Terms & Disclaimer

Effective: 1 July 2026 · Last updated: 5 July 2026. By creating an account or playing Hollowcross ("the game", "we", "us") you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the game.

1. Eligibility & age (15+)

Hollowcross contains paid randomised items (loot boxes) and is intended for players aged 15 and over. Because it contains such paid randomised items and in-game purchases, where the game is distributed through a storefront it carries that storefront's own content rating and descriptors — on Steam these come from Valve's content survey and include an "In-Game Purchases (Includes Random Items)" descriptor, while storefronts such as Google Play, Nintendo or Microsoft use the IARC rating system. We have not obtained a separate standalone rating (such as ESRB or PEGI) for the website version; our 15+ requirement is based on the nature of the content and mechanics. You must be at least 15 years old to create an account or play. By registering you confirm you are 15 or older and that your date of birth is true. Accounts made by or for anyone under 15, or with a false date of birth, are prohibited and will be removed. A parent or guardian who believes an underage account exists can contact us (below) to have it deleted.

2. Region availability & circumvention

The game is not available in all regions and is disabled in certain countries where paid randomised packs are restricted, or where their legal status is unsettled and we have chosen to withhold the feature (including Belgium, the Netherlands, and China). You confirm the country you select at sign-up is your true country of residence, that you are not accessing the game from a restricted region, and that using the game is lawful where you are. If you are only temporarily and in good faith in a restricted region (for example, travelling), a regional block that prevents access is not a forfeiture of your account or balance; we may ask for reasonable verification. In jurisdictions that permit paid randomised items but require probability disclosure (for example South Korea), we disclose the odds of every paid randomised item in-game and, where required, in advertising, and comply with local rules on minors.

"Other" is not a substitute for your real country of residence. If your country is not listed, do not register — contact us instead. Selecting a false country, including choosing "Other" when your country is listed or restricted, is a breach of these Terms.

Using a VPN, proxy, false location, or any other means to bypass a regional block — or registering with a country other than your true location — is strictly prohibited and a breach of these Terms. If you access the game in or from a restricted region by any such means, you do so entirely at your own risk and responsibility, and to the maximum extent permitted by law we accept no liability for it. We may suspend or terminate any account and block any IP found circumventing these restrictions, at any time and without prior notice, subject to your consumer-law rights and clause 4. Nothing here limits your non-excludable rights under the Australian Consumer Law.

3. Randomised packs & odds

The game sells card packs containing randomised cards. The drop-rate odds for each paid pack are clearly displayed before you buy it, and any mechanic that consumes paid currency will show its odds before you commit. Outcomes are determined by chance; a given result (a "bad pull") is the normal, disclosed operation of the pack and is not a fault.

The game also includes other chance-based mechanics (such as Salvage, which grants a random card of a given rarity). Where odds or rules are shown in-game before you commit resources, those disclosures apply. An unfavourable result is normal operation, not a fault.

4. Virtual items & currency

Gems, credits, cards and all in-game items are a limited, personal, revocable, non-transferable licence to use them within the game only. They have no real-world monetary value and cannot be cashed out, sold, or traded for real money by you or anyone. We may add, change, remove, or expire items and balancing at any time as part of running and updating the game. Items do not survive account termination; however, where we terminate your account without cause, or permanently close the game, we will refund or credit unconsumed paid currency to the extent the law requires. If we materially devalue or expire a paid currency or item other than through normal gameplay (routine balancing — such as adjusting card stats or drop rates — is normal gameplay, not a material devaluation of paid value), that does not affect your consumer-law remedies, and we will give reasonable notice where practical. Where we remove items when restricting or terminating your account, any forfeiture will be proportionate to the reason and you may ask us to review it.

