An Unwavering Commitment to Inclusivity
At Aetherium Studios, we believe that the vibrant worlds of gaming should be accessible to everyone. Our mission extends beyond crafting compelling visual experiences; it encompasses building a digital space where inclusivity is paramount. We are dedicated to ensuring that our website and all digital content meet the highest standards of web accessibility, empowering all users, including those with disabilities, to navigate, understand, and engage with our work seamlessly. This commitment is not an afterthought but a core principle guiding our design and development processes.
We actively strive to create an environment that respects and accommodates diverse needs. This means meticulously adhering to established guidelines, continuously testing our platforms, and embracing feedback to refine our user experience. The digital frontier we help to build is one where visual culture in gaming is not just enjoyed by the few, but experienced fully by all. Our accessibility efforts are designed to dismantle barriers, fostering a more equitable and engaging online community for every gamer and enthusiast.
WCAG 2.1 AA Conformance
We are committed to upholding the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA, ensuring broad accessibility across our digital platforms.
Learn About WCAG
ARIA Implementation
Leveraging the Accessible Rich Internet Applications (ARIA) suite to enhance screen reader compatibility and semantic structure.
Explore ARIA UsageOur Adherence to WCAG 2.1 AA Standards
The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 provide a globally recognized framework for making web content more accessible. At Aetherium Studios, we have deeply integrated these principles into our development lifecycle. Our commitment to Level AA conformance means we strive to meet the majority of the success criteria across four key principles: Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, and Robust (POUR).
Perceivable: Information and user interface components must be presentable to users in ways they can perceive. This includes providing text alternatives for non-text content (like images and videos), offering captions and transcripts for audio and video, ensuring content can be resized without loss of information, and using sufficient color contrast for text and interactive elements. We meticulously check that all visual elements have descriptive `alt` text, that our videos are captioned, and that our color palettes are designed to be legible for users with various visual impairments. Our focus is on making sure that no user is excluded due to their sensory needs.
Operable: User interface components and navigation must be operable. This means all functionality should be available from a keyboard, users should have enough time to read and use content, content should not cause seizures, and users should have clear navigation and ways to find content. We ensure that our entire website can be navigated using only a keyboard, with visible focus indicators for interactive elements. We avoid blinking or flashing content that could trigger photosensitive epilepsy, and our site structure is logical and predictable, allowing users to orient themselves easily. The ability to pause, stop, or hide moving content is also a key consideration.
Understandable: Information and the operation of the user interface must be understandable. This involves making text content readable and understandable, making web pages appear and operate in predictable ways, and helping users avoid and correct mistakes. We use clear and concise language, avoid jargon where possible, and provide clear instructions for all interactive elements. Our navigation is consistent across the site, and error messages are informative and helpful, guiding users towards a successful interaction. Predictability in design ensures that users can learn and adapt to our interface without undue effort.
Robust: Content must be robust enough that it can be interpreted reliably by a wide variety of user agents, including assistive technologies. This means using valid HTML and CSS, ensuring that custom controls are implemented correctly with appropriate ARIA roles and properties, and that the structure of our content is semantically correct. We are committed to clean code that is compatible with current and future assistive technologies, ensuring long-term accessibility and usability for all our visitors.
High Contrast
Ensuring text and background colors meet WCAG AA contrast ratios for improved readability.
Keyboard Navigable
All interactive elements are fully accessible and operable using keyboard navigation alone.
Semantic Structure
Employing semantic HTML to create a well-structured and interpretable document for assistive technologies.
Leveraging ARIA for Enhanced Usability
The Accessible Rich Internet Applications (ARIA) suite is a powerful set of attributes that can be added to HTML elements to provide more semantic information about their roles, states, and properties. This is particularly crucial for complex user interface components and dynamic content updates, ensuring that assistive technologies, such as screen readers, can interpret and convey this information accurately to users. At Aetherium Studios, we strategically implement ARIA to bridge potential gaps in standard HTML semantics.
For custom widgets like carousels, modal dialogs, and interactive menus, ARIA roles are essential. For instance, a custom button that performs a specific action might be given a `role="button"` and its current state, such as `aria-pressed="true"` or `aria-pressed="false"`, will be dynamically updated. This allows screen reader users to understand the nature of the element and its current status, much like a sighted user would. We also utilize ARIA properties such as `aria-label` and `aria-labelledby` to provide descriptive text for elements that might otherwise lack accessible names, ensuring that screen readers can announce their purpose clearly.
Dynamic content changes are another area where ARIA plays a vital role. When content is updated on the page without a full reload (e.g., search results updating, error messages appearing), `aria-live` regions are employed. These regions allow assistive technologies to announce these changes to the user, preventing them from missing critical information. We carefully manage the `aria-live` levels (polite or assertive) to ensure that updates are announced without being overly disruptive. This proactive use of ARIA significantly enhances the operability and understandability of our site for users relying on assistive technologies, making their interaction smoother and more intuitive.
Below is a table illustrating some common ARIA attributes we utilize and their purpose:
| ARIA Attribute | Purpose | Example Use Case |
|---|---|---|
role
|
Defines the type of an element, especially for custom widgets. |
role="dialog"
for modal windows;
role="tablist"
for tabbed interfaces.
|
aria-label
|
Provides a descriptive label for an element when no visible text label is present. |
aria-label="Close"
for a close button (X icon) in a modal.
|
aria-labelledby
|
Associates an element with another element that provides its accessible name. | Linking a form input field to its associated label element for clearer screen reader announcements. |
aria-live
|
Indicates that a region of the page will be updated dynamically, and that assistive technologies should announce these updates. | Announcing real-time chat messages or form validation errors. |
aria-expanded
|
Indicates whether a widget, like an accordion or dropdown, is expanded or collapsed. |
aria-expanded="true"
for an open accordion section.
|
User Guidance for Assistive Technologies
We are committed to ensuring a smooth experience for users of assistive technologies. Here's how you can best navigate our site using common tools:
Screen Reader Users
Our site is structured semantically and uses ARIA attributes to ensure screen readers like JAWS, NVDA, and VoiceOver can accurately interpret content. Use headings to navigate sections, listen to descriptive `alt` text for images, and utilize keyboard navigation for interactive elements.
Users of Screen Magnifiers
Content is fully resizable up to 200% without loss of information or functionality. Our high contrast color schemes ensure readability even at higher zoom levels. Text content reflows appropriately to fit the viewport.
Voice Control Users
All interactive elements have clear, discernible labels that can be recognized by voice control software. Navigate using commands that target headings, links, and buttons. The logical structure of our pages makes it easy to issue precise commands.
We are continuously working to improve the accessibility of our website. If you encounter any barriers or have suggestions for improvement, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Get in Touch