These Rules describe how competitions on BulldogGX work: who can enter, how entry fees are held, how results are reported and verified, what happens when players disagree, and how money is paid out or returned. The numbers below (windows, limits, fees) are the current settings and are shown in the Service before every entry. Where a Rule describes what the escrow contract does, the deployed contract controls; we keep these Rules aligned with it.
1. Eligible Locations and age
Paid competitions are available only to players who are 18 or older and physically located in an Eligible Location at the time of entry.
The current Eligible Locations are the District of Columbia and every U.S. state except Arizona, Hawaii, Iowa, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, South Dakota and Washington. Players in those eight states may use free features where the event rules allow it but may not enter paid competitions. Players outside the United States may not enter paid competitions. The current list is shown before every paid entry and may change on notice; a change never affects a match already in escrow.
Location is checked at account creation (declared state) and at the moment of a paid entry (network signals). Players who cannot be placed in an Eligible Location may play free events where the event rules allow it, but may not enter paid competitions.
2. Games, platforms and settings
Supported games and platforms are those listed in the Service (currently Madden NFL and NBA 2K on PlayStation and Xbox). Each match displays the required settings before either player pays an entry fee: game mode, quarter or period length, difficulty, roster or team restrictions, and any game-specific rules.
Only the settings shown on the match page are the rules of the match. A rule proposed in chat, in a console message or on Discord is not enforceable. If the invitation you receive on your console does not match the match page, do not play it; if you play it anyway and lose, the match page settings still govern and a dispute based on the mismatch will not be accepted. Custom rosters, edited players and modified game files are prohibited unless the match page expressly permits them.
3. Entry fees, platform fee and limits
Entry fee. Both players pay the same entry fee in USDC. The entry fee leaves your wallet when you confirm entry and is held by the escrow contract, not by BulldogGX.
Fee. BulldogGX charges a platform fee of 2% of the combined entry fees, deducted at settlement. On a match with a $20 entry fee per player, the combined entry fees are $40, the fee is $0.80, and the winner receives a $39.20 prize. There is no fee on a voided or cancelled match.
Limits (current settings).
| Limit | Current setting |
|---|---|
| Maximum entry fee per match | US $20 |
| Maximum total entry fees a player may have in open matches at one time | US $300 |
| Maximum total value the escrow contract will hold across all open matches | US $5,000 |
BulldogGX may lower any limit at any time for safety or compliance and will show the current limit before entry. When the platform-wide limit is reached, new paid matches are paused until open matches settle.
4. Creating and joining a match
- A player creates a match by choosing game, platform, settings and entry fee, then confirms the entry-fee transaction. The match is listed as open.
- A second player joins by paying the same entry fee. Once both entry fees are in escrow the match is live and neither player can cancel it.
- Before a second player has paid, the creator may cancel and the entry fee is returned in full. A player who has been paired but has not paid may decline, which returns the match to open.
- A player may not create or join a new paid match while they have a paid match that is live or under review.
5. Connecting and playing
After both players have paid their entry fees, the Service walks both through connecting on the console network (exchanging gamertags, sending and accepting the invite, confirming settings). Each step is timestamped. The creator hosts unless the match page says otherwise.
Confirm the in-game settings match the match page before the first kickoff or tip-off. Starting the game is your confirmation that the settings are correct. A settings mismatch discovered after play begins is not grounds for a dispute unless the other player altered settings after the check.
We recommend recording your own gameplay. Lag and connection quality are each player's own responsibility; if both players can play, the game is played. A player who quits or disconnects while losing, or who leaves the game before it ends, loses unless the other player agrees to replay.
6. Reporting a result
When the game ends, the winner taps "I Won" and completes the verification recording (Rule 7). This is a declaration. The other player then has a challenge window of 72 hours from the moment the declaration is recorded on-chain to either confirm the result or dispute it.
- If the opponent confirms, the match settles immediately and the prize (both entry fees, less the fee) is paid to the winner's wallet.
- If the opponent does nothing and the challenge window closes, the declared result stands and the match may be finalized by either player or by BulldogGX. The prize (both entry fees, less the fee) is paid to the declared winner.
- If the opponent disputes by declaring a different result, the match enters review (Rule 8).
A player who has declared cannot withdraw their declaration. A declaration is a statement of fact made under the Terms; a knowingly false declaration is fraud.
