At Roll20, we pride ourselves on inclusivity and accessibility across the company. In 2021, our UX & Product Design team has started to put effort towards the design of our products so that they are welcoming for every user, regardless of their abilities, literacy, or attention span. At Roll20, we’re starting to make universal design a core part of our brand.
Universal design serves the broadest range of users possible, rather than trying to address individual accessibility or inclusion objectives. Typically, universal design doesn’t provide additional support for “edge cases.” Instead, it provides a single solution that serves the most extensive possible user base, without added accommodations.
When designing our products, we want to embrace the universal design philosophy, as it encompasses inclusive design, accessibility, and usability without having to take extra measures to make sure we are compliant with “edge case” scenarios.
So how does this start to look in practice? Well, we revamped the Roll20 colors you all are familiar with…
We also know how much you all have been wanting this, so we also wanted to dim the lights a little…
What do these color changes mean for our users at Roll20? How does this support our universal design philosophy?
Our core platform colors before weren’t accessible, meaning, they didn’t pass contrast ratio tests. These tests are meant to make sure that color usage in every scenario is readable to our users.
The option for a darker palette also helps our users who are visually impaired. It’s also for anyone with sensitive eyes, as it prevents blue light from the screen. It’s also best suited for those who play games in the dark.
With both types of color palettes, we have accomplished our goal of ticking all those optimal contrast ratio boxes, so that you all can have an improved Roll20 experience (without the eye strain).
The UX & Product Design team at Roll20 is continuing to make it our top priority to deliver better user experiences for everyone, and that this one small step to a much bigger initiative. Our work will continue in 2022, where you’ll really start to see changes across the platform. Watch our blog for more updates!
Do you have a suggestion to improve Roll20? Leave a post in our Suggestions & Ideas forum!