Who we are
Hardmaps.com is a hobby gaming community run by volunteers. We have no ads, no trackers and no analytics, and we never sell or share your data. Questions about this page or your data: use the contact form.
What we store
If you only visit
The web server keeps normal access logs (IP address, page, time) for security and troubleshooting. We do not use them to profile anyone. Our fonts are loaded from Google Fonts, so your browser sends your IP address to Google when you open a page.
If you register on the forum
We store your username, email address and a hashed password (we cannot read it), plus the IP address used when you register and post. The forum sets only the cookies it needs to keep you logged in. Your posts, private messages and profile details are stored as you enter them. Your email address is never shown to other members.
Why we store it
To run the community: to let you log in, post, and to keep the forum safe from spam. The legal basis is your consent when you register, and our legitimate interest in keeping the forum secure.
How long we keep it
Your account stays until you ask us to delete it. Your posts stay as part of the discussion; when you leave we remove your name from them. Server logs are kept for a short time and then deleted.
Links to other sites
We link to other websites, such as NovaHQ, Steam and ModDB. They have their own privacy rules, which we do not control.
The old Hardmaps archive
The old Hardmaps forum (2004 to 2026) is preserved as a read-only archive at archive.hardmaps.com. It shows the public forum posts and the usernames used at the time. It does not show email addresses, passwords, IP addresses or private messages. The Wall of Fame page lists member names, again with public usernames only. When you click a name there, you also see the month that account was created and the number of posts it made on the old forum. The squad list shows the country and games that members of the old HmS Squad listed themselves.
Your rights
You can ask to see what we hold about you, correct it, or have it deleted. This includes having your name removed from the archive or the Wall of Fame. Use the contact form and we will take care of it as soon as we can.
Other people
TeamSpeak is run by someone else. Anything you say on a voice channel is heard by the people in it. Game links on this site go to other websites (NovaHQ, ModDB, Steam) that have their own privacy rules.
Last updated: October 2026.