Terms of Service

July 2025

Agreement

Your access to and use of Darkheart’s Playground (“DHPG”, “the Service”, “we”, “us”, or “our”) is contingent on your acceptance of and compliance with these Terms of Service.

These Terms apply to all visitors, users and others who access the Service, and by accessing the service, you agree to be bound by these Terms.

If you disagree with any part of the terms then you may not access the Service.

Personal Information

Minimum Age	By accessing the Service, you affirm that you are at least 18 years of age. We do not knowingly collect information from individuals under 18, and those under 18 are not permitted to use the Service. There are no exceptions to this policy.
Data and Privacy	You grant DHPG permission to process your data to maintain your account. This includes: Registration information you provide when you create an account: Your Email address Your Avatar Name Your IP address Information necessary to connect to your PC such as session IDs and web cookies Any other personal information you give us to service your account. Transaction information you provide when you request information or purchase a product or service from us, whether on our sites or through our applications. You are required to maintain an active email address at which you can receive emails. If your email address has changed, you need to update the data in the system. It will be the channel by which very important messages will be sent. It will not be used for marketing, promotions, or any other reason. Full details of data we hold about your account and usage are found in the Privacy Policy document.
Right to be Forgotten	Active residents have the right to request erasure of personal identifying information, or to the deletion of your account. DHPG may retain certain records that we are required to retain by law.

User Conduct

All users are expected to comply with applicable local, national, and international laws regarding online conduct and acceptable content. This includes, but is not limited to, laws regulating the possession and distribution of images and other content.

Images and Content	Users are strictly prohibited from uploading, sharing, or distributing illegal images or content through our services. This includes, but is not limited to, images or content that violate intellectual property laws, depict illegal activities, or contain explicit or offensive material. Any account found to contain illegal images or content will be subject to immediate suspension or termination, without notice. We reserve the right to report any illegal activity to the appropriate authorities. Users are responsible for all content stored or displayed as an asset linked to their account, and also all activity that occurs under their account. Users are required to report any illegal images or content they encounter to us immediately. Full details of allowed image content is found in our Content Policy.
Harassment	Harassment of any form, including but not limited to verbal, written, physical, or digital harassment, is strictly prohibited within our grid. Users are expected to treat each other with respect and refrain from engaging in behaviour that may cause distress or discomfort to others. Any reports of harassment will be thoroughly investigated by our grid’s administrators, and appropriate actions will be taken against offenders, including but not limited to account suspension or termination. Sending or sharing unsolicited sexual or sensitive images, including but not limited to pornography, explicit content, or graphic depictions of violence, is strictly prohibited within our grid.
Active Consent	Active consent is fundamental to respectful interactions within our grid community. Users must obtain explicit consent before engaging in any activity that may be perceived as invasive or unwelcome. Consent must be freely given, informed, enthusiastic, and specific to the activity in question. Silence, absence of a clear response, or coercion do not constitute consent. Users are encouraged to communicate openly and respectfully with each other to ensure that all interactions are consensual and mutually enjoyable. Users are encouraged to report any content or behaviour that they believe violates this policy to the Community Management team.
Private Information	Users are prohibited from sharing with third parties any private information they may happen to know about other users. This especially includes real-life information, but also inworld information such as the identity of alt accounts, and any other examples of “doxing”. Penalties for sharing private information will range from a warning, to an immediate ban, depending on the severity and potential impact of the incident.
Screenshots and Machinima	It is permissible to capture screenshots and video animations (‘machinima’) from within DHPG in the following circumstances: The subjects are in a G-rated area In a public context, for example at an event or party within a region. A private area or parcel on a M- or A-rated region, with the explicit positive consent of all subjects included in the capture. It is not permissible to capture material under any other circumstance. Distributing screenshots and machinima is permissible in the following circumstances: Displayed in-world, in a manner compliant with the Content Policy. On the DHPG Discord server, if the content is PG. In Region images and/or Profile picks, or in locations specifically intended for advertising your region, if the content is PG. Social media platforms, but only with the explicit positive consent of all subjects included in the capture, and then only if the content is PG. Other locations that may be agreed to by the Admin Team by specific request. It is not permissible to upload any in-world image or video captures under any other circumstances. A breach of these conditions, especially when posting to social media platforms, is subject to a permanent termination of your account. We understand that there may be times when gaining the explicit positive consent of all parties is impossible or impractical. However, in these cases, the Terms still apply: you cannot distribute the content.

