Licensing: the essentials in three minutes
A track can be used if its open licence is no stricter than CC BY-NC or its author directly allowed it in the level. A track from YouTube, SoundCloud or Spotify needs its author's permission
There is no official server or site for levels yet, they are in development. The rules below are already written. The Steam build already checks a level by them and publishes it to Steam Workshop - Publishing
In short
Suitable licences include, for example, CC0, CC BY, MIT or SIL OFL 1.1.
YouTube, SoundCloud and Spotify issue no licence to anyone, so a track from there can only be used with its author's permission
The same rule applies to images, fonts and any other files in a level. More - Two ways to a legal resource
Nothing is checked at home
A level on your disk is not checked. Not on create, not on save, not on load. A level for yourself can be built from any files at all, the editor sets no conditions
Checking switches on at one moment: when a level is handed to a service
The order of work
- Pick a source before you build the level - Where to get resources
- No suitable licence? Ask the author, also before you build - Asking an author for permission
- Fill in the resource's record as soon as you add the file - The resource record
- Check the level before publishing - Readiness to publish
The level's licence
Levels are distributed under CC BY-NC:
- CC - Creative Commons
- BY - the author has to be credited
- NC - non-commercial use only
That licence covers your work: the placement, the timing, the keys, the composition. It does not relicense other people's files inside the level. Every external resource keeps its own terms, and they are recorded separately, per resource
Every resource has to qualify
A level qualifies only if every resource in it qualifies. If even one fits neither of the two options, the level will not get onto the official server
What the licence does not cover
The service's rules describe this:
- your statement that you hold the rights you claim
- the operator's right to moderate and remove levels
- the right to show a level's name in listings
- the disclaimer of liability
Why non-commercial
I do not stand in the way of levels being shared freely. The only thing I am against is commercial use
The game is free: no purchases, no ads, no paid content, no donations tied to what is hosted. So the "non-commercial" condition is met for the platform itself. CC 4.0 licenses every recipient directly from the author, and the chain author - server - player needs no additional permission