4.1 Steam-exclusive DLC card

We offer a Steam-exclusive Deity card ("Vaporghast, the Scalding Shade") sold as downloadable content through Steam. Like all in-game items it is a limited, personal, revocable, non-transferable licence with no real-world monetary value; buying it through Steam does not give it cash value or make it tradable. To receive it you must link your Steam account and own the DLC on Steam; we grant the card to your linked Hollowcross account once Steam confirms ownership. Once you own it, the card may appear as a duplicate in your own card packs — this is intended. The card is granted to your Hollowcross account and, like other virtual items, does not survive termination of that account; your separate DLC entitlement on Steam remains subject to the Steam Subscriber Agreement, and any refund of the DLC purchase is handled by Steam.

5. Purchases, pricing & refunds

Prices are shown before purchase and may change. For purchases made on our website, Max Andrew Smales (ABN 27 184 513 885) is the seller and merchant of record; card payments are processed on our behalf by our third-party payment processor (Stripe), which handles payment processing only and is not the seller. For purchases made through the Steam version of the game, Valve Corporation (Steam) is the merchant of record for that transaction and Steam's purchase and refund terms apply in addition to these Terms. Prices for web purchases are shown in the currency indicated and include any GST, VAT or sales tax we are required to charge and remit as the seller. For Steam purchases, Steam determines, collects and remits any applicable tax as merchant of record. You are responsible for any additional local taxes or bank/currency-conversion fees imposed by your own payment method. Nothing in these Terms excludes, restricts or modifies any consumer guarantee or right you have under applicable law, including the Australian Consumer Law (ACL); your statutory rights always prevail over anything here.

You are entitled to a remedy where the law requires one — for example, if you paid for gems or a pack and did not receive what you purchased, the product was not as described, or it was not of acceptable quality or reasonably fit for a purpose we described or that you made known to us (whether or not we were at fault). For a major failure you may choose a refund (in money, to your original payment method) or a replacement. For a problem that is not a major failure, we may choose to repair, replace, or credit the item within a reasonable time. We do not provide refunds for change of mind, for the random outcome of a pack (the odds are disclosed before you buy), or for items consumed as intended — this does not affect your rights if a pack does not work as described or the displayed odds were not applied. To request a refund or report a purchase problem, contact us (see below) — this is usually the fastest way to resolve it, and nothing here limits your right to a chargeback for a genuinely unauthorised, fraudulent, or unresolved charge. We may suspend accounts associated with fraudulent or abusive chargebacks — by which we mean a chargeback made without first contacting us and later found to be unauthorised or false. A good-faith chargeback for a genuine, unresolved consumer-guarantee claim will not, on its own, lead to suspension.

EU/UK consumers — right of withdrawal: for digital content (gems, packs, and other in-game items) delivered immediately after purchase, you give your express consent at checkout to immediate delivery and acknowledge that delivery begins as soon as the purchase completes and that you lose your 14-day right to cancel once delivery has started, to the extent permitted by law. Your statutory remedies for faulty or misdescribed digital content still apply. For purchases completed through Steam's overlay, Steam's checkout captures this consent and Steam's Refund Policy governs.

Who pays: a purchase is tied to the account it is made on. By paying, you confirm you are authorised to use the payment method, are 18 or over (or have the consent of a parent or guardian who controls the payment method), and are buying for your own account; gifting or paying for someone else's account is not supported. Players aged 15-17 should use platform-level parental spending controls (for example Steam Family or a parental PIN) before making any purchase. If a purchase was made by someone under 18 without the consent of a parent or guardian who controls the payment method, contact us and we will work with you on a refund — including refunding a paid randomised purchase (loot box) made by a minor without such consent; for a parental refund or an underage-account report we may verify the parent or guardian's relationship to the account by other reasonable means, since the in-account or 2FA check will not be available to them.

5.1 Live payments

Live payments are enabled. In-game gem and pack purchases on the website are real charges: the price is shown at checkout and your chosen payment method is charged through our processor (Stripe). Purchases completed through Steam's in-client overlay are likewise real charges processed by Steam. Virtual items and currency you obtain have no real-world monetary value (clause 4), the odds of any randomised pack are shown before you buy (clause 3), and nothing here affects your statutory rights, including under the Australian Consumer Law.

