Privacy Policy
Eleanor — Privacy-First Gaming · Last Updated: February 7, 2026 · View as Markdown
WE COLLECT ZERO PERSONAL DATA
This is the shortest, simplest privacy policy you'll ever read for a video game.
CynicalMonkeys ("Developer," "we," "us," or "our") does not collect, store, transmit, or process any personal information, gameplay data, AI conversation data, analytics, telemetry, or user-generated content from Eleanor (the "Game").
Everything stays on your device. Period.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
- Our Privacy-First Philosophy
- What We Do NOT Collect
- How the Game Works Without Data Collection
- AI Processing (100% Local)
- What Steam Collects (Not Us)
- Age Verification
- Your Privacy Rights
- GDPR Compliance (EEA/UK)
- CCPA Compliance (California)
- COPPA Compliance (Children Under 13)
- Data Security
- Changes to This Policy
- Contact Us
1. OUR PRIVACY-FIRST PHILOSOPHY
We believe privacy is a fundamental right, not a feature.
Most games collect extensive data about you—what you do, when you play, how you interact, what you say. They send this data to servers, analyze it, and use it for business purposes.
We don't.
Eleanor was designed from the ground up to operate entirely on your device with zero data collection. No telemetry. No analytics. No logs. No "optional" data sharing that's enabled by default.
Why?
- We respect your privacy. What you do in the Game is your business, not ours.
- We don't need your data. The Game functions perfectly without collecting anything.
- We can't lose data we never had. No data breaches. No leaks. No unauthorized access.
- It's simpler for everyone. No privacy policies to parse. No consent checkboxes. No opt-outs.
This Privacy Policy exists to explain what we don't collect and to address the few areas where third parties (like Steam) may collect data independent of us.
2. WHAT WE DO NOT COLLECT
We do not collect, store, transmit, access, or process:
2.1 Personal Information
- ❌ Name, email address, phone number
- ❌ Mailing address or physical location
- ❌ Date of birth or age (beyond the initial age gate)
- ❌ Account credentials or passwords
- ❌ Payment information (Steam handles all purchases)
- ❌ Government ID numbers
- ❌ Demographic information
- ❌ IP addresses
- ❌ Device identifiers or MAC addresses
2.2 AI Conversation Data
- ❌ What you type to Eleanor (the AI NPC)
- ❌ Eleanor's responses to you
- ❌ Conversation context or history
- ❌ Timestamps of AI interactions
- ❌ Any other AI-related data
Your conversations with Eleanor happen 100% locally on your device and never leave it.
2.3 Gameplay Data
- ❌ In-game actions, choices, or decisions
- ❌ Puzzle solutions or progression
- ❌ Save files or game state
- ❌ Session duration or playtime
- ❌ Achievements or statistics
- ❌ Graphics settings or preferences
- ❌ Any other gameplay information
2.4 Technical Data
- ❌ Crash reports or error logs
- ❌ Performance metrics (frame rate, load times)
- ❌ Hardware specifications (CPU, GPU, RAM)
- ❌ Operating system information
- ❌ Network activity or bandwidth usage
2.5 Analytics and Telemetry
- ❌ Usage statistics
- ❌ Feature adoption rates
- ❌ Heatmaps or behavior tracking
- ❌ A/B testing data
- ❌ Any other analytics
2.6 User-Generated Content
- ❌ Screenshots you take
- ❌ Videos or streams you create
- ❌ Feedback or bug reports you submit (unless you email us directly)
- ❌ Social media posts about the Game
2.7 Cookies and Tracking
- ❌ Cookies or browser storage (the Game is a desktop application, not a website)
- ❌ Advertising trackers
- ❌ Cross-site tracking
- ❌ Fingerprinting techniques
If it can identify you, track you, or tell us anything about you—we don't collect it.
3. HOW THE GAME WORKS WITHOUT DATA COLLECTION
3.1 Everything Is Local
The Game operates entirely on your device:
- Game saves are stored locally in
C:\Users\[Username]\AppData\Local\InWaiting\Saved - Settings are stored in local configuration files
- AI processing happens on your GPU/CPU using the Llama 3.2 3B Instruct model included in the installation
- No servers are required after initial download (except for Steam DRM authentication, which is handled by Steam)
3.2 No Internet Required (After Installation)
Once the Game is installed via Steam, you can play completely offline. The Game does not:
- "Phone home" to our servers
- Check for updates automatically (Steam handles updates if you enable them)
- Send telemetry or "anonymous" data
- Require an always-online connection
3.3 How We Improve the Game
Without data, how do we know what to fix or improve?
