Terms of Use (V3.2 · Draft aligned to source-code review)

Little Elsewhere (别境)
Operator: 界外造物创意科技（青岛）有限公司 (Jevai Works Creative Technology (Qingdao) Co., Ltd.; trading as Jevai Works)
Effective date: [Insert publication date]
Contact: hello@jevaiworks.com

Welcome to Little Elsewhere, a quiet place to focus, fish, and discover. These Terms of Use ("Terms") explain your rights and responsibilities when using the app, including its free features, Plus purchases, and BUBS.

1. About these Terms

These Terms are an agreement between you and 界外造物创意科技（青岛）有限公司 ("Jevai Works," "we," "us," or "our"). By using Little Elsewhere, you accept these Terms to the extent permitted by law. If you do not agree, please do not use the app.

Our Privacy Policy explains how information is handled. When you obtain Little Elsewhere through Apple's App Store, Apple's Standard Licensed Application End User License Agreement also applies to the extent applicable.

2. Licence and responsible use

We grant you a limited, personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable, non-commercial licence to use Little Elsewhere on devices you own or control, subject to the applicable app-store rules.

You agree not to use the app unlawfully; interfere with its operation; copy, modify, reverse-engineer, or tamper with it except where the law permits; bypass paid-feature limits by altering app data, backups, or purchase records; or infringe the rights of others. You must have the legal capacity or any parent or guardian permission required by applicable law.

3. Your local data and backups

Little Elsewhere does not currently require an account. Your detailed focus history, notes, catches, BUBS, map unlocks, and settings are stored locally on your device.

If you delete the app, use Delete my data, lose your device, or change phones, information that exists only locally may be lost. Operating-system backups, such as iCloud device backups or computer backups, may allow restoration, depending on your device settings and operating system. Little Elsewhere does not currently provide its own in-app iCloud backup or cross-device progress sync. The Export a backup feature provides a readable copy of your data; the current publicly released app does not support importing that exported file back into the app. We cannot recover local data that has not been backed up. This does not limit rights or responsibilities that cannot legally be excluded.

4. Little Elsewhere Plus

Little Elsewhere offers free features and optional Plus access. Current features, limits, and benefits are described in the app.

Plans. Plus may be purchased through a monthly or annual auto-renewing subscription, or through a Lifetime one-time purchase. The Lifetime option is not a recurring annual subscription. The specific features included with a purchase are those described on the purchase screen. We do not guarantee future features or maps that are merely planned and are not expressly included in the purchase offer. We will honour paid benefits expressly promised on the purchase screen, subject to the purchase agreement and applicable law.

Prices and introductory offers. The price, currency, billing period, applicable taxes, eligibility for introductory pricing, and subsequent renewal price are displayed before purchase. Prices and promotions may vary by App Store country or region. Any introductory offer ends according to the terms shown at purchase; an eligible subscription then renews at the disclosed regular price unless cancelled.

Payment and renewal. Apple processes App Store purchases through your Apple Account. Monthly and annual subscriptions automatically renew unless you cancel them in accordance with Apple's rules. Apple generally charges for renewal within the 24 hours before the current period ends. We will disclose the billing interval, renewal pricing, and cancellation process before purchase, and provide prominent pre-renewal reminders where required by applicable law, taking account of the purchasing platform’s notification mechanisms. A Lifetime purchase is charged once and does not renew.

Cancellation. You can manage or cancel an Apple subscription through your device's Settings > Apple Account > Subscriptions or Apple's subscription-management services. Turning off renewal prevents future subscription charges; Plus usually remains available until the end of the paid period. Deleting the app or clearing app data does not cancel a subscription.

Restoring purchases. Use Restore purchases in the app to recover eligible Plus entitlements associated with the purchasing Apple Account. Restoration of purchases does not restore local focus history, fish, BUBS, or saved notes.

Refunds. Apple normally handles App Store refund requests at reportaproblem.apple.com, subject to applicable law and platform rules. Nothing in these Terms removes consumer rights that cannot legally be waived.

Changes. We may update Plus features and prices, but any material change affecting paid entitlements will be handled according to the purchase agreement, Apple's requirements, and applicable consumer law. Price increases for existing auto-renewing subscriptions follow Apple's applicable notice and consent process.

5. What happens when Plus ends

If a monthly or annual subscription ends, you can continue using the free features. Plus-only features return to their free-tier limits, but the catches and other local progress you already earned are not automatically deleted.

