Terms of use

UpStream Games · Covers our games, videos and this website · Last updated 9 November 2026

1. Agreement

These terms are between you and UpStream Games, the registered business name of a sole trader based in Queensland, Australia ("we", "us"). By downloading, installing or playing one of our games (from an app store or on a web game site), buying or using our videos or other products, or using this website, you agree to these terms. If you don't agree, please don't use them. If you're under 18, please read these terms with a parent or guardian.

2. Your licence to play

We give you a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable licence to play our games for your own non-commercial entertainment. You must not:

• copy, sell, rent, redistribute, re-host or modify our games, or their art, music or sound;
• reverse engineer or decompile our games, except where the law allows it;
• use cheats, bots or hacks, or interfere with ads or purchases; or
• use our games for anything unlawful.

Our free videos can be watched and played through YouTube under YouTube's terms; please don't download, re-upload or sell them. Products that come with their own licence (such as the NYE Venue Countdown Pack and our asset packs) can be used as that licence allows.

The terms of the app store or web game site you play through also apply (for example the Google Play Terms of Service, Apple's standard licence terms for App Store apps, or the website's own terms).

3. Coins and in-game items

Coins, unlockable items and other in-game rewards are earned by playing. They're a feature of the game only: they have no monetary value, can't be exchanged for money or anything outside the game, and can't be transferred. They're stored on your device or in your browser, and can be lost if you uninstall the game, clear its data or browser storage, or change devices. We may change or rebalance them in updates.

4. Purchases

Some versions of our games may offer optional in-app purchases, such as "Remove Ads". Purchases are made through the app store (such as Google Play or Apple's App Store) and are subject to its terms, including its refund policy. Purchases are linked to your store account and can be restored on another device signed in to the same account, while the game remains available.

Videos, asset packs and other digital products we sell through Gumroad or itch.io are sold by that store as the seller of record, under its terms, and what you can do with them is set out in the licence included with the product. Because they're digital downloads, we don't give refunds for a change of mind. If a file is faulty or not as described, we'll replace it, or refund you if we can't fix it. This doesn't limit your rights under the Australian Consumer Law.

5. App stores, web game sites and ads

Our games are distributed and shown through services run by other companies, such as app stores, web game sites, YouTube, Gumroad, itch.io and advertising networks. Those companies are responsible for their own services, including their availability, the ads they show, how they handle your information and any accounts you hold with them. We don't control or endorse the products or services in ads and aren't responsible for them, or for third-party websites and services, except where the law says otherwise.

6. Health and safety

• Flashing lights: some scenes include brief flashes of light (for example lightning in Paddler's thunderstorms, and the fireworks in Shellburst and our videos). A small number of people may have seizures when exposed to flashing lights or patterns. If you or anyone in your family has had seizures or epilepsy, talk to a doctor before playing, and stop playing straight away if you feel unwell.
• Play somewhere safe: never play while driving, cycling, walking near traffic or doing anything that needs your attention, and take regular breaks.
• It's a game: our games are fiction. Nothing in them is advice about real canoeing, water safety, wildlife, fireworks or anything else. Never use real fireworks except as the law and the maker's instructions allow.

7. Your responsibilities

You're responsible for your device, your internet connection and any data or call charges, and for how and where you play. To the extent the law allows, you play our games at your own risk.

8. Feedback and ideas

We love hearing from players. If you send us feedback, suggestions or ideas (including in comments, polls or messages), you agree we can use them in any way, including in our games, without paying you or owing you anything. Please don't send us anything you want to keep confidential.

9. Changes and availability

We may update, change, suspend or stop offering any game, feature or content at any time, including removing a game from a store or website. We don't promise that our games will always be available, compatible with every device or browser, or free of errors, or that we'll provide updates or support.

10. Australian Consumer Law and our liability

Our games come with guarantees that cannot be excluded under the Australian Consumer Law. Nothing in these terms excludes, restricts or modifies those guarantees, or any other rights you have under laws that can't be excluded, including the consumer laws of the place where you live.

Subject to that, and to the fullest extent permitted by law:

• our games and this website are provided "as is" and "as available", without any other warranties;
• we aren't liable for any indirect or consequential loss;
• we aren't liable for loss or damage caused by things outside our reasonable control, such as outages, device or browser problems, or the actions of app stores, web game sites, ad networks or other third parties; and
• where our liability for failing to comply with a consumer guarantee can be limited, it is limited (at our option) to supplying the game or service again or paying the cost of having it supplied again.

11. Our names, logos and content

All our games, videos, art, music, sound, text and logos are owned by UpStream Games and protected by copyright. Paddler™, Shellburst™ and UpStream Games™ are our trade marks. Please don't use them without our permission, apart from sharing screenshots or videos of yourself playing for non-commercial purposes, which we're happy for you to do.

12. Changes to these terms

We may update these terms from time to time by posting a new version on this page with a new "last updated" date. Changes apply to your use of our games after they're posted, and don't take away anything you've already paid for. If you don't agree with them, you can stop using our games.

13. General

These terms are governed by the laws of Queensland, Australia, and the courts of Queensland have jurisdiction. This doesn't take away any protection you have under the mandatory laws of the place where you live. If any part of these terms can't be enforced, the rest still applies. If we don't enforce a term straight away, we can still enforce it later.

14. Contact

UpStream Games · Queensland, Australia · info@upstreamgames.com.au