Privacy policy

Scope

This policy explains how Button & Branch handles information when you visit button-and-branch.com or use the reader contact form. Button & Branch is responsible for the publication and, where the Australian Privacy Principles apply, for the personal information described here.

The site publishes accessible writing about game design, game history, mechanics, creators, genres and play. This notice explains the site’s current information practices; it is not jurisdiction-specific legal advice or a claim of legal certification.

Information we collect

When you use the contact form, the site asks for your name, email address, the subject of your enquiry and your message, plus an optional game, mechanic or topic. You select the subject from: A reader question, A correction, A topic suggestion, or Something else.

The form also records your agreement to Button & Branch using these details to respond to your message. A hidden anti-spam field is present in the form and is not intended to collect a visitor-facing item of information.

Button & Branch does not configure analytics or advertising tools. The site uses necessary and functional browser storage described in the cookie policy.

How we use information

Information supplied through the form is used to understand and respond to a reader question, correction, topic suggestion or other message. The optional game, mechanic or topic provides context for the enquiry.

Where the Australian Privacy Principles apply, the relevant purpose is handling and responding to your enquiry. The site does not use these details for advertising or analytics.

Form submissions

The form fields are: Your name, Email address, What would you like to discuss?, Game, mechanic or topic, Your message, and the required agreement to use these details to respond. Name, email address, topic and message are required; the game, mechanic or topic field is optional.

No external submission endpoint is configured for the form. The site does not send these fields to an external form service. To ask a current question about a submission or to contact Button & Branch directly, use [email protected].

Sharing and disclosures

Button & Branch does not configure data sharing with third parties for advertising, analytics or social media. Information is handled for the purpose for which you provide it: responding to your message and managing related correspondence.

If a disclosure is required by law, the relevant details will be handled in accordance with that requirement. This policy does not create a list of recipients or services that are not configured.

Retention

Information from an enquiry is kept for as long as reasonably needed to understand, respond to and manage the correspondence. The appropriate period depends on the nature of the message, including whether it contains a correction or a follow-up question. When it is no longer needed for that purpose, it should be removed or otherwise handled appropriately.

Button & Branch does not state a fixed retention period. Contact [email protected] for a current answer about a particular enquiry.

Security

Button & Branch takes reasonable care with information submitted through the site and limits its use to the purposes described in this policy. No online transmission or storage method can be presented as completely secure. Please avoid including sensitive information in a reader message.

Your choices and rights

You can choose not to use the contact form. You can also contact Button & Branch to ask what personal information is held about you, request access to it, or ask for inaccurate information to be corrected. You may object to a use of your information where the Australian Privacy Principles give you that right, and ask how a request or complaint will be handled.

To make a request, write to [email protected] and describe the information or correction you are seeking. Button & Branch may need enough detail to identify the relevant enquiry.

Children

The site is written for a general readership interested in games and game culture. It does not knowingly invite children to provide personal information. A parent or guardian with concerns about information submitted through the site can contact Button & Branch using the address below.

Collection and holding

Button & Branch collects information directly from you when you complete the contact form. The information is held for the enquiry and correspondence purposes set out in this policy. Only the fields shown on the form are requested.

Access and correction

You can request access to personal information held about you and ask for it to be corrected if it is inaccurate, incomplete or out of date. Send the request to [email protected], with enough context to locate the relevant message.

Complaints

If you have a privacy concern, contact Button & Branch first at [email protected] so the concern can be considered. If the Australian Privacy Principles apply and you are not satisfied with the response, you can contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) through its published complaint channels.

Overseas disclosures

This site does not configure an overseas disclosure or identify an overseas recipient for the form information. The current arrangements may require review as the site or its services change. Contact [email protected] for a current answer about a particular enquiry.

Changes

Button & Branch may update this policy when its information practices change or when clearer information is needed. The effective date at the top of this page shows which version is current on this page.

Contact

For privacy questions, access or correction requests, or complaints, contact Button & Branch: