Community & Content Guidelines

1. The spirit of Oddshelf

Oddshelf exists so independent creators can share and sell games, assets and tools, and so players and developers can find them. These Guidelines apply to everything on the Service: Listings, files, browser games, profiles, usernames, comments, ratings, forum posts, reports and messages in Rooms. They are part of the Terms of Service. Where the rules below do not cover a situation, we will judge it by this spirit: respect people, respect creative work, and do not put anyone at risk.

2. Content that is never allowed

2.1 Malware and deceptive software

• Viruses, trojans, ransomware, spyware, keyloggers, cryptominers, credential stealers, droppers, and anything that harms devices or data or acts without the user's knowledge.
• Software that hides what it does, installs unrelated programs, changes system settings without clear consent, or phones home with personal data without disclosure.
• "Cheats", "cracks" or "hacks" for other games or services.
• Disguised links: download buttons that lead to something else, link-shortener ad walls, or swapping a linked file after review.

Files may be scanned automatically. Flagged files are blocked until reviewed. If you are a developer whose legitimate tool is flagged (for example a packer or an unsigned executable), contact [email protected].

2.2 Stolen, pirated and infringing work

• Uploading or linking games, assets, music, fonts or tools you do not have the rights to, including ripped game assets, "free" copies of paid products, and asset packs bought elsewhere under a licence that forbids redistribution.
• Fan games that use protected characters, names or music are allowed only with the rights holder's permission or where a rights holder's published policy allows it, and must say so in the Listing. They must always be free unless the permission allows selling.
• Reuploading another Creator's Product, even with credit.

See the Copyright & DMCA Policy.

2.3 Illegal content

Anything that is illegal in the United States or that is illegal where it is targeted, including illegal goods, instructions for serious crimes, and content that breaks privacy laws. Where content is illegal only in some countries, we may restrict it in those countries.

2.4 Child sexual abuse material and sexualisation of minors

Zero tolerance. Any content that sexualises minors, whether real, drawn, animated, AI-generated or described in text, including characters who are presented as or appear to be minors, is banned. This expressly includes "loli", "shota" and similar content, and characters given an adult age, a fantasy age or an adult backstory but drawn, written or behaving as children. How a character looks and acts decides, not the age the creator claims. We remove it, preserve evidence, report it to NCMEC and law enforcement, and permanently ban the Account. There are no appeals for this violation except in cases of clear error.

2.5 Non-consensual intimate imagery and sexual exploitation

Intimate or sexual images of a real person shared without their consent, including "deepfakes" and AI-generated sexual images of real people, and content that promotes sexual exploitation or trafficking.

2.6 Hate and harassment

• Attacking or demeaning people based on race, ethnicity, national origin, caste, religion, disability, disease, age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, or veteran or immigration status.
• Harassment, bullying, threats, intimidation, encouraging self-harm, and coordinated pile-ons.
• Doxxing: posting someone's private information (address, phone number, real name of an anonymous person, workplace) without consent.
• Targeting Creators with abuse over a product, price, their use of AI, or a review.

2.7 Real-world violence and extremism

• Promoting, praising or inciting real-world violence, terrorism, or mass-casualty events; recruiting for violent or extremist groups.
• Content glorifying extremist symbols or hate symbols (for example Nazi symbols, terrorist flags or white-supremacist codes). Historical, educational or clearly critical depictions may be allowed where the context is unmistakable and the symbol is not glorified.
• Fictional violence in games is fine. Games that simulate or reward attacks on real, identifiable people, places of worship, schools, or real tragedies are not.

2.8 Scams, fraud and real-money gambling

• Phishing, fake giveaways, "get rich" schemes, fake Products, selling something you will not deliver, and asking users to pay outside the Product page to avoid our rules.
• Gambling with real money or with items that can be cashed out for real money, including casino games and betting. Games with simulated gambling using no real money are allowed if clearly disclosed.
• Collecting payment card numbers, passwords or other credentials inside a game or Listing.

2.9 Impersonation and deception

• Pretending to be another person, Creator, studio, brand or Oddshelf staff, or implying an endorsement that does not exist.
• Parody and fan accounts must make clear they are not official.
• Fake or manipulated engagement: fake accounts, bought ratings, vote rings, follow-for-follow schemes, or bots.

3. Content ratings and mature content

3.1 No sexual content. Oddshelf does not allow sexually explicit content or pornography of any kind: no sex scenes, no explicit nudity in a sexual context, no sexual images, text or audio. Romance, kissing, flirting, swimwear and non-sexual nudity (for example classical art) are fine, rated honestly.

3.2 Every Listing has a rating. Creators must choose Everyone, Teen (mild violence, scary moments, some language) or Mature 18+ (strong violence, gore, intense horror or themes), and tick the content descriptors that apply.

3.3 Mature listings are hidden by default. They appear only for members who switch on Mature content in their settings and confirm they are 18 or older, and visitors must confirm the same before opening a Mature page. We do not check IDs; we rely on these confirmations and on parents' supervision of younger users.

3.4 Covers and screenshots must be suitable for everyone, even on Mature listings, because they can appear in search results and previews.

3.5 Wrong ratings are corrected or the Listing is removed, and repeated wrong ratings are a violation. Sexual content leads to removal and may lead to a ban; anything involving minors is handled under section 2.4.

3.6 Screening. We scan uploaded images automatically, use Cloudflare's tool that detects known child sexual abuse imagery, review new Listings and act on reports. A Listing may be hidden while we review it.

4. AI policy

4.1 Every maker, equal. Oddshelf supports traditional creators and creators who use AI equally, whether AI helped with art, code, music, writing, design, all of it or none of it. Tools change over time; we judge the work, not the tools.

4.2 The "Made with AI" badge is optional. Creators may switch on a Made with AI badge and add a short note about how they used AI. Players can filter by it if they wish; it does not raise or lower a Listing anywhere else. Showing the badge is the creator's choice; it is never required.

4.3 Be truthful in what you say. If you describe how a Product was made, in the badge note, the description or anywhere else, it must be accurate. Do not claim something is AI-free if it is not, or misrepresent what the Product is.

4.4 Rights and likeness. You must have the rights to your AI inputs and outputs to the extent the law requires. Do not use AI to copy other people's protected work, distinctive characters or trademarks, or to imitate a real person's likeness or voice without permission.

4.5 Realistic synthetic people. Where the law requires it (for example for realistic AI-generated images, video or voices of people that could be mistaken for real), you must disclose that the content is AI-generated.

4.6 Respect every creator. Members may discuss AI, but harassing Creators because they use AI, or because they do not, is not allowed.

5. Listing quality and honesty

• Titles, descriptions, tags, screenshots and trailers must accurately represent the Product.
• Do not keyword-stuff, use misleading tags, or use other Products' names to attract searches.
• Disclose content warnings (violence, flashing lights, strong language, gambling-like mechanics) and required platforms.
• Do not post the same Product multiple times to take up more space.
• Asset Listings must state the licence clearly and include a preview of what is in the pack.
• Placeholder or empty Listings may be hidden until they have content.

5.1 Mods

5.1.1 Mods are always free. A mod can never have a price, a sale or a paywall, here or anywhere it links to. If you want support for your work, switch on tips: after a download, players see a friendly, optional "Tip the modder" message. Tips never unlock anything.

5.1.2 Follow the game maker's rules. Many games publish rules for mods (for example an end-user licence, modding policy or brand guidelines). You must follow them. Do not include the game's own files, assets or code unless its maker allows it, and do not build mods that cheat in online play, get around anti-cheat, unlock paid content for free or break the law.

5.1.3 Where mod files live. Mod files are linked from GitHub, MediaFire, Dropbox or Google Drive, or uploaded to Oddshelf storage on a Pro or Pro+ plan. Links to other hosts are not accepted for mods. Loaders and tools in our Mod tools & loaders directory link to their official sites, which our team checks.

5.1.4 Honest versions. Every mod download needs a version number. Say which game version it works with and what changed, and list anything players must install first.

5.1.5 Takedowns. If a game's maker sends us a valid complaint about a mod for their game (for example under the Copyright Policy or because it breaks their published mod rules), we may take the mod down, and we tell the modder why.

