HotPot Story日本語

Privacy Policy

Last updated: October 12, 2026

appful Inc. (“we,” “us,” or “our”) has established this Privacy Policy to explain how we handle user information in the iOS app “HotPot Story” (the “App”). The App is a game in which you become the owner of a small malatang shop and grow your shop.

1. No account registration required

You do not need to register an account to use the App, and there is no login step. We do not collect personal information such as your name, email address, phone number, or address through the App.

2. Your save data stays on your device

Your shop's progress, sales, unlocked equipment, hired staff, upgrade status, and settings such as Sound Effects, Music, Vibration, and Notifications, as well as the age group you choose, are all stored only on your device.

The App does not send your save data to our servers. The only things sent to our servers are the ranking records described in Section 9, the feedback described in Section 10, and the Friends’ Shops information described in Section 11. Therefore, if you delete the App, your save data is deleted as well, and we cannot restore it. Your save data also does not carry over if you switch to a new device.

3. Advertising

To let you use the App for free, we use Google AdMob (Google Mobile Ads SDK), an ad delivery service provided by Google LLC. The App shows banner ads, ads shown while equipment is under construction, full-screen ads shown at screen transitions, native ads on the “Shop Rating” screen, and video ads (rewarded ads) that play only when you choose to watch them. Native ads are labeled “Ad” so that they can be told apart from customer reviews.

Because we use AdMob mediation (bidding among multiple ad networks), each ad shown is selected from among the following companies:

These companies may automatically collect and use information such as the following in order to deliver and optimize ads, limit how often ads are shown, measure ad performance, and prevent ad fraud:

  • Device identifiers, such as the advertising identifier (IDFA; only if you have given permission as described in Section 5 below)
  • Information such as device type, OS version, language, and approximate region estimated from your IP address
  • Ad-related usage, such as the number of times ads are shown, viewed, and tapped

This information is collected and used by each ad company on its own, and we never receive it in a form that identifies individuals. For details on how it is handled, please see each company's privacy policy listed above. For Google, please also see “How Google uses information from sites or apps that use our services.”

If you purchase “Remove Ads,” banner ads, ads shown during construction, full-screen ads, and native ads will no longer be shown. Video ads (rewarded ads) continue to play only when you choose to watch them, even after your purchase.

4. Consent for ads (UMP)

The App uses Google's User Messaging Platform (UMP) to show users in regions where it is required by law a form asking for their consent regarding ads. You can review your choices at any time from “Ad Privacy Settings” in the App's “Settings” (this option may not be shown, depending on where you live).

5. Tracking (App Tracking Transparency)

The App shows the iOS App Tracking Transparency permission dialog. Only if you choose “Allow” may the advertising identifier (IDFA) be used to deliver personalized ads (ads tailored to your interests) and to measure ad performance. If you choose “Ask App Not to Track,” the IDFA is not used and non-personalized ads are shown.

You can change this permission at any time in your iPhone's Settings > Privacy & Security > Tracking. To measure ad performance, we also use Apple's SKAdNetwork, which aggregates data in a way that does not identify individuals.

6. In-app purchases

Purchases of and payments for “Remove Ads” and gem packs are made through Apple's App Store (your Apple Account). Payment processing is handled by Apple, and we never receive payment information such as credit card details. Your purchase status is checked on your device through Apple's StoreKit.

Each age group has a monthly spending limit on purchases. For this reason, before your first purchase, the App asks you to choose your age group (15 or younger, 16–17, or 18 or older). The group you choose is stored only in the save data on your device. We do not ask for your date of birth, and we do not store it. You can choose again at any time in Settings > “Age and Purchase Limit.”

The group you choose is also sent, as anonymous usage information, to the analytics described in Section 8.

7. Notifications

The App may send you notifications such as “Your register is full!” or “Your ingredients arrived.” These are local notifications scheduled on your device, not notifications delivered from our servers. We also do not obtain your notification token.

You can turn notifications off at any time in the App under “Settings” > “Notifications,” or in your iPhone's Settings > Notifications > HotPot Story.

8. Analytics

To improve the game and its ads, the App uses Firebase Analytics, provided by Google LLC, to collect anonymous usage information. This includes information such as the following:

  • Records of in-game events (for example, the number of seconds from opening the App until you first restock, clear a table, or check out a customer; the number of customers in your shop; whether a review request was shown; and whether an ad was shown or failed to load)
  • The number of times you pulled the gacha, the type of gems you used, the number of the option you chose in a customer event, and how you use the help chat “Erimane” (the level of the answer, the name of the closest-matching intent, and its probability rounded to 0.1; the text you type is not included)
  • The fact that you chose an age group (15 or younger, 16–17, or 18 or older), and the product and amount when a purchase was stopped by the spending limit
  • Device type, OS version, language, approximate region estimated from your IP address, App version, and an identifier that Firebase assigns to each installation of the App

We use this information only as aggregated statistics and do not use it to identify individuals. We do not collect your name or any text you enter. For details on how it is handled, please see Google's Privacy Policy (https://policies.google.com/privacy).

The external SDKs included in the App are the Google Mobile Ads SDK mentioned above (and the Google User Messaging Platform that comes with it), the SDKs of the mediation ad networks listed in Section 3, Firebase Analytics, and Firebase Authentication and Firebase App Check, which are used for the ranking and Friends’ Shops. The App does not include any crash reporting tool.

