing content to cater to users with these types of color vision deficiencies.

The GitHub page for Chroma outlines the main benefits of the tool:

  • Color Simulation on single monitor. This solution works on top of [games] and can be maximized as per requirement.
  • [Works] on all games. No dependency on any specific game or engine.
  • High performance. Able to simulation live gameplay up to 60 FPS.
  • Accurate results.
  • Simulation of all type of color blind forms.
  • Only available solution which capture screen live gameplay screen and simulate.
  • Easy screenshot to log error.
  • Easy and configurable UI.

According to Ubisoft’s Quality Control Product Manager, Jawad Shakil, Chroma was designed with a specific goal in mind: integrating color blindness accessibility effortlessly into the creative and testing phases.

It’s important that games are easy for everyone to play. Throughout the years, there have been many advancements aimed at making gaming more accessible, like the Xbox Adaptive Controller.

Making sure games can be played by all is essential. Over time, we’ve witnessed numerous inventions designed to make gaming more inclusive, such as the Xbox Adaptive Controller.

Back in the early part of the year, Team Xbox collaborated with EA, Google, Nintendo America, Ubisoft, and various other game developers as part of the Accessible Gaming Alliance.

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2025-04-15 21:09