Intellectual Property

Copyright	You agree that you will not copy, transfer, or distribute outside of DHPG any content in whole or in part or in modified or unmodified form, that infringes or violates any Intellectual Property Rights of DHPG, other Content Providers, or any third parties. This includes, but is not limited to, mesh assets, textures, animations, sounds, and scripts.
Digital Rights Management	Content creators in DHPG grant to others the right to copy, modify or transfer items they create through the rights management system built into the Service. You agree to respect and follow the rights granted when redistributing the content or derivative works that include that content. Attempts to subvert or change (“god-mod”) the rights defined by the creator will be a cause for suspension or termination of your account. You acknowledge that content creators maintain their rights to their content. You accept full responsibility for use of provided content and remain liable for unlawful usage.
DMCA Notices	If a content provider reports a DMCA violation to DHPG, it will be investigated and if warranted, the offending content will be removed from public access and the inventories of users who have acquired that content. Offending accounts may be banned from use of the Service.

Liability

DHPG shall not be responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with use of or reliance on any such content, goods or services available on or through the Service and associated websites.

The Service may contain links to HyperGrid destinations or third-party services that are not owned or controlled by DHPG. When using a HyperGrid link, you agree that your Avatar Name, Session ID, IP address and other technical information can be sent to other OpenSimulator grids. The destination grid requires this information to provide Hypergrid service, but may use this information by means outside of our control. DHPG has no control over, and assumes no responsibility for, the content, privacy policies, or practices of any third party web site or service.

Termination

DHPG may terminate or suspend access to our Service immediately, without prior notice or liability, for any reason whatsoever, without limitation. However, usually this will only be done in the event of a breach of the Terms of Service.

All provisions of the Terms, including but not limited to: intellectual property, ownership provisions, warranty disclaimers, indemnity and limitations of liability continue to apply after account termination.

Changes to the Terms of Service

These Terms may be modified for any reason, without prior notice (unless prior notice is required by law), by posting the revised Terms here. Continued use of the Service after such changes constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

Content Policy

July 2025

Purpose and Scope

This policy outlines how Darkheart’s Playground (“DHPG”, “the Service”, “we”, “us”, or “our”) aims to ensure a safe and inclusive environment for all users of our online virtual world, Darkheart’s Playground ("the Service") by restricting the creation, distribution, and display of illegal or harmful content.

This policy applies to all users, creators, and administrators within DHPG. It encompasses any virtual objects, images, textures, animations, or other forms of content that are generated, transferred or uploaded into your account, or displayed in-world.

Inevitably, there will be differences of opinion about the classification of certain images; people are all different, and their judgements will vary. We ask our users to be sensitive to this, and err on the side of caution where doubt exists.

Context also matters. There will be situations and locations in which a particular image may be acceptable, but not when displayed in a different situation. A section later in this document discusses the contextual considerations of where images are displayed.

We have tried to give a few examples of situations where certain content is allowed and where it is not. It is, however, impossible to be prescriptive in every possible situation. We will look up to update this advice in line with feedback and questions received.

General Content Restrictions

Completely prohibited in any format, context or location anywhere in DHPG are depictions of:

• Racism: Content that promotes or glorifies racial discrimination, hatred, or violence against individuals or groups based on race, ethnicity, or nationality.
• Torture: Depictions of torture or any form of cruel or inhuman treatment.
• Non-Consensual Pornography: Content that depicts or promotes sexual acts or sexualisation involving non-consenting parties (i.e. non-consenting adults or those under the age of 18) or scenarios depicting rape or coercion.
• Violence: Graphic or gratuitous violence, including but not limited to scenes of intense physical harm, mutilation, or death.
• Hate Speech: Content that promotes or incites hatred, violence, or discrimination against individuals or groups based on characteristics such as race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or nationality.

