Rootfast — Grove Defense · Last updated: September 29, 2026
Rootfast — Grove Defense is a mobile base-defense strategy game developed by Tinker Apps. Tinker Apps does not operate its own game servers and does not intentionally collect or store gameplay-related personal data on its own infrastructure. However, Tinker Apps chooses to integrate certain third-party services (such as Google services) that process data as described in this policy. Tinker Apps determines which of these services are integrated and, to that extent, may act as a data controller for data collected through them; Google also processes data under its own policies. Tinker Apps does not sell personal data for money. All Google services referenced in this policy operate under Google's Privacy Policy (https://policies.google.com/privacy).
The data controller responsible for this app is Tinker Apps (United States). You can contact us at tinkerapps.support@gmail.com.
The app integrates the following Google software development kits (SDKs) and services. Each is described in more detail in the sections below, and all operate under Google's Privacy Policy. The app itself does not use cookies or web tracking pixels; these SDKs may use device identifiers and similar technologies to provide their services.
| Service | Purpose | Data processed |
|---|---|---|
| Firebase Analytics | Usage analytics | App events, purchase amount and currency, player segments, device information, app-instance ID, and — for signed-in players who consent — your Play Games Player ID. Governed by Share anonymous diagnostics: off until you agree in the EEA, UK and Switzerland; on from first launch elsewhere, with an on-screen notice and a one-tap off switch |
| Firebase Crashlytics | Crash reporting | Crash logs, device diagnostics, installation identifiers, and — for signed-in players who consent — your Play Games Player ID |
| Google Play Games Services | Sign-in, achievements, leaderboards & cloud saves | Player ID, saved game data, achievement progress, leaderboard scores |
| Google Play Billing | In-app purchases | Purchase transactions (no payment details are stored by Tinker Apps) |
| Play Age Signals | Age-appropriate experience & legal compliance | Age range / verification status, for users in regions where required by law |
| Google Play In-App Review | Optional in-app rating prompt | Handled by Google Play; the app does not see your rating or review |
Tinker Apps does not operate its own game servers and does not intentionally collect or store gameplay-related personal data on its own infrastructure. Your game progress — including campaign progress and stars, Heartseeds and Grove upgrades, faction unlocks, any run in progress, daily-challenge and endless-mode records, and settings — is stored locally on your device using standard application storage.
If you sign in to Google Play Games, your long-term progress is also saved to the cloud using Google Play Saved Games so it can be restored after a reinstall or on a new device (see Google Play Games Services below). ⚠️ The cloud save holds your meta progression only — Heartseeds, Grove upgrades, campaign results and stars, records and unlocked factions. A run in progress and your app settings are device-local and are not synced: an unfinished run does not follow you to another device. If you do not sign in, your progress stays only on your device, and clearing the app's data or uninstalling the app will erase it (the non-consumable full-game purchase can still be restored through Google Play — see below). Game data is designed not to include directly identifying personal information.
If you contact us directly — for example, by email for support or to make a privacy request — we will receive the information you choose to provide, such as your email address and the contents of your message, and we use it only to respond to and handle your request.
Rootfast contains no advertising. There is no advertising SDK in the app, no banner, interstitial or rewarded ad, and no Android Advertising ID is read, collected or shared. Nothing in the app is served or measured by an ad network.
Earlier versions of Rootfast did display ads through Google AdMob. That was removed in September 2026 when the app moved to a free preview with a single optional purchase, and with it went the ad-related consent form that used to appear in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom and Switzerland. If you are updating from an older version, no advertising identifier is collected by the current app.
Because the app carries no advertising, there is exactly one privacy choice to make, and the app asks you directly rather than through an advertising consent form. Every player is shown a card about it on one of their first launches, telling them what is collected and how to stop it. Your answer controls the Firebase Analytics section below in full. It controls one part of the Firebase Crashlytics section — whether your Play Games Player ID is attached to crash reports — but it does not switch crash reporting itself on or off.
