The promise in one sentence
"Submit your multiplayer game and in 24 hours have it online and server ready." That is the NetCraftGames sub-line. This page says what it commits us to, and the answer is deliberately careful: the 24 hours is a target for our processing time, counted from your submission. It is paused while we wait for you to fix something only you can fix, and it keeps running if the problem is on our side. It is not a guarantee, and it depends on the launch checks being passed.
What happens inside the 24 hours
A submission moves through five stages, and the owner can see which one it is in: Received, Reading your code, Connection config ready, Deploying and checking, and Online and server ready. Two more states exist for problems: Waiting for your fix (the clock is paused) and Closed. The operator is alerted when a submission nears its deadline, passes it or looks stuck.
When the clock starts
The clock starts at the moment of submission and never restarts. Time spent paused is added back to the deadline exactly, so you lose nothing and we gain nothing.
When the clock pauses
The clock pauses only when every blocking problem is the owner's to fix. These intake and verification failures are classed as the owner's:
| Problem found | What it means in plain words |
|---|---|
| Archive invalid or unsafe | The upload is not a clean .tar.gz: unsafe paths, links or special permission bits |
| Manifest invalid | The deployment manifest is malformed or names something unsupported |
| No Linux x64 server | No Linux x86-64 server program was found in the upload |
| Port not listening | The server did not open the port the manifest declares |
| Health check failed | The server answered, but not with the declared health response |
| Join check failed | The game-level join probe did not get the expected reply |
| Hash mismatch | The uploaded file does not match its declared digest |
| Server crashed at startup | The process exited while starting |
| Wrong transport or engine | The declared engine or transport does not match your code |
| Credentials in the upload | A secret was found inside the archive |
| Build too large | The upload exceeds the size we accept |
When you fix the problem and send a new release, the clock resumes from where it paused, and the dashboard is designed to show the exact time remaining. A failed submission can only be reopened by the operator, and submissions abandoned for a long time are closed.
When the clock does not pause
Problems on our side do not pause the clock. Timeouts and install failures whose cause is not yet known are treated as undetermined: they do not pause it either, and we escalate them to a human operator.
What the promise is not
- Not a certification. A running server does not prove your game is bug-free, fair or secure. No engine is certified by NetCraftGames until real test evidence is published.
- Not a guarantee. It is a processing target.
- Not a guarantee that any build works. If your networking is incomplete, the join check fails and you get a fix list instead of a running server.
- Not a capacity guarantee beyond your plan. Hours, transfer and connection ceilings come from your plan.
- Not an uptime promise. The 24 hours are about getting online. No uptime percentage is promised or published.
What is still undecided
- The remedy for a missed window is not defined yet. It will be published in the Terms before launch.
- Support hours and response targets are an open launch gate.
What you can do to hit the window
- Build and test a Linux x64 dedicated server locally before submitting. The guides for Unity, Godot and Unreal cover the common mistakes.
- Make the server listen on
0.0.0.0on the port you declare. - Add a health reply and a join probe so we can prove players can actually join.
- Keep secrets out of the archive and read them from the environment.
- Check the connection config checklist.
Frequently asked questions
When does the 24 hour clock start?
At the moment you submit, and it never restarts. Time spent paused while you fix something is added back to the deadline exactly. It is a target for NetCraftGames processing time, not a guarantee. This is draft wording until the Terms are published, and NetCraftGames has not launched yet.
Does the clock stop if my build has a problem?
It pauses only when every blocking problem is yours to fix, such as an invalid archive, a wrong port or a failed join check. You receive an email with the problem and a concrete fix, and the clock resumes when your new release arrives. Problems on our side never pause it.