5.2 Steam purchases & the desktop app

Hollowcross is also available as a desktop application distributed through Valve's Steam platform. If you buy gems, downloadable content, or other items through Steam, the sale is made by Valve Corporation, not by us: Valve is the merchant of record, sets the final price in your Steam wallet currency (Steam prices are set separately from our website prices and are generally higher), collects payment, and handles any applicable tax. Which of us is the seller depends on how you pay: a purchase completed through Steam's in-client overlay is sold by Valve (Steam is the merchant of record and handles its own tax and refunds); a purchase completed through our website checkout is sold by us via Stripe as described in clause 5. The Steam desktop app only offers Steam's payment method. Steam purchases are governed by the Steam Subscriber Agreement and the Steam Refund Policy (store.steampowered.com), in addition to these Terms. Because we neither process nor hold the funds for a Steam purchase, refunds for anything bought through Steam must be requested through Steam under Valve's refund policy — we cannot reverse a Steam charge ourselves; you can still contact us and, where the law requires a remedy, we will help you obtain it. Our age (15+) and region rules apply on Steam in the same way, and your Steam account and its use are also subject to Steam's own terms and minimum-age requirements. The Hollowcross desktop app is a thin wrapper that loads the live hollowcross.com website in a native window (so game content updates automatically from our servers), stores the same login session cookie on your device, and opens external links (support, Discord, payment, and store pages) in your default browser. Nothing in this clause limits your non-excludable rights under the Australian Consumer Law or the mandatory consumer-protection laws of your country of residence.

6. Fair play & conduct

Cheating, exploiting bugs, automated play, harassment or abusive chat, hate speech, or attempting to obtain real-world value from in-game items may result in muting, suspension, or permanent account/game bans, at our discretion. This includes real-money trading — buying, selling, or trading accounts, gems, cards, or other virtual items for real money or outside the game.

You are responsible for the content you submit — including your username, guild name, and chat messages — and you must not submit anything unlawful, infringing, deceptive, or offensive, or impersonate another person. You grant us a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to host, display, and moderate that content for the purpose of operating the game, and we may remove or change any username, guild name, or message that breaches these Terms.

6.1 Copyright & takedowns

If you believe content on Hollowcross infringes your copyright or other rights, email Admin@hollowcross.com with the details. We may remove or disable access to content we reasonably believe infringes third-party rights.

6.2 Discord community & bot

We run an official Discord server and bot. Taking part is voluntary, and your use of Discord is also subject to Discord's own Terms of Service. Our community rules apply there, and moderation is partly automated: the bot may automatically remove messages and issue warnings, timeouts, or bans for prohibited content, spam, invite or scam links, or raids, at our discretion — and you can contact us to have any action reviewed. Linking your game account to Discord is optional; it connects your two identities so we can grant roles and ranks that reflect your progress, and you can unlink at any time. Rewards, currency, or items earned or spent through the bot (for example daily rewards, duels, or opening packs) are part of the game and are governed by clauses 4 and 5 — including that randomized packs disclose their odds before you commit and that virtual items have no real-world value. We do not guarantee the bot's availability, and abusing, automating, or exploiting bot commands is a breach of clause 6. To use account-linked bot features you must meet our age requirement (15+); joining Discord itself is subject to Discord's own minimum age.

7. Service & availability

The game is provided on a best-effort, "as is" basis; we may update, suspend, or discontinue features, content, or the whole service at any time. We do not guarantee uninterrupted or error-free availability. If we permanently close the game, we will give reasonable notice where practical and handle recently purchased, unconsumed currency as described in clause 4. This does not limit any non-excludable rights you have under consumer law.

7.1 Beta features

Features marked Beta (such as the Gauntlet) may change, reset, or be removed without notice. Progress or rewards earned in Beta modes may be reset during development. Beta modes do not consume paid currency (gems) and may use random mechanics without published odds. If a Beta mechanic ever consumes paid currency, its odds will be shown before you commit, as in clause 3.

8. Our content

The game, its cards, artwork, names, and code are owned by us or our licensors. You receive a personal, non-exclusive licence to play; you may not copy, redistribute, resell, reverse-engineer, or create derivative works without permission.

