Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

Welcome to Gomoku Guide ("we," "our," or "us"), operating the website gomokuplay.com. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your information when you visit our website and use our free gomoku game and educational content.

By using our website, you agree to the data practices described in this policy. If you do not agree, please discontinue use of the website.

2. Information We Collect

Automatically Collected Information

When you visit our website, we automatically collect certain information, including:

• IP address
• Browser type and version
• Device type (desktop, mobile, tablet)
• Operating system
• Pages visited and time spent on each page
• Referring website or search engine
• Geographic region (country-level)

Game Data

When you play our gomoku game, we collect anonymous data about gameplay, including moves made, game outcomes, board sizes used, and game duration. This data is not linked to your personal identity and is used solely to improve the game experience.

Online Room Data

If you use an online room, the room code, player role, board state, and moves are temporarily transmitted through Supabase Realtime so the two connected browsers can synchronize. We do not require an account and do not create an application database record for the room. The invite link acts as access to the room, so do not share it publicly if you want a private match.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect to:

• Analyze website traffic and usage patterns
• Improve our game, content, and user experience
• Serve relevant advertisements through third-party ad networks
• Detect and prevent abuse or technical issues

4. Third-Party Services

We use the following third-party services that may collect information about you:

Google Analytics (GA4)

We use Google Analytics to understand how visitors interact with our website. Before analytics consent, Google Analytics may receive limited cookieless measurement signals through Google's Consent Mode. When analytics consent is granted, it can collect information such as how often users visit, what pages they visit, and what other sites they used prior to coming to our site. Google uses this information to provide aggregated or modelled reports. For more information, see Google's Privacy Policy.

Microsoft Clarity

When analytics consent is granted, we use Microsoft Clarity to understand user behavior through session recordings and heatmaps. Clarity collects data about how you interact with our pages but does not collect personally identifiable information. For more information, see Microsoft's Privacy Statement.

Supabase Realtime

Our online friend-play feature uses Supabase Realtime Broadcast and Presence to exchange temporary room messages and online status between connected clients. Supabase may process connection and technical data according to its own policies. For more information, see Supabase's Privacy Policy and Terms.

Google AdSense

This site displays advertising served by Google AdSense. AdSense may use cookies, web beacons, and IP addresses to deliver ads and measure performance. Google may share data collected on this site with other Google products. You can stop Google from using your data for personalized ads at Google Ad Settings, or block ad cookies by turning off third-party cookies in your browser.

5. Cookies

Our website may use cookies — small text files stored on your device — to operate effectively and, after the relevant consent, to provide analytics and advertising services. The cookies we use include:

You can control cookies through your browser settings. Disabling cookies may affect the functionality of our website.

6. Advertising

Third-party advertising companies may serve ads on our website. These companies may use cookies, web beacons, and similar technologies to collect information about your visits to this and other websites to provide targeted advertisements.

You can opt out of interest-based advertising by visiting: Digital Advertising Alliance Opt-Out or European Interactive Digital Advertising Alliance .

7. Children's Privacy

Our website is not directed at children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe we have collected information from a child under 13, please contact us and we will take steps to delete such information.

8. Data Retention

Google Analytics data is retained for 14 months. Microsoft Clarity session data is retained according to Microsoft's data retention policies. Online room messages are intended to be temporary and are not stored in a Gomoku Guide database. Third-party services may retain technical data according to their own policies. We do not store personal data on our own servers.

9. Your Rights

You have the right to:

• Opt out of cookies by adjusting your browser settings
• Opt out of Google Analytics tracking by installing the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on
• Opt out of personalized advertising via the links in Section 6
• Request deletion of any data we hold about you by contacting us

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will post the updated policy on this page with a revised "Last updated" date. Your continued use of the website after any changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.

11. Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us.