reference licensing and redistribution

Licensing and redistribution policy

The repository's LICENSE file is GNU GPL version 3. Source code distributed as part of Captivity Reloaded must retain that license, copyright notices, modification notices, and the corresponding-source obligations that apply when binaries are conveyed.

This repository also contains reconstructed game data, artwork, audio, third-party packages, converted community mods, and contributor submissions. A GPL file alone is not proof that every imported asset was contributed by its copyright holder. Until provenance and permission are recorded for a file, do not publish that file in the SDK, an example pack, a catalog release, or a binary distribution.

The repository-level third-party notices and provenance inventory records the current decision for each asset group. Treat Cleared, Project distribution only, Review per release, and Blocked as different states; credit is not a substitute for permission.

Repository releases

• Publish source corresponding to each distributed binary and identify the exact source commit.
• Include LICENSE and a completed third-party notices/provenance file.
• Clearly mark Captivity Reloaded as modified and state the release date.
• Do not treat Unity, package-manager, store, font, audio, or other third-party content as relicensed merely because it is present in the project.
• Do not publish extracted Core art as a general-purpose asset library. Only include assets whose redistribution permission has been verified.

SDK and examples

• Prefer original placeholder art and audio that contributors explicitly permit redistribution of.
• Reference Core content through public IDs and slots instead of copying Core files into a mod.
• Keep attribution and license text beside any third-party sample asset.
• Exclude local DragonBones exports and installed Mods content unless an intentionally reviewed copy is promoted into the SDK or ExampleMods with provenance.

Catalog mods

• A catalog entry may link only to a release the listed authors are permitted to distribute.
• Mod authors retain ownership of their original work and must include a license or explicit redistribution permission in the release archive.
• Catalog inclusion is permission to mirror/list that particular release; it does not transfer ownership to the game project.
• Mods may depend on public Core IDs, but must not redistribute ripped Core or third-party assets without permission.
• Removed catalog entries do not remotely delete an already installed copy. Updates and removals must remain recoverable by the user.

Converted legacy packs credited to an unknown or generic legacy author are not ready for public catalog distribution. A pack-local THIRD_PARTY.md gate also remains binding until it records permission or the affected material is replaced.

Documentation and wiki publication

The public wiki may reproduce its own Markdown, diagrams, and project-interface screenshots. Publishing documentation does not publish or relicense the game, SDK, example packs, catalog archives, external authoring tools, or the raw assets visible in a screenshot.

• Keep source links and project credits with the documentation.
• Do not upload Unity, Tiled, LibreSprite, DragonBones, Adobe AIR, or other third-party installers to the wiki repository.
• Do not turn screenshots or exported Core artwork into a downloadable asset collection.
• Link to the main repository for source files outside the public wiki rather than copying those files into the wiki.

Release gate

Each release artifact is blocked until its included files have a recorded provenance decision and the required notices. Documentation can therefore be published while an unrelated example pack or player build remains blocked. This document is a project policy, not legal advice; uncertain rights require permission from the rightsholder or removal of the material.