We notify you in the app, and by push notification if you have enabled it, when your opponent declares. Notification delivery is a convenience; the deadline shown in the match record controls. Do not enter a match if you cannot respond within the window.
7. Verification recording
Every declaration, confirmation and dispute requires a short verification recording captured through the app. The recording shows the console's final score screen and the player performing a randomized sequence of hand gestures shown on screen, with the match ID, usernames and claimed result stamped into the video. The recording has no audio.
The recording is the evidence a BulldogGX reviewer uses if the match is disputed. Point the camera at the final score summary screen, not gameplay or a replay; a recording that does not show the final score is not useful evidence and may cause a dispute to be decided against you. Complete every gesture prompt. A recording ended early, or one in which the prompts were not performed, may be treated as no evidence. See the Verification Recording Notice for how recordings are stored and deleted.
8. Disputes and review
A match is disputed when both players have declared conflicting results. On dispute, both players are notified, the entry fees remain in escrow, and the match is queued for a BulldogGX reviewer.
The reviewer examines both verification recordings and any evidence submitted through the app, and may ask either player for more. The reviewer decides which declaration matches the evidence. A BulldogGX arbiter then records that decision on-chain, and the prize (both entry fees, less the fee) is paid to the winner. The reviewer's decision on who won the game is final for purposes of the competition; it does not affect any legal right you have under the Terms.
If the evidence does not establish a winner (for example, neither recording shows a final score), the reviewer may void the match and return both entry fees with no fee.
Unresolved disputes. If a disputed match has not been decided within 14 days of the dispute, either player may request that it be voided and both entry fees returned. BulldogGX may also void a match at any point before it is decided where fairness or a technical problem requires it.
Conflicts of interest. BulldogGX personnel do not review matches in which they, a family member or a household member played. Personnel and company-affiliated wallets are excluded from paid matches; if one is found to have entered a paid match, the match is voided and both entry fees are returned rather than decided.
9. No-shows, quits, disconnects and crashes
There are no automatic forfeits. Every result must be declared and either confirmed, unchallenged for the window, or decided on review.
| Situation | Rule |
|---|---|
| Opponent never connects after both pay | Complete the connect steps you can; after the connection timeout shown in the match record, declare a win and record the screen showing the invite was not accepted. Reviewed under Rule 8 if disputed. |
| Player quits or rage-quits | The player who quits loses. Record the disconnect notice or quit screen if you can. |
| Disconnect mid-game | If the disconnecting player was losing at the time, they lose. If the score was tied or unclear, players may agree to replay; absent agreement, the reviewer decides on the evidence. |
| Game or console crash for both players | Replay from the start unless both agree otherwise. |
| Settings tampered after the check | The player who tampered loses. |
| Both players fail to declare within 7 days of the match going live | Either player or BulldogGX may void the match and return entry fees. |
10. Tournaments and brackets
Tournaments are single-elimination brackets (currently 8 players) that start automatically when full. Registration, seeding, start time and prize allocation are shown before you register. Each round is a match under these Rules; the winner advances. A disputed bracket match holds its branch of the bracket until it is decided.
Byes and odd-sized brackets are handled as shown in the event rules. Where a tournament has an entry fee, all entry fees are held in escrow and paid out according to the published allocation; BulldogGX does not hold prize money. Free-entry tournaments with sponsored prizes are governed by their own official rules, which state the sponsor, the prize, how it is paid, and that no purchase is necessary.
11. Leagues and commissioners (when enabled)
A commissioner may organize a league of players, publish the league's rules, and schedule matches. Each league match is a match under these Rules between the two players, with entry fees paid by those players. Commissioners have no access to other players' wallets and cannot collect, hold or distribute money on the platform. League-wide prizes are not offered until a separate league-prize structure has been reviewed and published; when offered, league entry fees will be held by the escrow contract under rules published before the season starts.
12. Fair play and penalties
The Fair Play and Acceptable Use Policy is part of these Rules. Penalties include loss of the match, forfeiture of contested prizes to the opponent, suspension and permanent exclusion. BulldogGX may report fraud to law enforcement and to payment providers.
13. Changes
BulldogGX may update these Rules. Matches already in escrow are governed by the Rules in force when they were entered. Material changes are announced in the Service before they take effect.