9. Ranking

The App has a Global Ranking where you can compare the number of bowls you have served with other users. Joining the ranking is your choice. Only for users who join, we store the following information in Firebase, provided by Google LLC. It is stored at a data center in Japan (Tokyo).

  • Your identifier (an anonymous ID issued by Firebase, used only within the App)
  • Your game records (number of bowls served, Owner Level, and daily scores)
  • The name shown in the ranking (a name automatically given by the App, or a name you put together by choosing words from a list in the App; free-form text you type is never used)

To prevent fraudulent scores, we use Apple's App Attest to confirm that requests are sent from the genuine App.

Your name and score are shown to other users who have joined the ranking. This information is used only to display the ranking and to check for fraud, and is never used for advertising or tracking.

If you tap “Leave the Ranking” on the ranking screen, the stored information is deleted. Daily records are deleted automatically after 8 days. A user's records are also deleted automatically if they go unused for 400 days.

Ranking names carry a number and are shown in the ranking table. If you use Friends’ Shops (Section 11), tapping “Leave the Ranking” does not delete your Friends’ Shops records. Those records are deleted with the actions described in Section 11.

10. Feedback for the developers

You can send us your comments from “Feedback for the Developers” in the App's Settings. Only if you send feedback, we store the following information in Firebase, provided by Google LLC. It is stored at a data center in Japan (Tokyo).

  • The text you write and the category you choose (such as “Bug,” “Hard to Use,” or “Suggestion”)
  • App version, device type, OS version, and language
  • An identifier used to prevent too many submissions (a random value the App creates for each device, converted into a form that cannot be reversed; neither the advertising ID nor any device ID is used)

This information is used only to fix bugs in and improve the App, and is never used for advertising or tracking. It is never shown to other users. Please do not include personal information such as your name or contact details. The stored information is deleted automatically after 400 days.

You can also send comments from the help chat “Erimane.” What you type in Erimane is judged on your device and is not sent. Only if you choose “Send to the developers,” we store that text in the same way as described above.

11. Friends’ Shops

The App has Friends’ Shops, where you can visit the shops of people who have become your friends and send them a “Like.” You start using it only when you tap “Start.”

Only for users who start using it, we store the following information in Firebase, provided by Google LLC. It is stored at a data center in Japan (Tokyo).

  • Your identifier (an anonymous ID issued by Firebase; it is the same one used for the ranking)
  • Your friend display name (a name and number put together from a list of words in the App; free-form text you type is never used) and your friend code
  • Your friend connections (people who became your friends, requests you sent and received, people you blocked, and the dates you sent Likes)
  • Information about the look of your shop (shop shape, built equipment, patterns, decoration positions, hat, shop grade, and Owner Level; numeric values only, with no photos or text; not sent while you have no friends)

Your display name, Owner Level, and the look of your shop are shown to your friends. The list of people you blocked is shown only to you. We use this information only to display Friends’ Shops and to check for fraud, and never for advertising or tracking.

We do not collect your real name, contact details, messages, or photos, and we do not use the contacts on your device. Friends exist only within the App.

By default, you do not receive requests from people you do not know. Only if you turn on “Accept requests from the ranking” in Settings can people viewing the ranking table send you a request.

If you tap “Leave Friends,” we delete your friend connections, requests, the shop information you sent, and your friend code. If you tap “Erase All Records,” we delete all of your Friends’ Shops and ranking records. Received requests are deleted automatically after 7 days, shop information after 180 days from the last time you sent it, and all other Friends’ Shops records after 400 days from the last time you used them.

12. Information the App does not use

The App does not use your camera, photos, microphone, location, contacts, calendar, or health data. The only iOS permission dialogs the App shows are the two for tracking and notifications. The App does not use the contacts on your device; friends in Friends’ Shops exist only within the App.

13. Transfers outside Japan

Google LLC, which provides the ad delivery service and Firebase, is located in the United States. The other ad networks listed in Section 3 are also located outside Japan, in the United States, Singapore, and elsewhere. Information collected by each company may be transferred to and stored outside Japan, and is handled in accordance with that company's privacy policy. This never includes the save data on your device. The ranking records in Section 9, the feedback in Section 10, and the Friends’ Shops information in Section 11 are stored at a data center in Japan (Tokyo).

The information passed to Google LLC in the United States is used to deliver ads and measure their effect (Section 3), to analyse how the app is used (Section 8), and to store the ranking, feedback and friends' shop records (Sections 9–11, stored in Tokyo).

Information on the personal information protection system of the United States is available in thesurvey by the Personal Information Protection Commission of Japan. The measures taken by Google LLC are described in theGoogle Privacy Policyand theGoogle Ads Data Processing Terms.

14. Disclosure to third parties

We do not provide, sell, or lend users' personal information to third parties. As described above, information collected and used in connection with ad delivery is collected and used by the ad companies themselves. Ranking names and scores are shown to other users who have joined the ranking, as described in Section 9. Friends’ Shops display names and shop appearances are shown to your friends, as described in Section 11.

15. Children's privacy

The App is not a service directed primarily at children. Ads are configured to be age-appropriate.

16. Changes to this policy

If we change this policy, we will post the revised version on this page. If we make significant changes, we will also announce them in the App.

17. Contact

For questions about this policy, please contact us at:

  • Operator: appful Inc.
  • Address: Nishi-Shinjuku Mizuma Bldg. 2F, 3-3-13 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-0023, Japan
  • Responsible Manager: Ryusei Okamoto
  • Email: info@appful.tokyo

© appful Inc.