For example, if you have 20 fish in your Pond when Plus ends, all 20 remain. When the Pond contains 10 or more fish, you cannot increase its total count. However, a newly caught fish awaiting a Pond decision can still replace an existing fish one-for-one through “Edit Pond”. When the count falls below the free-tier limit of 10, you may add fish again until it reaches 10. Removing one fish from 20 leaves 19 and therefore does not allow direct additions from your Collection, although a one-for-one replacement of a pending catch remains available.

Maps previously unlocked with BUBS remain unlocked while the corresponding local app data is retained, even if Plus ends. Data loss and restoration limitations are described in Section 3.

6. BUBS — in-app currency

BUBS are a virtual currency used within Little Elsewhere.

• Earning BUBS. You can earn BUBS by completing focus sessions, popping certain bubbles in the Pond (subject to a daily limit), and releasing animals. Current earning amounts and limits are shown in the app.
• Using BUBS. BUBS can be used to unlock maps at the prices shown in the app. A map unlocked with BUBS remains unlocked while its local data is retained. Other permitted uses may be added in future updates.
• No real-world value. BUBS cannot currently be bought with money. They have no cash value, cannot be sold, redeemed for money, or transferred to another person, and are not refundable or redeemable outside the app.
• Local storage. BUBS and BUBS map unlocks are stored on your device. They may be lost if local app data is deleted or cannot be restored from a device backup.
• Fair play. We may remove BUBS or unlocks obtained by manipulating saved data, exploiting technical errors, or otherwise circumventing the app's rules, where lawful and reasonable.
• Future adjustments. We may change BUBS earning rates, daily limits, or map prices to keep the app balanced. Changes to a map's BUBS price do not take away an unlock you have already obtained and retained locally.

7. Fish, collectibles, and other virtual items

Fish, shellfish, curios, Pond companions, badges, equipment, outfits, maps, and other rewards are digital content for use in the app. They have no cash redemption value and cannot be traded or transferred outside the app unless a feature expressly allows it.

Some catches depend on chance, the selected map, the length of a focus session, and other gameplay rules. Completing a session does not guarantee a specific item. Current mechanics may change as the app develops, subject to applicable law and existing paid entitlements.

8. Your notes and message bottles

You keep the rights you have in original notes, to-do text, and other content you create. Simply saving this content does not make it public or transfer ownership to us.

The current Message Bottle feature does not enable users to publicly discover or receive one another's bottles. If we introduce cross-user sharing in the future, we will explain how it works and any additional rules before enabling it. You must not use any sharing feature to distribute unlawful, infringing, or harmful content or another person's private information without permission.

9. Intellectual property

The app's software, illustrations, Dulu character, visual worlds, music, sounds, text, and other protected materials belong to us or their respective owners. These Terms do not grant any ownership of those materials. You may share images or results produced by the app for personal, non-commercial purposes, subject to the rights of any third parties and applicable law.

10. Availability and limitations

We aim to keep Little Elsewhere reliable and enjoyable, but cannot guarantee uninterrupted availability or an error-free experience. We may release updates, change features, and discontinue content where lawful, with notice and remedies where required for paid benefits.

Little Elsewhere is a focus and relaxation app, not a medical, diagnostic, or mental-health treatment service. It does not guarantee particular educational, health, or productivity outcomes.

To the extent permitted by law, we are not responsible for indirect or consequential losses or for irrecoverable data kept only on your device. Nothing in these Terms excludes liability that cannot be excluded by law or removes mandatory consumer rights.

11. Changes, termination, and applicable law

We may update these Terms to reflect changes in the app or the law. We will publish the updated version, change the effective date, and give additional notice where required. You may stop using the app at any time; we may restrict use for serious violations of these Terms, subject to applicable law.

These Terms are governed by the laws of the People's Republic of China (excluding Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan), except to the extent mandatory rules where you live apply. If a dispute arises, please contact us first so we can try to resolve it. If we cannot, the dispute may be brought before a court with jurisdiction under applicable law. Nothing here takes away mandatory consumer protections or legal remedies available in your place of residence.

12. Contact

界外造物创意科技（青岛）有限公司 (Jevai Works)
Registered address: 山东省青岛市黄岛区滨海大道路2059号内4栋办公1519户, China (postal code 266500)
Email: hello@jevaiworks.com