We rely on:
- Community feedback: Players who voluntarily share experiences on Steam forums, Discord, or social media
- Bug reports: Players who choose to email us specific issues
- Internal testing: Our own QA testing and playthroughs
- Steam reviews: Public reviews that players choose to write
Key difference: You must actively choose to share information with us. We never collect it passively or automatically.
4. AI PROCESSING (100% LOCAL)
4.1 How Eleanor Works
Eleanor, the AI-powered ghost NPC, uses Meta's Llama 3.2 3B Instruct language model to generate responses to your text inputs.
This AI model:
- ✅ Is included in the Game installation files (approximately 6GB)
- ✅ Runs entirely on your device (GPU/CPU)
- ✅ Processes your conversation inputs locally in RAM
- ✅ Generates Eleanor's responses locally
- ✅ Never sends your inputs to external servers or cloud APIs
4.2 What Happens to Your Conversations
Your conversations with Eleanor:
- Exist only in your device's memory (RAM) during gameplay
- Are automatically deleted when you close the conversation or exit the Game
- Are never saved to disk (unless you manually screenshot them)
- Are never transmitted to us, Meta, or any third party
We cannot see what you say to Eleanor. Even if we wanted to, we have no technical capability to access your conversations.
4.3 No AI Training on Your Data
We do not and cannot use your conversations to:
- Train or improve the AI model
- Fine-tune Eleanor's personality
- Generate analytics about common queries
- Identify problematic content
Meta's Llama model is pre-trained and frozen. We cannot retrain it with your data (even if we wanted to, which we don't).
4.4 Content Filtering
Eleanor includes built-in content filtering to prevent generating harmful content (violence instructions, explicit material, etc.). This filtering happens:
- Locally on your device as part of the AI model
- Before Eleanor's response is shown to you
- Without transmitting any data about filtered content to us
If Eleanor refuses to respond or generates a filtered response, that refusal happens entirely locally. We never see what was filtered.
For full technical details, see our AI Disclosure Notice at https://www.cynicalmonkeys.com/aidisclosure.
5. WHAT STEAM COLLECTS (NOT US)
5.1 Steam Platform Integration
The Game is distributed via Steam, operated by Valve Corporation. Steam is a third-party platform that collects certain data independent of us.
We have no control over, access to, or responsibility for Steam's data collection practices.
5.2 What Steam May Collect
Steam may collect:
- Steam ID and account information
- Purchase history and playtime
- Achievement data (if the Game includes Steam achievements)
- Steam Cloud saves (if you enable this feature in Steam settings)
- Friend list and social features (if you use Steam's social functionality)
- Hardware surveys (if you participate in Steam's optional hardware survey)
5.3 How to Control Steam Data
To manage Steam's data collection:
- Review the Steam Privacy Policy: https://store.steampowered.com/privacy_agreement/
- Adjust Steam privacy settings in your Steam account
- Disable Steam Cloud saves if you prefer purely local saves
- Opt out of Steam's hardware survey
- Contact Steam support for data access/deletion requests: https://help.steampowered.com/
Steam-related data questions should be directed to Valve, not us.
5.4 We Don't Receive Steam Data
Steam does not share your personal information, playtime, or other Steam data with us. We do not have access to:
- Your Steam ID or account details
- Your purchase history
- Your playtime or achievements
- Your Steam friends list
- Any other Steam-collected information
Exception: If you contact us for support and voluntarily provide your Steam ID to help troubleshoot an issue, we may use it solely for that support interaction.
6. AGE VERIFICATION
6.1 Age Gate
When you first launch the Game, you will be presented with an age verification gate asking you to confirm your age.
What we collect from the age gate: NOTHING.
The age gate:
- ✅ Checks your response locally on your device
- ✅ Stores your verification decision in a local configuration file
- ❌ Does NOT transmit your age or birthdate to us
- ❌ Does NOT create an account or record
If you indicate you are under 18, you'll be asked to confirm parental permission. If you indicate you are under 13, the Game will refuse to launch (see Section 10 - COPPA).
6.2 Why We Need an Age Gate
Legal compliance: The Game is rated M for Mature (17+) and contains horror content inappropriate for children. We are required to take reasonable steps to prevent access by minors.