9. Suspension & termination

We may suspend, restrict, or permanently terminate your account or access — and remove associated virtual items — if you breach these Terms, attempt to circumvent regional or age restrictions, abuse other players, or where we are required to by law. Where the termination is not due to your breach, this does not remove any refund right you have under consumer law or clause 4.

10. Limitation of liability

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits any right or remedy you have that cannot lawfully be excluded (including the consumer guarantees under the Australian Consumer Law). Subject to those non-excludable rights, to the maximum extent permitted by law: the game is provided "as is"; we are not liable for indirect, incidental, or consequential loss, lost progress, or loss of virtual items; and our aggregate liability for claims not covered by a non-excludable right or guarantee is limited to the total amount you paid for the game in the 12 months before the claim.

11. Indemnity

To the extent permitted by law, you agree to indemnify us against third-party claims, and the reasonable costs arising from them, that result from your unlawful conduct or your material breach of these Terms — including accessing the game from a restricted region or misrepresenting your location or age — and only to the extent your conduct actually caused the claim. This does not apply to the extent a loss is caused by us, and nothing in this clause limits your non-excludable rights under the Australian Consumer Law.

12. Privacy

We collect and handle personal information (including email, username, date of birth, country, gender, IP address, purchases, chat, your Discord ID if you choose to link, your Steam ID (if you link Steam), your saved audio/accessibility settings, and other gameplay data) as described in our Privacy Policy. By using the game you also agree to that policy.

13. Your account & security

You are responsible for your account and for keeping your login details secure. Keep your password confidential and do not share your account. We provide two-factor authentication (2FA) you can enable for extra protection; all staff accounts are required to use 2FA. You are responsible for activity that occurs under your account, except for unauthorised access that is not the result of your own failure to keep your details secure; we take reasonable steps to protect your account and personal information. Tell us immediately if you believe your account has been accessed without your permission. You may not operate multiple accounts to gain an unfair advantage, and accounts may not be sold, bought, or transferred. If your account is compromised and you tell us promptly, we may — at our discretion and subject to consumer law — restore items lost to genuinely unauthorised access (such as credential theft); this does not apply to losses arising from you sharing your login or letting someone else use your account, which remain your responsibility. If an account holder dies or loses capacity, their representative may contact us with reasonable proof to request closure or deletion of the account (subject to the retention exceptions in our Privacy Policy); any balance is handled as in clause 4.

14. Changes & contact

We may update these Terms; material changes will be posted in-game and on our Discord, and where a change materially reduces your rights we will take reasonable steps to notify you. Continued play after changes take effect means you accept them. These Terms are governed by the laws of Australia, and you submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Australia. Please contact us first so we can try to resolve any dispute in good faith; if you are a consumer, this does not affect any right you have to bring proceedings in the courts of your own country of residence, and — if you are a consumer resident in the EU, the UK, or another place whose law gives you mandatory protections — you also keep the benefit of the mandatory consumer-protection laws of your country of residence. You may also use any consumer mediation or dispute-resolution scheme available to you where you live. Nothing here requires you to give up any right to take part in a representative action the law allows. Hollowcross is operated by Max Andrew Smales (sole trader, Perth, WA, Australia; ABN 27 184 513 885). Questions, refunds, privacy requests, and underage reports: email Admin@hollowcross.com or join our Discord. If any part of these Terms is unenforceable, the rest still applies.

15. General

These Terms, together with our Privacy Policy, are the entire agreement between you and us about the game. If you use Hollowcross through Steam, Valve's Steam Subscriber Agreement and related Steam policies also apply to your Steam account, the Steam platform, and any purchase you make through Steam, in addition to these Terms. We may transfer (assign) our rights and obligations — for example if the game is sold — without reducing your rights under consumer law; you may not transfer yours without our consent. Our failure to enforce a term is not a waiver of it. Clauses that by their nature should continue (including those on virtual items, our content, limitation of liability, and indemnity) survive termination. We are not liable for failures caused by events beyond our reasonable control, without limiting your non-excludable consumer rights.

By creating an account you accept these Terms & Disclaimer.