Discord: our community home
Where do fans hang out?
Players who love Hyper Shards want to talk about it. They share high scores, ask questions and suggest new ships.
A Discord server is a free online space with chat rooms. It runs on phones, computers and in a browser. It works as the studio's clubhouse, where fans meet each other and the team.
Rooms in the clubhouse
- #announcementsNews from the studio: updates, events, new levels. Only the Team role posts here.
- #feedbackPlayers say what they love and what they want changed.
- #bug-reportsPlayers say what broke, on which device, and what they were doing.
- #fan-artDrawings of Sprig and Nova. Fans love being seen.
A server is split into channels, each for one topic. Roles decide who can do what: only people with the Team role can post in #announcements, while everyone can post in #feedback.
Pick the channel
The game froze when I opened the shop on my tablet. Had to restart and lost my coins.
Where does this message belong?
- #announcements
- #bug-reports
- #fan-art
Show the answer
#bug-reports
It says what broke, on which device, and what the player was doing. That makes it a useful bug report, so it belongs in #bug-reports where the team looks for problems.
Listen, then show you listened
Feedback is treasure. One player saying "boss 3 is too hard" is an opinion. Twenty players saying it is a pattern worth fixing. Keep a simple list of what players ask for and how many asked, so the loudest voice doesn't win by accident.
We reply kindly, ask for details, and when we fix it, we post in #announcements: "You asked, we listened. Boss 3 is fairer now." Players who feel heard stick around for years.
Player message
Boss 3 is impossible. 20 tries and I quit. Worst game ever.
Which reply should the team post?
- Thanks for telling us. Which part beats you most, the lasers or the minions? We are looking at boss 3.
- Skill issue. Practise more and stop complaining.
- Delete the message so other players don't see it.
Show the answer
Thanks for telling us. Which part beats you most, the lasers or the minions? We are looking at boss 3.
An angry message often hides useful feedback. A calm thank-you plus a question gets the details we need, and if many players say the same, we fix it.
13 or older: why a parent runs it
Discord's rules say users must be at least 13, and older in some countries. The reason is privacy law. In the US, a law called COPPA says apps that collect personal data from children under 13 need verified permission from a parent, so most apps simply set 13 as the minimum age (Stage 4 covers COPPA in Keeping player data safe). The same rule applies to TikTok, YouTube and Instagram accounts.
So a parent creates the studio server and owns the account. The team still shapes it: we write the news, pick fan art to feature and draft replies, and the parent posts them.
Quick check
Because the server is for the studio, a 10-year-old developer can sign up for their own Discord account to run it.
- True
- False
Show the answer
False
The age rule is about who uses the app, whatever the account is for. A parent runs the server, and the team creates the content.
Rules, moderators and privacy
- Clear rulesA #rules channel: be kind, no spam, no rude words, no sharing personal info.
- ModeratorsTrusted adults who can delete posts and remove people who break the rules.
- AutoModA tool built into Discord that can block bad words and spam links automatically.
- Slow modeLimits how often each person can post in a busy channel, so spam can't flood it.
- Private stays privateReal full names, schools, addresses, phone numbers and photos of the team are never shared.
Player message
love garden defense!! what school do the devs go to? maybe we live near each other
The parent moderating the server shows the team this message. What is the right move?
- Answer, the player seems friendly
- Don't share it. The moderator removes the post and points to the no-personal-info rule
- Send the school name in a private message instead
Show the answer
Don't share it. The moderator removes the post and points to the no-personal-info rule
Personal info like a school stays private, even with friendly people. A private message is no safer. The moderator handles it calmly using the server rules.
Who does what
Our Discord works because everyone has a clear job. The parent owns the account and moderates. The team writes announcements, reads #feedback and #bug-reports, and turns patterns into fixes.
If anything online ever makes you uncomfortable, stop replying and tell a parent straight away. That is part of the job too.
Bolt says: A parent runs the account, the team makes the content. Lots of young creators work exactly like this. Next: a newsletter, the one way to reach fans that no platform can take away.
Fact-checked 9 October 2026
- Discord Terms of Service discord.com
- eSafety: Social media age restrictions esafety.gov.au