Real-life (Photographic) Content Restrictions

Photographic images refer to content produced directly from real-life subjects, either directly through a digital camera or scanned from another source, regardless of if or how it has been post-processed.

A photographic image is prohibited if it depicts:

• Children (those under 18), regardless of state of dress or context. This includes modelling shots.
• Adults engaged in very explicit sexual (‘hard-core’) activity.

For avoidance of doubt, photographic content depicting adult nudity is permissible in an appropriate context (see the Contextual/Situational Restrictions section below).

AI-Generated / Photorealistic Content Restrictions

Images generated by Artificial Intelligence have very quickly become ubiquitous on the internet and elsewhere, and the quality and realism has been improving exponentially. It is now at the stage where good AI-generated images are sometimes indistinguishable from real-life photography.

Because the AI producing these images may have been wholly or partially trained on real-life content, we need to differentiate between AI images and less photorealistic content, e.g. older 3D model-based computer-generated images (“CGI”) or illustrations.

Content in this category refers to any material that looks real, or was generated with the intent of making it look as real as possible. It also covers AI-generated images that attempt to imitate a particular style, for example, oil painting, pop art, or other stylistic rendering.

An AI / Photorealistic image is prohibited if it depicts:

• Children, i.e. representations of people who appear to be under-18, who are wholly or partially unclothed, or in clothing that is partially transparent or otherwise not age-appropriate.
• Adults who are wholly or partially naked, and engaged in explicit sexual activity.
• Images that appear to depict an identifiable real minor.
• Images depicting adults with children in lewd or sexual situations, whether either are clothed or not.

Strictly PG images of children are generally permissible, for example for use in a user’s profile or for display in a family home setting (but also see the Contextual/Situational Restrictions section below).

3D CGI and Illustrations Content Restrictions

This category refers to content that is clearly identifiable as computer generated, or hand-drawn illustrations. It covers such material as obviously 3d-modelled CGI, anime/manga style images, or images that are clearly hand-produced, either in digital or traditional media.

Even though this content is not based on real-life material, it can be considered illegal material in certain cases. Prohibited subject matter includes:

• Any sexual interaction between adults and children
• Content that appears to depict an identifiable real minor.
• Content involving children that an average person would consider appeals to the prurient interest, applying contemporary community standards.
• Any content prohibited by the General Content Restrictions above (which apply to all formats).

Under US case law, there can be exceptions for work of ‘serious literary or artistic merit’. If you feel you have a piece of content that falls under this category, the Admin team will adjudicate, but we will apply a high threshold for allowing the content. It is also very important to consider the Contextual/Situational Restrictions described below.

Region Ratings

In DHPG, we apply maturity ratings to each region. This limits the content that can be displayed, as well as avatar activity:

G Regions	Avatars must have a strictly PG appearance and behaviour, and all content must be PG: fully-clothed, appropriate to the avatar’s age and non-sexual in nature. Conversation in the local channel should be limited to PG topics.
M Regions	Avatar nudity is allowed in non-sexual contexts. Avatar sexual activity is not permitted. Content is governed by the restrictions described above.
A Regions	Avatar nudity and sexual contact is allowed. Content is governed by the restrictions described above.

Contextual/Situational Restrictions

Within M- and A-Rated regions, there will probably be a range of different locations within the region: clubs and other venues, shops, residential homes, etc. We urge users to consider the context in which imagery is displayed.

This is necessarily a subjective issue, so we ask for the help of all users to exercise judgement when choosing where to place potentially inappropriate images.

For example: tasteful photographic or AI nudes of adults might be expected or appropriate in some locations: a strip club, erotic art gallery, etc. However, those same images would not be acceptable if placed in (for example) a school, or displayed in a family home, even in the same A-rated region.

