Breaking down Westworld's terms and conditions

Every theme park has terms and conditions, and Westworld is no different. What can we learn about the park and where the show is going from them?

ICYMI: We don’t know where Westworld is located, but we have been given some interesting clues.

SPOILER WARNING: THIS POST CONTAINS SPECULATION AND MAY CONTAIN WESTWORLD SPOILERS!

If you look at your ticket to Disney World you’ll notice that it includes terms and conditions for visiting the park. Westworld’s terms and conditions are of course a bit more intense than what you need for riding the teacups and posing for a picture with Goofy.

Let’s take a look at what Delos has in their terms and conditions and see if we can learn anything about Westworld and where the show is going from them.

The first section of the terms seems pretty standard.

"Terms of Delos DestinationsIMPORTANT! PLEASE READ THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF USE CAREFULLY BEFORE ENTERING THE DELOS DESTINATIONS COMPOUND (THE “SERVICE”), AS THEY AFFECT YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS IN RESPECT TO YOUR USE OF THE SERVICE.ACCEPTANCE OF TERMS: Upon entering the Delos Destinations Port of Entry, you are agreeing to the terms and conditions as laid out in this document.LIMITATIONS OF LIABILITY: Upon use of The Service, you agree that Delos, Inc. is not responsible for any injuries that are the result of gameplay. Recreational activity within the Delos Destinations compound does contain risks, and every effort will be made to ensure the safety of every guest. However, Delos, Inc. gives you license to experience the parks as you see fit, and certain injuries may occur."

That’s just your usual liability talk, it’s the second section of the terms where things start to get really interesting.

The second section of the Westworld terms and conditions lists more liability stuff, but what’s really interesting is section b which lays out all the ways guests have died in Westworld.

"(a) You dissolve Delos, Inc. of any responsibility financial or criminal that would result from dismemberment, broken bones, heart failure, loss or loss of use of hand and foot digits, shock, marital and relational strife, child endangerment, psychological trauma, delusions or hallucinations resulting from the realistic nature of the park experience, and/or any other physical, emotional, and psychological effects resulting from strenuous park activities.(b) Statistically speaking, you are more likely to die from lightning strike than to die while in a Delos park. However, the following causes of accidental death have occurred within the Delos Destinations compound: buffalo stampede, self- cannibalism, accidental hanging, drowning, 3rd-degree burns, autoerotic asphyxiation, blunt force trauma, allergic reaction to non-native plant life, falling from great heights, common manslaughter, tumbleweeds. You absolve Delos, Inc. of any wrongdoing if you or anyone in your party suffers bodily harm while using The Service, and you agree to not sue or prosecute Delos, Inc. or any of the smaller entities falling under the Delos Corporation."

Some of the deaths that have occurred in Westworld have come from self-cannibalism and tumbleweeds? Now we really just want to know how someone got killed by a tumbleweed.

The self-cannibalism section could be of particular importance because of Peter Abernathy. When Peter was brought in and examined by Ford in episode 1 Ford mentioned that he had once played the part of a professor who lead an occult sect out in the desert. Could Peter Abernathy have been involved in the self-cannibalism death?

The next section of the Westworld terms and conditions breaks down how weapons work in the park.

If you’re like us and you’ve been wondering how weapons work in Westworld this might be the answer.

"(c) All weapons and equipment used within Delos parks are the exclusive property of Delos, Inc. Gun ammunition contains proprietary safeguards related to bullet velocity, and tampering with gun safety features or ammunition automatically transfers liability to you and absolves Delos, Inc. of any injury or death that may occur as a result."

So the reason the guns don’t harm guests has something to do with bullet velocity. That doesn’t totally explain how the guests can’t be harmed by them, but it’s a start.

The fact that there’s a warning about tampering with the guns is also very ominous. This means the weapons aren’t perfect and can be harmful… you don’t think some of the hosts are going to figure out how to tamper with the guns do you?

The next section of the Westworld terms gives us some information on animals in the park, including the flies.