What that card does depends on where you are, because the law does:
In both cases the same rules apply once you have answered:
You can change your answer at any time, in any country, under Settings > Share anonymous diagnostics. Turning it off takes effect immediately and clears your Play Games Player ID from both Firebase Analytics and Firebase Crashlytics; see Data Deletion for what that does and does not remove. Where Google Play indicates that a player is a minor, the app does not ask this question and does not enable analytics identification at all; the Settings switch is not shown to them either (see Age Signals below).
In-app purchases are processed entirely by Google Play. Tinker Apps does not receive or store any payment information. All purchase validation is handled by Google under Google's Privacy Policy.
Rootfast is a free preview — Sprout Isle and the first three Grove levels, replayable without limit — with a single optional purchase:
Earlier versions sold three smaller products (an ad-removal purchase and the two factions, then sold separately). Those are withdrawn; if you bought any of them, your account is recognised as owning the full game and nothing further is charged.
The in-game Grove Upgrades screen lets you spend Heartseeds you earn through gameplay on permanent unlocks. Heartseeds are an in-game currency only; they are not purchased with real money and have no monetary value. Everything you earn during the free preview is kept if you later buy the full game.
Rootfast optionally integrates with Google Play Games Services for sign-in, achievements, leaderboards, and cloud saves (Saved Games). Rootfast does not create or maintain its own user accounts; signing in uses your existing Google account, which is created and managed by Google. Sign-in is optional — if you do not sign in to Google Play Games, your progress is stored only on your device and is not synced to the cloud, and Play Games profile data is not shared. However, other integrated Google services (Firebase Analytics and Crashlytics) may still process data as described elsewhere in this policy, subject to your diagnostics choice.
If you do sign in, Google Play Games Services collects the following for app functionality purposes:
Rootfast uses Google Play Games Services to provide sign-in, achievements, leaderboards, and cloud saves. The one further use is the Player ID described above: for signed-in players who have turned on diagnostics, it also identifies your activity within Firebase Analytics and Firebase Crashlytics, so that gameplay and crash data can be grouped per player rather than per install.
Your Saved Games snapshot is never sent to Firebase — the stored file holding your progress goes only to Google Play Saved Games, and neither analytics nor crash reporting receives it. That is not the same as saying Firebase sees nothing about your progress: if you have turned on diagnostics, the events described under Firebase Analytics above separately record overlapping facts, such as which level you played, how it ended, the stars and score you earned and how far through the campaign you are. The difference is that those are individual game events, not your saved file, and they are not written back into it. Achievement unlocks and leaderboard scores are likewise held by Play Games; Firebase records only the app events listed above. Tinker Apps does not store any of this information on its own servers or use it for any other purpose. Google Play Games Services is operated by Google under Google's Privacy Policy, with additional information at support.google.com/googleplaygames.
Rootfast uses Google Firebase Analytics to understand how players interact with the game. Firebase Analytics may collect:
Player segments. Alongside individual events, Rootfast records a small set of coarse labels describing what kind of player you are, so that the reports above can be broken down by group rather than read as one undifferentiated total. For Rootfast these are: how many runs you have played, your total stars, how many Grove upgrades and card combinations you have unlocked, how far through the campaign you have reached, which additional factions you own, whether you own the full game, and whether the developer cheat menu has been used.
Most of these are deliberately coarse ranges rather than exact values (for example "5–19 runs", not "eleven runs"). Two are recorded as exact counts — your total stars and the number of Grove upgrades you own — because the ranges were too wide to be useful for balancing the game's difficulty. All of them describe your activity in this game only, none of them is used to target advertising, and they are recorded only while Share anonymous diagnostics is on — which, as described above, is from first launch outside the EEA, the UK and Switzerland, and only after you agree inside them.