Similarly, an AI-generated image of a child in a bikini would be acceptable if placed on a wall in a family home with other family-style snaps. That same image would not be permitted in the lobby of a porn studio, or many other contexts, where it would be interpreted in a very different way.

Some considerations:

• Is the location immediately visible to users when they first teleport into a region?
• Is the location viewable from areas considered ‘public’, or are they in a private area such as a residential house? (note that even with parcel privacy enabled and parcel access lists, users can still ‘cam’ into the area if they are on the region)
• Is the context / nature of the location compatible with the content you are placing in it?
• Does the situation or context of the location influence the way in which an image would be perceived?

It is impossible to generate a comprehensive list of acceptable/not acceptable situations for all images, so we will not attempt to do so. We just ask users to consider the situation and context when selecting imagery, to use your judgement and err on the side of caution if there is doubt.

If a member of the Admin team asks you to remove or alter some content, please comply. We are trying to preserve as much freedom of expression as we can, within the limits of protecting all users and DHPG itself. The alternative is a much more specific and restrictive set of hard limits, something we hope to avoid.

User Profile Images

To reiterate the above advice, images used in user profiles (the ‘second life’ tab, the ‘first life’ tab and ‘picks’ sections), must all comply with the requirements stated above, and be strictly PG in nature. Profiles are considered public, as they can be viewed by anyone from any location, so all requirements expected of material displayed in a public setting on a G-rated region apply here.

Geographic Regions and Local Jurisdictions

Users should always observe the applicable laws and regulations in the jurisdiction in which they reside if they are more restrictive than the requirements stated in this document. It is the user’s responsibility to be aware of these restrictions and comply with them; DHPG is not in a position to provide a legal opinion or advice in any jurisdiction.

Enforcement

All reported violations of the above policy will be fully investigated by administrators. Users can report incidents by raising a ticket on Discord or by speaking to a member of the Community Management team.

• Content that violates this policy will be subject to removal by Administrators.
• There is zero-tolerance for content that is illegal under United States law. Content that is deemed to be illegal will result in an immediate permanent ban of the individual who uploaded it, as well as any alts they might have.
• Penalties for other violations will depend on the severity, and may range from a warning, to a time-based suspension, or permanent ban of the individual concerned.

Changes to This Policy

This policy may be modified for any reason, without prior notice (unless prior notice is required by law), by posting the revised policy here. Continued use of the Service after such changes constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.

Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Content Policy, please contact the Admin Team.

Privacy Policy

July 2025

This policy outlines how Darkheart’s Playground (“DHPG”, “the Service”, “we”, “us”, or “our”) collects, uses, and protects your personal information when you use our online virtual world ("the Service"). By using the Service, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy.

Information Collection

The following forms of information are retained on our servers:

1. Personal Information:
   • Email address
   • IP address
   • Geo-Location (derived from IP)
2. Profile Information (In-World, User-Managed):
   • Bio
   • Interests
   • Avatar Profile Picture
3. Automatically Collected Information:
   • In-app purchases
   • Device information
   • Time Online (for new member sponsorship privileges)
   • Login activity (time/date of connect and disconnect)

Information we do NOT collect:

• Payment Details. No payment info is held anywhere on our servers, it is held within Patreon and/or PODEX systems.
• User Interactions. No local or private chat is logged on any of our services.

How We Use Your Information

We use your information to:

• Provide and improve the Service
• Personalize your experience
• Process transactions
• Communicate with you about the Service
• Ensure compliance with our Terms of Service

Data Sharing and Security

We will never share your information with third-parties except where required by law, or where necessary in order to provide a particular service (e.g. HyperGrid teleports).

We implement appropriate security measures to protect your personal information from unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction.

Your Rights

Active residents have the right to:

• Access your personal information
• Request deletion of your account and associated data

Changes to This Policy

This policy may be modified for any reason, without prior notice (unless prior notice is required by law), by posting the revised policy here. Continued use of the Service after such changes constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.

Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact the Admin Team.