The livestock in Westworld are all hosts, but what about the flies…

"(d) All livestock within the Delos parks are Hosts, with the notable exception of flies. All humanoid and animal Hosts within Delos parks work to keep guests safe, even when the narrative calls for them to appear to endanger guests. Please note, the appearance of danger is not the same as true danger, and all Hosts utilize the Good SamaritanTM reflex to prevent bodily harm. However:"

The flies in Westworld are real, but why are they real? Is is because they can’t possibly keep flies out of the park, or is it because the flies serve as canaries in the coal mine for the hosts?

So all the animals in the park can’t hurt you because they have the same Good Samaritan reflex as the “human” hosts, but what if that malfunctions? Despite what Ford and Bernard have said it’s obvious by the terms and conditions that Delos has thought about hosts breaking this command.

"(e) Delos, Inc. shall not have a liability to you by reason of any delay or failure to perform if the delay or failure to perform is occasioned by circumstance beyond our control, which shall refer to any act of God, storm, fire, casualty, unanticipated work stoppage, power outage, satellite failure, strike, lockout, labor dispute, civil disturbance, riot, war, national emergency, Governmental action, Host malfunction, or other circumstance beyond our reasonable control."

Host malfunction is something that Delos specifically says is out of its control? That doesn’t sound particularly good.

The next section of the Westworld terms and conditions hints at what may cause host malfunction.

We are getting into the rules of conduct for Westworld now; despite what the host Angela told William it seems there are rules to the game.

"RULES OF CONDUCT: All guest activity within the parks of the Delos Destinations compound is unrestricted and without limitations. However:"

"(a) Upon entering the Delos Destinations compound, you agree to voluntarily divest yourself of all cameras, cellular devices, and electronic technology capable of recording your park experience, including virtual reality recorders and devices, and holographic recreation devices. There is no video recording, audio recording, or written recording allowed within the park. You are allowed to utilize the in-park Host character PHOTOGRAPHERS, whose narratives allow for you to take Delos- approved photographs. These photographs will reflect the time period and location of the park narratives you are playing. No other photography is allowed."

So Westworld doesn’t want you breaking the feel for other guests with cell phones and cameras right? Or perhaps it’s something more than that. Perhaps Delos is worried that a modern photograph or device might make some of the hosts malfunction?

Obviously this is pointing right at Peter Abernathy and his breakdown over the modern photograph.

The next section of the Westworld terms and conditions may give us some clues as to the location of the park and how you leave Westworld.

We’ve speculated a lot about where Westworld might be located geographically with the clues we’ve been given, but the terms and conditions may give us the best hints yet.

"(b) You agree that you will leave the Delos Destinations compound on your appointed leave date, and you will make no attempt to hide within the parks and avoid your leave date. A maximum of twenty-eight (28) days is allowed for being within the parks before guests must proceed to the Mesa Gold area for decompression. Any attempts to use the parks to avoid local, federal, or international court dates, jail or prison sentences, prosecution, or payments agreed upon in civil court or arbitration will not be supported by Delos, Inc.(c) Please act responsibly while a guest at the Mesa Gold resort and while utilizing the Mesa Bar. Please be mindful of other guests, families, and children. Please note that while utilizing the Mesa Bar, you may interact with Delos, Inc. employees; any ideas pitched to Delos, Inc. employees automatically become the property of Delos, Inc., in perpetuity. Also, any mention of human-on-human crime admitted to a Delos, Inc. employee must be brought to the attention of Delos, Inc., and if falling within the laws of the Territory, may have to be reported to local authorities."

So entering Westworld to hide out and avoid the real law is frowned upon. You can play an outlaw in Westworld, but you can’t be an outlaw in the real world hiding in Westworld.

It’s also very interesting that the limit on time in Westworld is set at 28 days. That means you can’t stay in the park indefinitely. It also raises even more questions about the man in black. The man in black has said that he doesn’t plan to leave Westworld this time, so does that mean he’s looking for the next level of the game to avoid leaving?

Finally “within the laws of the Territory” makes it sound like there is some sort of governing body that Westworld resides in. If Westworld was an island on its own with no government above it that line wouldn’t be necessary. It still doesn’t rule out the park being on an island, in space, or on Mars, but it makes it much more unlikely. Even if Westworld is an island it’s under the jurisdiction of some government body.