Play Games Player ID in analytics and crash reports. If you are signed in to Google Play Games, Rootfast may pass your Play Games Player ID to Firebase Analytics and Firebase Crashlytics as a user identifier. This lets us tell that events or a crash report came from the same player across sessions and devices, so we can diagnose a problem you report to us and understand how progression works over time rather than only per install. Specifically:
This data is processed by Google under Google's Privacy Policy. Tinker Apps uses analytics reports and aggregated insights generated from this data to understand gameplay trends, improve the app, and evaluate features, and does not use Firebase Analytics to directly identify individual users by name, email, or similar directly identifying information. Where a Play Games Player ID is attached as described above, activity can be linked to that pseudonymous identifier — and so, by Google, to the Google account behind it — but Tinker Apps sees only the identifier itself, and uses it to group a player's own activity together, not to build advertising profiles. In the EEA, UK, and Switzerland, Firebase Analytics does not store or use device identifiers until you agree on the app's own diagnostics card (described above) or turn on Share anonymous diagnostics in Settings; if consent is not given, analytics identifiers remain disabled (Analytics may still record limited, non-identifying information needed for basic operation). You may also be able to limit certain data collection through your device or Google privacy settings.
Rootfast uses Google Firebase Crashlytics to automatically detect and report app crashes and errors. When a crash or reported error occurs, Crashlytics may collect:
This data is used solely to diagnose and fix bugs and crashes. It is not used for advertising or profiling, and Tinker Apps does not receive your name, email address, or Play Games display name — where a Player ID is attached, it lets us match a crash to a problem you report to us directly. Crashlytics is operated by Google under Google's Privacy Policy.
Rootfast may occasionally invite you to rate the game using the Google Play In-App Review API, which shows Google Play's standard rating dialog inside the app. This flow is provided and operated by Google Play: Google processes the data needed to display the dialog and, if you choose to submit a rating or review, it is associated with your Google account under Google Play's own terms and privacy policy. The app itself never sees whether you rated it or what you wrote, and the prompt appears at most rarely (you can always dismiss it). The Rate this app option in Settings simply opens the app's Google Play store listing.
To support applicable U.S. state app-store age-verification laws (such as the Texas App Store Accountability Act, SB 2420), Rootfast uses the Google Play Age Signals API. Where required by law in your region, Google Play may verify a user's age and provide the app with an age category (for example, an age range such as 0–12, 13–15, 16–17, or 18+) and parental-consent or supervision status.
Rootfast uses this information only to provide an age-appropriate experience — specifically, where Google Play indicates a player is a minor, the app does not ask the diagnostics question at all and withholds the Play Games Player ID from analytics and crash reports — and for legal compliance and safety, as permitted by these laws. The app carries no advertising, so this signal no longer affects any ad treatment; earlier versions used it to restrict ad personalisation and to offer minors an ad-free break in place of an interstitial, and both of those went with the ads. In-app purchases are not restricted by the app based on this signal; purchases by minors are gated by Google Play's own parental-approval controls (such as Family Link / "Ask to Buy"). Tinker Apps does not use this age information for any other purpose and does not store it on its own servers. Age verification and parental consent are handled by Google Play. This signal is provided only for users in regions where it is legally required; in all other cases the app applies its standard settings.
Google services integrated into Rootfast (Firebase Analytics, Firebase Crashlytics, Google Play Games Services, Google Play Billing, Play Age Signals, and Google Play In-App Review) may transfer and process data in the United States and other countries. Google may transfer and process this data internationally in accordance with applicable data protection laws and the safeguards described in Google's Privacy Policy.
Tinker Apps does not retain gameplay-related personal data on its own infrastructure. Retention periods for data processed by Google services are determined by Google's service settings and policies and may change over time. In general:
Local game data is retained on your device until you uninstall the app or clear app data in your device settings. Any support correspondence you send us is retained only as long as needed to handle your request.
Tinker Apps does not store gameplay-related personal data on its own infrastructure. To manage or remove data:
Some data collected by third-party services (such as Firebase Analytics and Crashlytics) may not be individually identifiable or deletable, but is used in aggregate and retained according to Google's data retention policies.
To request deletion of data associated with your use of Rootfast, or for help with any of the steps above, contact us at tinkerapps.support@gmail.com. We will respond to and assist with deletion requests where reasonably possible, or direct you to the appropriate Google privacy controls.