Technical implementation: The age verification happens entirely locally. We never know how old you are.
7. YOUR PRIVACY RIGHTS
7.1 What Rights You Have
Because we collect zero personal data, most traditional privacy rights don't apply:
Right to access your data: There is no data to access.
Right to delete your data: There is no data to delete.
Right to correct inaccurate data: There is no data to correct.
Right to opt out of data collection: Already done—there's no data collection to opt out of.
Right to data portability: There is no data to port.
7.2 Your Data Is Already Fully Private
You have complete control because everything stays on your device:
- Want to delete your data? → Delete your save files locally.
- Want to control who sees your data? → It's on your computer, so you decide.
- Want to stop data sharing? → It was never shared in the first place.
7.3 Steam Data Rights
For data Steam collects, you must exercise your rights with Steam directly:
- Steam Privacy Policy: https://store.steampowered.com/privacy_agreement/
- Steam Support: https://help.steampowered.com/
8. GDPR COMPLIANCE (EEA/UK)
8.1 Data Controller
We are the data controller for this Privacy Policy, even though we control zero data:
CynicalMonkeys
Address: 1705 W LeMoyne St, Chicago, IL 60622
Email: support@cynicalmonkeys.com
8.2 Legal Basis for Processing
We have no legal basis for processing because we don't process any data.
Under GDPR Article 6, data processing requires a legal basis (consent, contract, legitimate interest, etc.). Since we process zero personal data, no legal basis is required.
8.3 GDPR Rights
Right of access (Article 15): We hold no personal data about you to provide.
Right to rectification (Article 16): We hold no personal data about you to correct.
Right to erasure (Article 17): We hold no personal data about you to erase.
Right to restriction (Article 18): We process no personal data to restrict.
Right to data portability (Article 20): We hold no personal data to port.
Right to object (Article 21): We process no personal data to object to.
Right to withdraw consent (Article 7): We never requested consent because we don't collect data.
Right to lodge a complaint (Article 77): You can always file a complaint with your local data protection authority, though we believe they'll confirm we're compliant via zero-collection.
8.4 Data Protection Officer
We do not have a Data Protection Officer because:
- We are not a public authority
- We do not engage in large-scale processing of personal data
- We do not process special categories of data at scale
GDPR Article 37 does not require a DPO for organizations that don't process personal data.
8.5 No International Data Transfers
We do not transfer personal data internationally because we don't collect any data to transfer.
Steam may transfer data internationally as part of their platform operations. See Steam's Privacy Policy for details.
8.6 Representative in the EU
We do not have an EU representative because we do not process personal data of EU residents (GDPR Article 27 exemption for zero processing).
9. CCPA COMPLIANCE (CALIFORNIA)
9.1 Categories of Personal Information
In the past 12 months, we have collected the following categories of personal information (as defined by the CCPA):
NONE. We collect zero personal information.
9.2 Do We Sell or Share Personal Information?
No. We do not sell or share personal information because we don't collect any.
9.3 CCPA Rights
Right to know: We have no personal information about you to disclose.
Right to delete: We have no personal information about you to delete.
Right to correct: We have no personal information about you to correct.
Right to opt out of sale/sharing: We don't sell or share personal information.
Right to non-discrimination: We don't discriminate because we don't collect data that would enable discrimination.
9.4 Shine the Light Law
California Civil Code Section 1798.83 permits California residents to request information about disclosure of personal information to third parties for direct marketing.
We do not disclose personal information to third parties for direct marketing because we don't collect personal information.
9.5 Authorized Agents
Because we collect no personal information, there are no CCPA rights to exercise via an authorized agent.
10. COPPA COMPLIANCE (CHILDREN UNDER 13)
10.1 Age Restriction
THE GAME IS NOT DIRECTED TO CHILDREN UNDER 13 YEARS OF AGE.
The Game contains mature horror content (violence, psychological themes, disturbing imagery) and is rated M for Mature (17+).
10.2 No Data Collection from Children
We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13.
Actually, we don't knowingly collect personal information from anyone—child or adult.
10.3 Age Gate
The Game implements an age verification gate on first launch:
- If you indicate you are under 13, the Game will not launch
- If you indicate you are 13-17, the Game will request parental permission confirmation
- If you indicate you are 18+, the Game will proceed
This verification happens locally on your device. We never receive your age information.