6. Comments and ratings

6.1 Be genuine. Rate (1 to 5 stars) and comment based on your own experience of the Product. Critical reviews are welcome; be specific and constructive.

6.2 Not allowed:

• rating your own Products, or getting friends, alternate accounts or paid services to rate them;
• Creators offering rewards in exchange for positive ratings, or punishing negative ones;
• "review bombing": coordinated ratings unrelated to the Product's content;
• personal attacks on the Creator or other commenters;
• spoilers without warning, spam, advertising, or links to pirated copies;
• posting other people's private information.

6.3 Creators may reply to comments, but must not delete or hide comments simply because they are negative. We may remove ratings that break these rules and adjust the visible score.

7. Forum rules

1. Pick the right category and search before posting. Duplicate threads may be merged.
2. Stay on topic within a thread. Start a new thread for a new subject.
3. No spam: no repeated posts, bumping for attention, chain posts, or unrelated advertising. Creators can share their work in the categories meant for it.
4. No piracy talk: no requests for or links to cracked, ripped or pirated content.
5. Respect people: disagree with ideas, not people. No harassment, hate, threats or doxxing.
6. Do not impersonate staff or post fake announcements.
7. Keep it safe for everyone: no 18+ material in the forums.
8. No public call-outs: report rule-breaking instead of starting threads to shame people.
9. No necroposting in threads over a year old unless you add something genuinely new.
10. Protect yourself: do not share passwords, payment details or personal contact information.

Moderators may lock, move, merge, pin or remove threads and posts to keep the forums useful. If you delete your Account, your forum posts remain in their threads for continuity but are shown as "[deleted user]" with their text removed.

8. The blog, games and Rooms

8.1 The site blog is written by Oddshelf staff. Comment rules in section 6 apply to blog comments.

8.2 Browser games must stay inside their sandbox and must not attempt to access Oddshelf accounts, mine cryptocurrency, or redirect players to unrelated sites.

8.3 Rooms relay multiplayer messages live and do not store them. These Guidelines still apply to what you send. Creators of multiplayer games should provide in-game ways to mute or report players.

9. Usernames, profiles and avatars

Usernames, display names, bios and avatars must follow these Guidelines. No slurs, sexual content, impersonation, extremist references, or names designed to look like staff. We may require a change or reset a name that breaks the rules.

10. How to report

10.1 Use the report button on any game, Listing, comment, forum post or profile, or email [email protected]. Copyright complaints go to [email protected] (see the Copyright Policy).

10.2 Tell us what the problem is and which rule it breaks. Reports are confidential: we do not tell the reported user who reported them, except where the law requires (for example, copyright notices are shared with the uploader).

10.3 Trusted flaggers (organisations with proven expertise, including those designated under the EU Digital Services Act) receive priority review.

10.4 In an emergency involving a risk to someone's life or safety, contact your local emergency services first.

11. Enforcement

11.1 We consider how serious the violation is, the intent, the harm, and the user's history. Actions include:

11.2 Statement of reasons. When we remove or restrict your content or Account, we will tell you: what we did and its scope and duration; the facts and the rule or law relied on; whether automated tools were used to detect or decide; and how to appeal. We may not notify you about spam, or where the law or safety prevents it.

11.3 Buyers are protected. Enforcement against a Creator does not remove Products from buyers' Libraries unless the Product itself must be removed for a legal reason.

11.4 Ban evasion by creating new Accounts leads to those Accounts being banned too.

12. Appeals

12.1 You can appeal any moderation decision, and a reporter can appeal a decision not to act, by emailing [email protected] within 6 months of the decision. Include the content or Account affected and why you think the decision was wrong.

12.2 Appeals are reviewed by a person, where possible one who did not make the original decision. We will reverse decisions that were wrong and tell you the outcome without undue delay.

12.3 EU users may also refer the dispute to a certified out-of-court dispute settlement body under the Digital Services Act, or go to court.

13. Changes

These Guidelines will evolve as the community grows. We will announce material changes at least 30 days in advance on the blog or by email. Questions or suggestions: [email protected].