Ubisoft has announced the public release of Chroma, its colorblind simulation tool, after several years of internal development and use. With an estimated 300 million people globally affected by colorblindness, Chroma is designed to assist game developers in accurately simulating the visual experiences of colorblind players. This enables creators to assess their game designs for accessibility and ensure more inclusive gaming content for a wider audience.
Originally developed in 2021 by Ubisoft´s Quality Control team in India, Chroma was built to give real-time feedback and allow direct game control while simulating colorblindness. The tool applies a non-intrusive overlay filter to the game screen using the widely respected Color Oracle algorithm. Its design prioritizes performance, ensuring that simulation does not hinder gameplay or system responsiveness, and supports both single and dual screen setups.
Chroma is open-source, offering highly customizable features such as hotkeys and flexible overlays. Ubisoft Director of Accessibility, David Tisserand, emphasized that Chroma has already improved the company´s own accessibility efforts by providing faster and more comprehensive assessments for colorblind players. By sharing the tool with the wider development community, Ubisoft invites further contributions, feedback, and enhancements to continue advancing accessibility standards in gaming and interactive media.