10.4 Parental Notice
Parents and guardians:
Because we collect zero data, there is no personal information about your child for you to review, request deletion of, or refuse collection of.
However, you should:
- ✅ Be aware the Game contains intense horror content
- ✅ Review the content warnings in Section 1 of our EULA
- ✅ Ensure the Game is age-appropriate for your child
- ✅ Monitor your child's gameplay if they are under 18
10.5 What If a Child Under 13 Bypasses the Age Gate?
If a child lies about their age at the age gate:
- The Game will launch (we can't detect the lie without collecting data)
- We still collect zero data from them
- Parents should use parental controls on the child's device to restrict access
11. DATA SECURITY
11.1 Security of Non-Existent Data
The best way to protect data is not to collect it in the first place.
Because we collect zero data:
- ✅ There is no data to be breached
- ✅ There are no servers to hack
- ✅ There are no databases to leak
- ✅ There is no unauthorized access risk
11.2 Local Data Security
Your local data (save files, settings) is your responsibility:
Recommendations:
- Use full-disk encryption on your device
- Protect your device with a strong password
- Back up your save files if they're important to you
- Use antivirus/anti-malware software
We are not responsible for:
- Data loss due to hardware failure
- Unauthorized access to your device
- Malware or viruses on your system
- Save file corruption (though we test extensively to prevent this)
11.3 No Data Breach Notifications
We will never send you a "data breach notification" email because:
- We have no data to breach
- We don't have your email address to send notifications to
- Even if we did, there's nothing to notify you about
Beware of phishing: If you receive an email claiming to be from us about a data breach, it's a scam. Delete it.
12. CHANGES TO THIS POLICY
12.1 Updates
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time if:
- We add optional features that involve data collection (we'll make them opt-in)
- Laws change and require us to add disclosures
- We need to clarify existing language
12.2 Notification
If we ever start collecting data, we will:
- Update this Privacy Policy with a prominent notice at the top
- Notify you in-game before any data collection begins
- Make data collection opt-in (disabled by default)
- Explain exactly what we're collecting and why
- Provide an easy way to opt out
We will NOT:
- Start collecting data silently via an update
- Enable data collection by default without your consent
- Collect data retroactively
12.3 Continued Use
Under the current policy: Continued use of the Game does not imply consent to data collection because there is no data collection.
If we change our approach: We will require affirmative opt-in consent before collecting any data.
13. CONTACT US
13.1 Questions About This Policy
Email: support@cynicalmonkeys.com
Subject Line: "Privacy Policy Question"
Common questions:
- Do you really collect zero data? → Yes.
- Not even crash reports? → Nope.
- What about analytics? → None.
- Is this a trick? → No, we genuinely don't collect anything.
13.2 General Support
Email: support@cynicalmonkeys.com
Website: https://www.cynicalmonkeys.com
13.3 Legal Inquiries
Email: support@cynicalmonkeys.com
Mailing Address:
CynicalMonkeys
Attn: Legal Department
1705 W LeMoyne St
Chicago, IL 60622
13.4 Steam Data Requests
For data Steam collects, contact Steam directly:
- Steam Privacy Policy: https://store.steampowered.com/privacy_agreement/
- Steam Support: https://help.steampowered.com/
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
- EULA (End User License Agreement): https://www.cynicalmonkeys.com/eula
- AI Disclosure Notice: https://www.cynicalmonkeys.com/aidisclosure
- Community Guidelines: https://www.cynicalmonkeys.com/community (if applicable)
A NOTE FROM THE DEVELOPERS
Privacy is broken in the gaming industry. Most games collect absurd amounts of data—everything from how long you hover over menu options to what time of day you play—and players have no choice but to accept it.
We built Eleanor differently.
We believe great games don't need to surveil their players. Eleanor doesn't need to phone home for the AI to work. We don't need telemetry to know if the Game is fun—player reviews and word-of-mouth tell us that.
This isn't a marketing gimmick. Zero data collection is architecturally baked into the Game. Even if we wanted to collect data tomorrow, we'd have to rebuild core systems from scratch.
We hope other developers follow this path. Players deserve privacy by default, not privacy as a premium feature.
Thank you for supporting privacy-respecting gaming.
— CynicalMonkeys Development Team
Last Updated: February 7, 2026
Version: 1.0 (Early Access)
Document ID: PRIVACY-ZERO-001
CynicalMonkeys - All Rights Reserved