You have several controls over the data processed through the app:
If you are located in the EEA, the UK, or Switzerland, you have the following rights under the GDPR and equivalent laws. Because Tinker Apps does not hold most personal data directly, many of these rights apply to data held by Google and can be exercised at myaccount.google.com. You may also contact us at tinkerapps.support@gmail.com and we will assist where reasonably possible or direct you to the appropriate Google privacy controls.
Tinker Apps does not use your personal data for automated decision-making or profiling that produces legal or similarly significant effects concerning you.
Depending on your state of residence (for example, California, Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut, Utah, or Texas), you may have rights under applicable state privacy laws, including the right to know what categories of personal information are collected, the right to request deletion, the right to request correction of inaccurate information, and the right to opt out of targeted advertising or the “sale” or “sharing” of personal information. Tinker Apps does not sell personal information and will not discriminate against you for exercising any of these rights.
Residents of California have rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act, as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (CCPA/CPRA). The categories of personal information that may be collected through the app by the third-party services described above include:
Tinker Apps does not sell personal information for money and does not maintain user accounts or personal profiles. Rootfast does no advertising at all — no advertising identifier is read or shared — so there is no cross-context behavioural advertising “sharing” under the CPRA arising from this app. Outside the EEA, the UK and Switzerland, anonymous gameplay statistics are collected from first launch and the app tells you so on screen; you can turn them off with one tap on that notice, or at any time under Settings > Share anonymous diagnostics. California residents may contact us using the information in the Contact section to exercise their rights, and we will not discriminate against you for doing so.
Rootfast is not directed at children. The app is not designed for children under 13 and is not intended to be used as a child-directed service under applicable privacy laws. Where Google Play provides an age signal indicating that a user is a minor (see Age Signals above), the app does not ask the diagnostics question, analytics identification stays switched off, and no Play Games Player ID is attached to anything.
To be precise rather than absolute about what remains: with diagnostics off, Firebase Analytics does not store analytics identifiers, but the app still collects crash and stability diagnostics through Firebase Crashlytics, which necessarily includes device and installation identifiers so a crash can be attributed to a build and a device model. That is how a broken release gets found and fixed, it carries no Play Games Player ID and no profile, and it applies to every player regardless of age. We do not otherwise knowingly collect personal information from anyone below the minimum digital consent age in their jurisdiction — age 13 in the United States, or up to age 16 in certain EEA member states. If you believe a child below the applicable age has used the app in a way that has transmitted personal data, please contact us at tinkerapps.support@gmail.com so we can take appropriate action.
Tinker Apps does not store gameplay-related personal data on its own infrastructure. Local game data is protected by Android's standard application sandboxing. All data transmitted between the app and the integrated Google services (Firebase, Play Games, Play Billing, Play Age Signals, In-App Review) is encrypted in transit using industry-standard protocols (HTTPS/TLS), and data handled by those services is subject to Google's security practices. No method of electronic transmission is completely secure.
Tinker Apps does not intentionally collect or store personal data on its own infrastructure, but does determine which third-party services are integrated into the app and which events are collected. Where we act as a data controller in that capacity, we rely on the following legal bases under GDPR and equivalent laws:
Google may act as an independent data controller for certain processing activities described above. At the same time, because Tinker Apps determines which services are integrated and which events are collected, Tinker Apps may act as a controller (or joint controller) with respect to data collected through those services. Google relies on its own legal bases as described in Google's Privacy Policy.
Tinker Apps does not store gameplay-related personal data on its own infrastructure. In the event of a qualifying personal-data breach, and where required by applicable law, Tinker Apps will notify the relevant supervisory authorities and affected users without undue delay (for example, within 72 hours of becoming aware, as required under the GDPR). Data processed by Google services is also subject to Google's own breach-notification obligations.
We may update this policy from time to time. Changes will be posted at this URL with an updated effective date. Where legally required — for example, where a material change involves new processing of personal data — we will notify you and, where applicable, request renewed consent before the change takes effect. Continued use of the app after non-material changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.
If you have questions about this privacy policy, contact us at:
Tinker Apps
United States
tinkerapps.support@gmail.com