Privacy Policy

1. Data We Collect

We designed Founder Runway to run on as little data as possible. The data we handle falls into four groups:

• Data stored in your browser: Your game progress, chosen sector and archetype, your player profile (run history, badges, achievements), theme/language preferences, session id, and cookie-consent choice are kept in your device's localStorage. Clearing your browser data removes this copy.
• Your anonymous game account and gameplay records: When you open the game, Firebase Auth assigns you an anonymous user id (uid). This id contains neither your name nor your email. Linked to that id, our servers store your visit and session counts, session start/end times and duration, a browser/device summary, which days you played, and a turn-by-turn record of the runs you play (the scenario shown each turn, the decision you chose, and how your metrics changed). When you first arrive, we also record the domain of the site that referred you, the path of the first page you opened (without any query parameters), and the campaign tag if the address carries one; we use this to understand which channel works. Your device is stored only as one of four categories (mobile, tablet, desktop, unknown) — the raw browser identifier is not written to this record. The display name, username, and bio you enter on the profile screen are also stored on our servers, linked to the same id. In other words, a copy of your game progress is kept on our servers, not only in your browser.
• Data you voluntarily provide: If you create an account, we store your email address and, if you set one, your display name. If you join the waiting list, we store your email address, optionally your name, and the browser/language information present when you submitted it. If you send the contact form (/contact), your name, email address, chosen topic, and the content of your message are delivered to us as email and also stored in our admin panel on our servers, together with any replies we send you. We only receive this when you actively submit the form.
• Automatically collected data: To understand how the game is used, we may collect PII-free event data (such as page views, game starts, decisions made) along with general device/browser and referrer information. Raw email addresses are never written to analytics events.

Your anonymous game id does not require you to create an account and does not let us identify you. However, if you create an account or submit the waiting-list form and keep playing in the same browser, we may link that sign-up to this anonymous id — at which point your gameplay records become connected to your email address.

2. How We Use Data

• To provide the game and let you resume your progress (browser data).
• To tune game balance and scenario difficulty, and to see which turns players struggle with (run and turn records linked to your anonymous id).
• To send product announcements and reach players on the waiting list (email). The address left in order to start a run goes on the same list.
• To answer support requests and product feedback sent through the contact form (name, email, message content).
• To improve the game, debug issues, and analyze the play funnel (anonymous analytics).
• To prevent abuse, fraud, and security incidents.

We do not sell your personal data. Because the site is funded by ads, ad serving is handled by Google (AdSense): when an ad is shown your browser sends Google technical data such as your IP address, user agent and the page address, and if you consented Google sets advertising cookies. Beyond that we do not pass data to third parties for marketing.

3. Cookies and Consent

On your first visit we show a cookie-consent banner. Analytics and advertising cookies run only after you give explicit consent. Google Analytics and Google AdSense are managed with Consent Mode v2: without consent analytics stays cookieless and ads are not personalised — ads are still shown, they are just not selected by interest. You can change your choice, or withdraw consent you already gave, at any time from the “Cookie and analytics consent” card on the Settings page. Essential local storage required for the game to function operates independently of consent.

4. Third-Party Services

We use a small number of trusted service providers (data processors) to run the game:

• Google Firebase (Auth / Firestore) — creating the anonymous game id; account records; hosting game run, turn, session and waiting-list records, and anonymous analytics events.
• Google Analytics (GA4) — aggregate, anonymous usage measurement (consent-based, via Consent Mode v2).
• Google AdSense — serving and measuring the ads that fund the site (consent-based, via Consent Mode v2; without consent, non-personalised ads).
• Email delivery provider (Resend) — delivering the message you send through the contact form to us, sending you the confirmation email, and delivering our reply to your message.
• Hosting and content-delivery infrastructure — serving the game.

These providers process your data only to provide services to us, under their own privacy policies.

5. Data Retention

Data stored in your browser stays on your device until you delete it. We keep your waiting-list email until its purpose ends (e.g. the announcement process concludes) or you request deletion. If you request account deletion, your display name, username, and bio are permanently deleted from our servers and your profile is removed from the leaderboard. Game run, turn, and session records linked to your anonymous id, which contain no identifying profile information, are kept for game-balance analysis. Messages sent through the contact form, and our replies to them, are kept in our contact archive for as long as it takes to resolve the request. Anonymous analytics events are retained in aggregate for a reasonable period for product analysis.

6. Your Rights

Under the GDPR and Turkey's KVKK (Article 11), you have the right to access your data, request its correction or deletion, object to processing, request portability, and withdraw any consent you gave. To exercise these rights, contact us at the address below. For records tied to your anonymous game id, please share the id shown in-game or the email address you signed up with so we can locate them.

7. Children's Privacy

Founder Runway is not directed to individuals under 13 (16 in some countries) and we do not knowingly collect personal data from them. If you believe a child's data has been shared with us, contact us and we will delete it.

8. Security

We apply reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect data (encrypted transfer, access limitation, etc.). However, no method of transmission or storage over the internet can be guaranteed to be 100% secure.

9. International Data Transfers

Our service providers' servers may be located in countries outside Turkey. In that case, your data is processed under safeguards consistent with applicable law.

10. Changes

We may update this policy from time to time. For material changes we refresh the "Last updated" date on this page. We recommend reviewing this page periodically to stay informed.

11. Contact

For any privacy questions or requests, reach us at privacy@founderunway.com.