How it works

La Capseta isn't a game in the usual sense of mobile games: it's really a small musical pastime made for young children and, for that reason, always under the supervision of their parents, who are the ones who start it. There are no scores, no challenges and no levels to beat here: just music and animations. That's why every music box works the same way: first, the cover, with the Parents' corner; then, the game, for the child.

No screen, if you prefer. Some parents don't want their young children to have any contact with a phone. For them there's dark mode: the screen stays black and only the music plays, like an old-fashioned music box. The child doesn't see or touch anything: they just listen. The device can stay far away, on the bedside table, and the music box stops by itself when it ends.

Every session with La Capseta is driven by routines (we explain them below). It's our way of adapting to wherever it's being used. Starting La Capseta on a crowded metro, where the child may feel overwhelmed, isn't the same as starting it at home, as part of the bedtime ritual. And we can adapt easily. You just have to tell us.

Routines and calm

A routine divides the session into stages. Each stage says whether pictures are shown or the screen stays dark (dark mode is specially designed to help the child fall asleep: no pictures, no animations, just music), how calm the music box is (the calm level) and the volume. Stages are parts of the session, not minutes: they work the same with any duration, and the change from one to the next is gradual.

The calm level. Each stage has a calm level: normal, calm or very calm. The calmer it is, the slower the picture moves (15% slower at "calm", 30% at "very calm"), the bigger it looks and the longer it stays before changing to another one. So, as bedtime gets closer, the music box calms down too. As we said before: we're ready to adapt to the situation, and the moments before "bedtime" are very important.

There's always a routine selected; by default, Free:

Free: the whole session the same, with pictures, normal calm level and volume.
Bath and bed: half with pictures, a quarter calmer, and the last quarter dark, with the volume at its lowest.
Just bed: the whole session dark, with the volume at its lowest.
Stroll: half calm and half very calm, with the volume at its highest, for the street noise.

Each routine also says whether the music keeps playing when you leave the app or the screen locks. You choose the routine in the settings.

The game

This is the fun part, and it's where we've put our heart and soul: the space for the child, with the songs and the animations (unless you've turned on dark mode). Songs play one after another, never the same one twice in a row. The versions for babies have fewer songs than the others, but they last longer (babies love repeating what they already know). With the song you'll see a picture moving slowly (very slowly if your child is a baby). Every so often the picture and its movement change: each one repeats a few times, because young children love repetition. The music and the animation each go their own way.

In the music boxes for babies, touching the screen does nothing, but in the ones for older children, touching the picture brings out the magic: the picture and the animation change to new ones. Simple but effective: a young child needs nothing more. That's the fun of the music boxes for "big kids". And since every music box has lots of pictures and lots of animations, variety is guaranteed. Try it yourself: you'll have a good laugh. Playing for the pleasure of playing, listening to children's music, without having to beat any score, is a small pleasure that even adults can enjoy, even if only for a few minutes. And if we play with our children, fun (for everyone) is guaranteed, I promise.

The end

How it ends

You choose how long La Capseta plays: it's one of the options in the Parents' corner. We do it this way so you don't have to worry about stopping it. Every session has a maximum duration, and that way we make sure the child doesn't get "hooked" on the device.

But La Capseta doesn't stop suddenly: there's a programmed ending, the same for all of them, which we call the "Goodbye": the picture of a baby sleeping with a dummy in a rocker that serves as a cradle (shaped like a music box), which rocks and slowly fades to dark, while the music carries on for a few more seconds, until it ends. And that's it: the music box does nothing more, the screen goes black and the device may even switch off by itself. There's only one thing left for you to do: tiptoe into their room to get your iPhone (or iPad) back. But be careful not to wake them up, they're asleep! Don't turn the device on in the room: wait until you're out. You're welcome…

How to stop it

La Capseta stops by itself, so don't worry. But if you need to stop it to get your device back, double-tap the Exit button (small, top right): it stops at once. With the device locked, you can also use the music controls on the lock screen.

Before you start

When you open it

The music box checks that everything is ready. It takes a few seconds, just enough to make sure no resource is damaged: you see the title and the music box, standing still. "La Capseta never breaks" is our motto: we make sure there will never be interruptions because of damaged songs or pictures.

The first time

The first time you open it, La Capseta shows you a short help, four pages long: what it is, how to set it up, how to stop it and how it sounds. Read it: it takes two minutes and will save you questions.

The notices

Before starting, the music box checks the device and, if needed, warns you. Each notice has OK and "Don't show this again". They never block anything: they warn you and the music box carries on. But they're worth reading, because each one saves you a fright:

Guided Access. It's an iPhone and iPad option that keeps the device locked inside a single app. With Guided Access on, the child can't leave the music box by accidentally touching the screen. You turn it on in the device settings, under Accessibility.
Focus mode. A notification (a message, a call, a reminder) can interrupt the music box just as the child falls asleep (that's "Murphy's law"). The "Sleep" or "Do Not Disturb" mode silences them.
Before your baby falls asleep. Before starting, turn off interruptions, check the volume and lower the brightness. There's no need to stop the music box: it ends by itself, gently. And if you need to stop it with the screen off, move the device away from your baby before turning it on, because the lock screen can be very bright.
Reduce Motion. If the device has "Reduce Motion" turned on, the music box will move the picture as little as it can. You can change this in the Parents' corner.
Headphones. With headphones, the music box doesn't play: the sound would be too close to a young child's ear. When you unplug them, it carries on by itself.

The magic animation

We call "magic animation" a little animation that shows you how the "game" works. A finger moves around more or less at random and, at some point, taps the picture (a music box that had been standing still until then). And, all of a sudden, the music box wakes up and spins: it's our "Twirl". That's how we show you how it works, and that's how you show your child what to do. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, right?

The "magic animation" repeats until you press "Start". Next to it there's the "Don't show this again" box: no need to repeat the lesson every time, right? In the music boxes for babies there's no finger: the music box just spins.

If you've turned it off, the music box's theme tune plays (about 15 seconds) and the game starts by itself. And if you've chosen "Go straight to play", the cover only lasts a few seconds, in silence. You can use this time to go into Settings if you need to change something. Do you want to change the duration? The background colour? The routine, perhaps?

Settings

This is what we call "the Parents' corner". In this last moment of the cover (the magic animation, the theme tune or the wait), in the top left corner there's the Settings icon: double-tap it. It's important to know the options, so the music box can adapt to every moment:

Language: Catalan or English, for the parents' texts.
Duration: how long each session lasts. None is unlimited.
Routine: how the session is divided (we explain them above).
Dark mode (babies and toddlers): black screen and just music, to fall asleep.
Background colour: one of the five colours of the music box's palette.
Skip the magic animation and go straight to the game: to keep the cover short.
Reduce Motion: like the device, yes or no.

Each option is explained in detail in The parents' corner. When you leave it, the game starts. If you leave the app while it's on the cover, it starts over when you come back.

If something happens

If you leave the app: depending on the routine, the music keeps playing or pauses. When you come back, it continues with a new song and a new picture; if it was paused, the time away doesn't count.
A call or an alarm: the music box goes quiet and carries on when they end.
With headphones: it doesn't play. When you unplug them, it carries on.