Accessibility
Last updated: September 2026
We want as many people as possible to be able to enjoy tower defense on this site. This page describes what we have done to make the site and its games accessible, where the current limits are, and how to tell us about problems.
Our target
We aim to meet the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 at level AA across the site. We have not had the site formally audited or certified, and we do not claim certification. This statement describes our own work and testing.
The website
- Semantic HTML. Pages use proper headings, landmarks, lists and links so that assistive technology can navigate them.
- Skip link. A "skip to content" link lets keyboard users move past the navigation.
- Visible focus. Every interactive element shows a clear focus outline when you move to it with the keyboard.
- No hover-only controls. Nothing on the site or in the games requires hovering with a mouse.
- Large touch targets. Buttons are sized to be comfortable to tap on phones and tablets.
- Themes. You can choose a light theme, a dark theme or follow your system setting.
- Written instructions. Every game page includes a written How to Play section and a Controls section, so you can learn a game before you start it.
The games
Keyboard play
Every game can be played entirely with a keyboard:
- 1–6: choose a tower type
- Arrow keys: move a cursor over the map
- Enter: build on, or select, the tile under the cursor
- Space: pause or resume
- F: change speed (1×, 2×, 3×)
- N: start the next wave
- U: upgrade the selected tower
- Delete or Backspace: sell the selected tower
- T: change the selected tower's targeting mode
- M: sound on or off
- Esc: cancel or deselect
Our guide to tower defense controls on mobile covers touch play in more detail.
Pace and timing
You control the pace. In most games a wave only starts when you choose, every game can be paused at any time, and 1× speed is always available. Where a game offers an auto-start option, such as Endless Defense, it can be switched off. Quick Defense uses an auto-start countdown by design, but can still be paused whenever you like.
Reduced motion
If your device is set to reduce motion, the games respect that setting and cut back particle and screen effects.
Sound
Sound effects are never required to play. Everything important is shown on screen, and sound can be turned off with M or the sound toggle.
Known limitations
We would rather be clear about what does not yet work well:
- Screen readers. The games are drawn on an HTML5 canvas and are visual by nature. The surrounding pages, menus and instructions work with screen readers, but the games themselves are not fully playable with a screen reader alone.
- Fast action. Some waves become busy, and some players may find them hard to follow or react to. Pausing and playing at 1× speed help a great deal, and games rated easy, such as Kingdom Defender, are a gentler place to start. Tower defense difficulty explained describes our difficulty ratings.
Feedback
If you run into a barrier, please tell us through the contact page. Let us know the page or game, what you were trying to do, and what device, browser or assistive technology you were using. We read every report and use them to decide what to improve next.