Encore Game LauncherPrivacy Policy
This privacy policy explains how Encore Game Launcher ("the app"), developed by Thunderous Lancer ("we", "us"), handles your information.
In short: the app runs on your PC. It has no account, no analytics, no advertising and no telemetry, and we run no server, so nothing about you is ever sent to us. Some features fetch artwork and game information from the third-party services listed below; those requests go straight from your PC to that service.
What the app reads on your PC
To build your game library, the app reads, on your PC only:
- The records and install folders of game launchers you have installed (such as Steam, Epic Games, Xbox / Microsoft Store, EA, Ubisoft, GOG, Rockstar and Battle.net), to find your installed games.
- The list of apps installed for your Windows account, to find Xbox and Microsoft Store games.
- Folders you choose yourself: ROM folders, shortcut folders, and the programs you add as custom games or emulators.
- Your Steam account ID from Steam's own settings on your PC, used only for the optional Steam Friends feature.
- Which programs are running (for programs with a window: their file path, app package and command line), to show the "Running" group and to close a game when you ask the app to. This list stays in the app's own folder on your PC and is never sent anywhere.
What the app stores on your PC
In its own app-data folder, the app keeps:
- Your settings, folders, groups, favourites and renamed games.
- Downloaded cover art, banners, logos, release years and trailer links.
- A history of which games you started from the app (for "Recently Played").
- A crash log, if the app ever crashes. It stays on your PC; we never receive it unless you send it to us.
A backup you export (Settings → Export Backup) is a .zip of the above, saved wherever you choose. You can delete everything with Settings → Reset App, or by uninstalling the app.
API keys
The SteamGridDB and Steam Web API keys you choose to enter are saved in the Windows Credential Locker, which Windows encrypts and limits to your account and this app. They are not stored in the app's settings or data folder, and they are never included in a backup. Clearing a key box in Settings removes the key.
Services the app connects to
The app connects to these services, and no others. Each request goes directly from your PC to the service, which sees your IP address as with any web request, under its own privacy policy.
| Service | When | What is sent |
|---|---|---|
| SteamGridDB | When artwork or release years are downloaded — by you, or automatically for newly installed games (on by default; can be switched off) — and when you pick artwork for a game. Only with your own API key. | Game names and Steam app IDs, and your SteamGridDB API key. |
| Wikidata (Wikimedia Foundation) | When a release year isn't found on SteamGridDB, including during the automatic pass for new games. | Game names and Steam app IDs, and the app's name with this website's address so Wikimedia can contact us. No account or key. |
| Steam (Valve) | Only if you turn on Steam Friends and enter a Steam Web API key: every couple of minutes while the app is open. Also when a cover is needed for the game a friend is playing. | Your Steam Web API key and Steam account ID (to get your friends list and who is online), Steam app IDs (to find game covers). Cover images are loaded from Steam's image servers. |
| Battle.net (Blizzard) | When showing a Battle.net game that has no cover saved yet. | A request for the game's cover image, at the address Battle.net itself recorded on your PC. |
| YouTube (Google) | Only for games you have added a trailer link to, or when you search for a trailer. Trailers play only in the desktop window. | Trailers play in YouTube's own embedded player, which may set cookies and sees your IP address, under Google's privacy policy. Searching sends your search words (the game's name) to YouTube; video titles and thumbnails are loaded from YouTube. |
Information about other people
If you use Steam Friends, the app shows your Steam friends' public profile names, pictures, online status and the game they are playing, as Steam provides them to you. It keeps none of this except the IDs of friends you choose to pin.
Web Remote (off unless you turn it on)
When you switch on Web Remote in Settings, the app runs a small web server on your PC so that a phone or browser on your own network can show your library and start or close games. A device needs the private link (with its access key) shown in Settings to use it. Nothing is sent to the internet or to us. The connection on your network is not encrypted, so only use it on a network you trust. Turning Web Remote off stops the server.
Starting and closing games
To start a game, the app uses a helper program included with it to run the game or launcher you picked. When you ask it to close a running game, the helper asks the game's window to close, the same as clicking its close button. Both happen only on your PC.
Data we collect
None. The app contains no analytics, advertising, telemetry or tracking. We do not operate any server that receives your data, and we do not sell or share personal information with anyone.
This website
This website has no cookies, analytics, advertising or sign-in. It is hosted by Cloudflare, which handles your visit's technical details (such as your IP address) to deliver the pages and protect the site, under Cloudflare's privacy policy. If you email us, we use your message and email address only to reply.
Children's privacy
The app is not directed at children and does not knowingly collect any information from anyone, including children.
Changes to this policy
If this policy changes, the updated version will be posted at this address with a new "Last updated" date.
Contact
Questions about this policy? Email us at hello@encoregamelauncher.com.