Terms of use

Effective from: 19 October 2026
Version: 1.0

1. The short version

Pelicook is free to play and is for everyone aged 13 and over.
Play fair: no cheating, no nasty names, no abusing bugs.
Coins and Gems are play money. They are not real money; you cannot cash them in or sell them. Gems never expire.
Pelicook is currently a test version: your progress may be wiped before the real launch (section 3).
Right now you cannot buy anything and there are no ads. Sections 11 and 12 only apply once that starts.
If we take action against your account or name, we tell you why and you can appeal.
You can always delete your account in the game.
How we handle your data is explained in the privacy policy.

2. Who are we?

Pelicook is made by Lorenzo L. (sole proprietorship), trading as Pelicook.

Chamber of Commerce (KvK) number: follows after registration
VAT number: follows after registration
E-mail: support@pelicook.com

This e-mail address is also our point of contact for players and for authorities under the Digital Services Act (the European law for online services). You can write to us in English or Dutch.

We currently publish no postal address; e-mail is our only contact address. A postal address will follow before anything is for sale (web shop or App Store).

3. When do these terms apply?

These terms apply as soon as you play Pelicook: in the browser, on pelicook.com or (later) in the iPhone app.
They form an agreement between you and us.
Pelicook is currently a test version (alpha) on pelicook.com. Anyone who meets these terms may play. The word "test version" is clearly shown in the game and on the website. The game may contain bugs, may sometimes not work, and parts may change.
Please note: during the test phase your progress may be wiped. Everything you build up in the test version (such as Coins, Gems, levels and items) may be wiped or reset before the real launch. We announce this in advance, in the game and on the website. So do not rely on that progress.
You cannot buy anything in the test version, so such a wipe does not cost you any money you paid.
Until then we do our best to keep your progress.

4. Age

You must be 13 or older to play.
At the first start we ask for your year of birth. Please answer honestly.
Under 16? Read these terms together with your parent or guardian.
Some parts have a higher age. For example, you can only buy in a web shop from age 18 (if there is one).

5. Your account

You start as a guest. You get an automatic name ("Player" + 7 digits).
You can link your account to your e-mail address. You then log in with a one-time code by e-mail. There is no password.
If you do not link it, your progress can be lost, for example if you clear your browser data, switch devices, or if Safari clears storage after 7 days without play. We cannot recover a guest account.
Keep your e-mail safe. Never give your login code to anyone. We will never ask for it.
Your account is personal. You may not sell, rent or give it away.
You can always delete your account: Settings → Account → Delete account. A guest is gone immediately. A linked account has a 30-day grace period (logging in stops the deletion). See the privacy policy.

6. What you may do with the game

We give you a personal right to play Pelicook for your own enjoyment. This right is non-exclusive, non-transferable and lasts as long as you follow these terms.
You may not copy, sell, modify or reverse-engineer the game (except where the law always allows it).
Making and sharing pictures or videos of your own game is fine.
Streaming and videos on YouTube (or other platforms) are also allowed with income, such as ad revenue or donations, as long as you do not sell the game itself and do not pretend to speak on behalf of Pelicook.

7. Rules of conduct

Play fair and respect other players. You may not:

cheat, for example with modified apps, bots, scripts or changing the clock to gain an advantage;
deliberately abuse bugs. Found a bug? Report it to support@pelicook.com;
use multiple accounts to influence rewards, gifts or leaderboards;
attack or overload the server, or try to get in where you are not allowed;
create names or restaurants that are offensive, discriminatory, sexual, violent, threatening or illegal, or that advertise something;
pretend to be someone else, the maker of Pelicook or a moderator;
put personal data (yours or someone else's) in a name;
buy or sell accounts, Coins, Gems or items outside the game;
harass or bully others through the game.

8. Names and restaurants (your content)

Your player name, restaurant name and your restaurant's layout are "your content". Other players may see it.
You remain the owner of what you create. You do give us permission (a free, worldwide licence) to store and show that content in the game for as long as your account exists.
If you are 16 or older, we may also show your restaurant in promotion for Pelicook (for example "Restaurant of the Week" on our website), without your e-mail or other data. Don't want that? E-mail us and we will stop. We never use anything from players under 16 in promotion outside the game.
You are responsible for your content. It must not break the rules in section 7 or the law.

9. Moderation: how we enforce the rules

How we check

All names go through an automatic filter in six languages. A forbidden word is rejected. If the filter is unsure, nobody else sees the name until the maker has looked at it.
Later you will be able to report players, names and restaurants and block players. Reports are reviewed by a human (the maker). Our goal is within 48 hours.
There is no chat. Other messages in the game are fixed phrases and stickers.

What we can do (from light to heavy)

a warning;
resetting your name to an automatic name;
hiding your restaurant from lists and search;
temporarily excluding you from social features;
reversing unfairly obtained Coins, Gems or items;
banning your account (for serious or repeated violations).

We choose a measure that fits what happened.

You always hear why

For every measure you get a message in the game (and by e-mail if you linked one). It says what we did, why, for how long, whether an automatic filter was involved, and how to appeal.

Appeals

Disagree? E-mail support@pelicook.com within 6 months. A human will look at your case again. You get an answer within 14 days.
You may also go to a certified out-of-court dispute settlement body for online platforms (under the Digital Services Act) or to court.

Reporting illegal content

See something you believe is illegal? E-mail support@pelicook.com with: what it is and where you saw it (player or restaurant name), why it is illegal, your name and e-mail address, and a statement that your report is made in good faith. We confirm receipt and tell you what we decide.

10. Coins, Gems and items in the game

You earn Coins by playing. Gems are a second kind of play money: you can earn them, and later also buy them.
Coins, Gems and in-game items are not real money and have no cash value. You cannot exchange them for money or get money back for them (except where the law requires it, see section 11).
You get a personal right to use Coins, Gems and items. You do not own them.
You cannot transfer them to other players, except through features the game itself offers (such as gifts with Coins). Gems can never be transferred.
You cannot exchange Gems for Coins.
Gems never expire. We do not reduce the value of Gems unilaterally.
Items you buy with Gems or money never have a random outcome. There is no gambling, no wheel of fortune and no mystery packs.
If you received Coins, Gems or items through our mistake or through cheating, we may reverse them.

11. Purchases (applies only once purchases start)

> Right now you cannot buy anything in Pelicook. This section only applies from the day purchases become available. We will update it if needed and tell you in advance.

Who sells: in the iPhone app you buy through Apple (in-app purchase); Apple's terms then apply as well. On the website you buy through a payment provider that is itself the seller (a "merchant of record"); its terms then apply as well.
Age: you can only buy in the web shop from age 18. In the iPhone app, Apple's parental controls apply (e.g. "Ask to Buy").
Prices: every Gem price shows roughly what it is in euros ("≈ €"). Euro prices include VAT.
No pressure: no countdown timers, no "today only", no "buy now!".
Confirmation: you confirm every purchase and every Gem spend first.
Right of withdrawal (14-day cooling-off period):
- Gems bought on the website: you can withdraw within 14 days of purchase for the Gems you have not used yet. E-mail us, and we arrange the refund through the payment provider and remove those Gems.
- Gems bought through Apple: refunds go through Apple, under Apple's rules.
- Items you buy with Gems: you get them immediately. You ask us to deliver them right away and you confirm that you thereby lose your cooling-off period for that item.
Refunds and chargebacks: if you get money back (e.g. from Apple or your bank), we remove the matching Gems. If they are already spent, your balance goes to 0 and a Gem debt is created. While it exists, you cannot spend Gems; new Gems pay off the debt first. You keep items you already had.
Purchased items are not made worse without good reason. If we must change something substantially, we offer something suitable in return.
Purchase history: you can see your purchases with totals in euros in the settings.
Legal guarantee: you keep your statutory rights if something you bought does not work as promised.

12. Ads (applies only once ads start)

> Right now there are no ads in Pelicook.

If ads come, they will only be voluntary reward videos: you choose yourself whether to watch a video for a small reward. No tracking, no personalised ads, never during the tutorial or in the shop, with a daily maximum.

13. Changes to the game and ending the game

We update the game regularly. Parts may change, be added or disappear, also to keep the game fair and balanced.
Sometimes the game is temporarily unavailable, for example for maintenance or outages. We are not liable for that, unless the law says otherwise.
If we shut Pelicook down, we will announce it at least 90 days in advance in the game and on the website. From that announcement you can no longer buy Gems.
You cannot buy Gems right now. Before purchases start, we will set out what happens to purchased Gems if the game shuts down.

14. Ending the agreement

By you: you can stop at any time. Delete your account in the settings.
By us: for serious or repeated violations of these terms we may ban or delete your account (section 9). We will tell you why and you can appeal. On a ban your right to use Coins, Gems and items ends, unless the law says otherwise.
We automatically delete a guest account you have not logged in to for 12 months. Linked accounts are not deleted this way. See the privacy policy.

15. Rights in the game

Pelicook, with all its texts, images, characters, music, sounds, code and the name and logo, belongs to us or to the creators who gave us permission. You may not use them outside the game without our permission, except as described in section 6.

16. Liability

We do our best to make Pelicook work well and safely, but we cannot promise it will always work without bugs or interruptions.
We are not liable for damage caused by losing the progress of an unlinked guest account, or by someone else misusing your e-mail.
Our liability is limited to the amount you paid us in the 12 months before the damage (so currently €0).
These limits do not apply to intent or gross negligence on our part, and not where the law forbids them. Your statutory consumer rights always remain.

17. Changes to these terms

We may change these terms, for example when the game or the law changes.
For important changes we tell you at least 30 days in advance in the game. If you do not agree, you can delete your account.
Changes never apply retroactively to purchases you have already made.

18. Law and disputes

These terms are governed by Dutch law.
If you live in another EU country, you keep the protection of the mandatory consumer rules of your country.
Have a complaint? E-mail support@pelicook.com first, and we will look for a solution together.
If we cannot agree, you can go to the competent court. As a consumer you may also do so in the country where you live.

19. The iPhone app (applies only once the app exists)

If you download Pelicook from the App Store:

These terms are an agreement between you and us, not with Apple. Apple is not responsible for the app or its content.
Apple has no obligation to provide maintenance or support. Questions go to support@pelicook.com.
If the app fails to meet a warranty, you may ask Apple to refund the purchase price (if any); Apple has no other warranty obligation.
Claims about the app (e.g. product liability, legal compliance or third-party rights) are handled by us, not Apple.
Apple and its subsidiaries may enforce these terms against you.

20. Other

If part of these terms is invalid, the rest still applies. We replace the invalid part with a rule that comes as close as possible.
These terms exist in English and Dutch. If they differ, the reading most favourable to you applies.
How we handle your data is described in the privacy policy privacy policy.

21. Contact

support@pelicook.com (English or Dutch)
Lorenzo L. (sole proprietorship), trading as Pelicook