The next section of the Westworld terms and conditions lays out what you can take home as a souvenir.

You won’t be taking home a scalp or the head of a buffalo host according to the next section of the terms and conditions.

"COPYRIGHTS AND TRADEMARKS: The Service and all materials included are protected by copyrights, patents, trade secrets or other proprietary rights under the respective laws of the Territory and are the exclusive property of Delos, Inc. These materials include, but are not limited to: the intellectual property of all Delos Destinations parks, the Host characters, Hosts’ programming code, the names of locations within the parks, the narratives within the parks, the recipes for specialized food and beverage items within the parks and featured at the Mesa Gold resort, text, photographs, graphics, video and audio content."

"(a) As such, you may not copy, reproduce, distribute, publish, enter into a database, display, perform, modify, create derivative works, transmit, or in any way exploit any part of The Service.(b) Using The Service is a privilege, and by doing so, you agree that you will make no attempt to remove anything belonging to Delos Destinations from the compound. You will not remove any food or beverage items, any Hosts, any clothing, any weapons or equipment, any signage, or any Host body parts from the compound. The only items you may remove from the compound are in-world photographs taken by designated Hosts. All other items are strictly forbidden.INVESTIGATIONS/VIOLATIONS: If Delos, Inc. or any Delos Entity believes, in its sole discretion, that a violation of these Terms has occurred, it may take any and all corrective action it deems appropriate without notice, including contacting local authorities on the mainland. All human-on-human crimes taking place within the Delos Destinations compound will first be investigated by Delos, Inc.; Delos, Inc. has successfully avoided providing personal data in response to a legal process involving outside court entities for its entire history of existence. However, Delos, Inc. reserves the right to disclose personal information requested by a law enforcement agency, and shall have no liability to you for such disclosure."

So you won’t be taking home anything but photos from Westworld, and they will be the photos Westworld wants you to take home. This makes sense because if the super wealthy are coming to Westworld to indulge their fantasies and act on every impulse they aren’t going to want those actions documented and leaked to the real world.

Also the mainland and its government are mentioned once again. Westworld off the coast of California or Mexico sounds more and more likely.

In the final section of the Westworld terms and conditions we get to privacy.

Westworld is built on being able to do what you want with no consequences, if they didn’t assure your privacy you wouldn’t truly be able to do this.

"PRIVACY: You are guaranteed absolute privacy while using The Service as outlined in this document, and all guest activities connected with use of The Service remain strictly private and confidential.(a) You agree that while in the parks, you will respect the privacy rights of other guests, and you will not endeavor to record for the purposes of sharing the activities of other guests in the parks. You will not at any time, directly or indirectly, disclose, disseminate, or duplicate park activity pertaining to your or other guests’ gameplay.(b) By entering the Delos Destinations Port of Entry, you acknowledge that Delos, Inc. controls the rights to and remains the sole owner of, in perpetuity: all skin cells, bodily fluids, secretions, excretions, hair samples, saliva, sweat, blood, and any other bodily functions not listed here. Delos, Inc. reserves the right to use this property in any way, shape, or form in which the entity sees fit."

"MISCELLANEOUS: These Terms cannot be changed or terminated orally. Any failure of Delos, Inc. to exercise or enforce any right or provision of these Terms will not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. No waiver by Delos, Inc. of any provision of these Terms will be of any force or effect unless made in writing and signed by a duly authorized officer of Delos, Inc. Delos, Inc. may assign its rights and obligations under these Terms, in whole or in part, to any party at any time without any notice. Delos, Inc. reserves the right to deny access to all or part of the Service to you or any person in its sole discretion without notice or liability of any kind."

So there you have it, the Delos and Westworld terms and conditions, just filled with little hints about where we are going on this wild adventure.

Breaking down Westworld’s terms and conditions

By Charles Evans | Oct 10, 2016

Every theme park has terms and conditions, and Westworld is no different. What can we learn about the park and where the show is going from them?

SPOILER WARNING: THIS POST CONTAINS SPECULATION AND MAY CONTAIN WESTWORLD SPOILERS!

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