Hey folks and Happy New Year!
As we move into 2026, we’re excited to provide a peek into the proverbial box and share our first devlog of the year with you. This time, we’re telling the story of how the unique nature of Schrodinger's Cat Burglar led to the creation of a suite of unique accessibility features in the game. We also have an update on the new keyart, more on that below!
‘Unboxing’ Accessibility
Picture the scene - you’re thrilled to learn that a wonderful creator you admire is playing your video game that you’re working so hard to build. This is what game dev is about! Sharing your creation with others and enjoying their reactions as they experience the first-time thrill of solving their biggest brain-tickler for themselves.
But disaster! They send you a message to let you know that they’re having difficulty switching between the cats and hitting activation buttons at the same time…. one of the core mechanics of the game. Is it a glitch? What could have gone wrong?
When we first started developing SCB, one of our goals was to make the game enjoyable and playable for as many people as possible. The concept of quantum puzzles could be tricky, so our aim was to keep them simple and satisfying, avoiding overwhelm and leaving players feeling accomplished and masterful - just like a real cat burglar! The focus should always be on the puzzles and gameplay, not the controls.
From initial player tests, we learned quickly that controlling two cats at once with each thumbstick was way too tricky, so we structured the game around never having to move both cats simultaneously (of course, a player absolutely can move both cats together if they wish, and I’m sure we’ll see dexterous speed-runners pulling off some logic-defying stunts in the future).
As we built out Schrodinger’s Cat Burglar to cater to further scenarios, such as playing in co-op or with multiple controls such as keyboard or controller, we added additional abilities such as being able to swap between the cats on the press of a button. If a player wanted to control each cat one-after-the-other, this was completely acceptable.
And it was this trick that Critikid used when playing the game for the first time. Unbeknownst to her, one side of the controller was broken and controlling each cat on a separate stick was impossible! Using the ‘swap cats’ button allowed her to control each cat separately and solve the puzzle!
This same technique has further uses - very convenient for a player who could only use one hand for instance. But it still doesn’t solve the issue of simultaneously pressing the ‘joint activation’ buttons to progress. Very fiddly under the circumstances.
We added two immediate tweaks.
Firstly - We added options in the game to slow down the time required for simultaneous activation. This also helps for laggy connections between coop players. A further extension of this, slowing down global gameplay was included too, just in case other systems required a little extra time for players.
Secondly - we added a neat automated feature: Automate Paired Interactions. When enabled, cat #2 follows the lead of cat #1, so in singleplayer situations where only one cat is usable, both cats can dance to the same tune. Nice!
Automate Paired Interactions in action.
Beyond the Basics: More Accessibility Tools
Seeing how well Critikid adapted (with a half-dead controller!) reinforced the importance of giving players flexible ways to enjoy the game despite the obstacles they might face. We expanded our accessibility features to support a wider range of players.
Colour Settings
By default, Schrödinger’s Cat Burglar uses orange and blue to indicate each of Mittens’ superpositions. For players with colourblindness, these colours can be adjusted in the settings, along with other environmental colours, so you can tweak the visuals to what works best for you.
Motion Sickness Begone!
We know how frustrating motion sickness can be, so we added a maximum camera transition speed setting to help reduce sudden movement. This prevents the camera from swinging too quickly during cutscenes or dialogue moments.
Full Controller Remapping
All of us have preferences with our controller buttons, and this option gives you the freedom to choose whatever buttons you wish! If you’re using specialist hardware to cater to any disabilities, you can set up the buttons exactly how you like.
Tap, or Hold?
There will be moments where players are required to hold a button for the cats to fuse together, or when you’re spamming a button to hack a computer (which, by default, slowly ticks up). You’ll be able to change these to your preference so you’re more comfortable!
Of course, those aren’t the only accessibility options for you. We’re constantly gathering feedback from the community and working to adapt to cater to as many players as possible. If you have suggestions, let us know, below!
Development Update From Mittens’ HQ
New year, new art!
Yep! We’re pleased to reveal our shiny new keyart which Tom has been working slavishly to create. We have been fortunate enough in recent months to see some of our social media posts go viral, however this new visibility also brought our attention to an important issue - many commenters loved the game, but suspected our art was generated by AI.
We get it. AI is everywhere and we all need to have our guard up about what is real work from a talented artist, and what is indecorously rendered by a couple of simple prompts. For the record, none of our art - nor any other part of the game or its marketing - have been generated through AI. Unfortunately however, our previous artstyle did share some similarities with common tropes utilised by the technology, so we decided to take the opportunity to update the art and tease some new elements of the game!
We’ll share more about this decision in our next blogpost but until then we welcome your views on the decision, and on the new art itself!
In other news, our lead developer Martin has recently been busy planning out game levels. We want SCB to be challenging, but not so much that it overwhelms players. Flow and player understanding are vital in puzzle games and we’re working hard to ensure difficulty caters to all playstyles with optional advanced puzzles for the more zealous quantum-enthusiast. Martin and Ziggy have been knee-deep in making sure each zone loads resources efficiently, helping the game run more smoothly.
Take a look at some screenshots of what’s been going on in our minds:
Ziggy’s been hot on the case of level flow… or maybe that’s just a hot air flow vent?
What feels like one seamless level is truly separate levels connected by airlocks.
On top of development work, we’ve also been busy sending Schrodinger’s Cat Burglar to various digital showcases and festivals, and we’re thrilled to share that we were recently included in several of them! Did you catch us?
The Frosty Fest (Australia/New Zealand)
The Games Exchange in Birmingham and Sydney
Steam Animal Fest
We’ll be in more events soon, so stay tuned for future announcements!
What’s Next?
Right now we’re taking time to refine the game’s story to ensure the narrative lands as strongly as intended. We’ve kept the narrative on the down-low for now and we know many of you are curious about Mittens’ story. We promise to reveal more in the near future! For now, enjoy this excerpt on quantum phenomena by Dr. Elvir Schränkung:
That’s a wrap for this month’s devlog! Stay tuned for future blogs; Mittens, Lazy Susan and the team have plenty more in store! Let us know what you’d like to hear about next? Narrative, puzzles design, even just cute cat costumes!
As always, be cute and do crimes!😼
Happy New Year!
Play Schrodinger’s Cat Burglar demo NOW and don’t forget to wishlist!