I think it’s almost kind of a shame the IVY app didn’t make it. I don’t know much about it. Maybe it really was horrible, but it’s the mere premise of it that seems to have had so much potential.
I agree with your point that it would be nice to have more freedom while also maintaining the safety of all audiences. I also made a thread about how hypocritical Episode is with its 12+ guidelines, so I definitely understand where you’re coming from. Unfortunately, as the app is now (being rated 12+ but also supporting not 12+ stories), change like that will take quite a while.
Sorry if I didn’t understand what you meant, but the fact that something is targeted at teenagers doesn’t mean that “older” people can’t enjoy it. Episode is a great tool to show stories in an interesting way, nobody is judging teenagers but it would be cool to use this tool to also write more “mature” stories
Most of the authors are in their 20s, this is not a child’s app. I think that Episode is just a way of consuming content just like Youtube or Netflix, I didn’t know there was an age limit
Episode’s content rating on Play Store-
Content rating
Teen
Violence, Suggestive themes, Language, Use of alcohol and tobacco Learn more
Content rating of another role playing game named “Choices”:
Content rating
Teen
Drug reference, Sexual themes, Violent references Learn more
In the second app however there are s*x scenes which are quite explicit tbh.
The stories which have matured content are tagged as 17+ and there’s only a warning in the beginning. Just nothing else! They don’t allow the users to write their own stories though. I guess that’s the main difference between the 2 apps.
So this topic is highly debatable. You can’t prevent children from reading matured stories all the time. For example a 13 year old can easily change the age in their settings and get access to matured content. So I think that’s why Episode avoids matured themes. Can’t really blame it.
But I’d love to have a shelf for the “matured” contents.
yesss. idk if anyone’s seen it. when u upload a video on YouTube it’s mandatory to state if that video is for kids or adults. if you choose kids it asks if they can show it to adults too (meaning it’s a video for the general public), when you choose only for adults you need to state why (gory details etc) so when a viewer chooses that video YouTube asks them to confirm their age by uploading either an ID photo of them or their credit/ debit/ master card details. (i’ve done it it’s safe) I think Episode could do the wholr mature section by changing the rating in both apps (Google and Apple Store) and implementing the same tactic as YouTube on that matter. Maybe even safer. Instead of credit card or ID photos, they can require both and then an actual person instead of a bot can review these and decide that you are old enough for the mature section. Of course kids would still find ways to bypass that but it would be stated that they are “entering” the mature section at their own risk, to avoid lawsuits from parents.
How do you classify “old person”… because I feel a little attacked.
But I do agree that Episode should give an age restricted part of their app for the adults who because it’s the only one of its kind.
They were making Ivy (the adult version) but I’m not sure where that stands now because during their trial run they marketed the app as a readable animated porn app so I highly doubt their numbers reflect the actual desire of the people who use their current Episode app-- because we said “mature” and they heard: " sit down with a glass of wine and “have some fun” while you read" app (<<<that was a actual quote from the app description.)
I don’t think that it will happen - though still hoping. And it is perfectly fine to like the cheesy cliches. However, in my opinion, it’s also incredibly important that these young readers understand the real world and consequences - especially in the cases of toxic af LI being glorified as “He treats her bad because he’s a bad boy”.
And that stereotypical poc/lgbt+ that are highly insulting and not something to use in their own writings. Using a poc or lgbt+ character as a punchline is 100% wrong- but I digress because that’s a whole other topic.
Yeah this is serious tricky water for me. I have massively scaled down my Vampire story to be Episode appropriate but I feel like my hands are tied a lot. For an example, it’s a VERY important plot point that the Mayor’s son (who was turned to a vampire) be killed. It is literally what the story is based around. My story was flagged because I mentioned staking him in the heart (which everyone knows is the only way to kill a vampire). I didn’t go into gory details, didn’t even describe it, just that that was how he went. It somewhat annoys me that I’ve already dramatically watered down the story but now the story feels dull and lifeless to me. I can’t even in the most generic way mention plot points. Tbh I am also annoyed because I was flagged for even mentioning a stake, but there are episodes on here where the character bangs pretty much the whole school. I really wish they’d have an 18+ section.
Sorry to bring back this topic, but I tried to read a featured story but it was h*rny and sexual in the first chapter. I mean, isn’t this supposed to be an App for teens? I’m tired of seeing good stories removed because of the guidelines but this sexual story is completely fine. TEENAGERS SHOULDN’T HAVE TO READ ABOUT SEXUAL INNUENDOS.
This is discouraging, many of you say that stories shouldn’t include mature topics since is an App targeting minors. Let’s face it, most of the stories trending aren’t appropriate to teenagers, I wouldn’t like my little cousins reading most of these stories.
I don’t like lukewarm people and it’s sad to see this. If you are fine with teenagers reading about sexual things then you should be completely fine that some authors include other nonsexual “mature” topics.
I’m not attacking anyone, so I apologize if this sounds rude.
Yes exactly, they’ve always been a “younger app” (despite those stories before the guidelines were strict)
Episode has always been an app for teens, teens & preteens are often pandered to for pretty much any app. Even in movies they always try to reach a pg-13 rating because they want teenagers to be able to watch the movies in theaters (although no one really goes to those anymore). Although most authors are older, it’s not the same for readers, whether they’re active in the community or don’t know it exist. They probably aren’t going to change that, so they can make more money. I’m assuming most authors read the guidelines before making their stories (hopefully) so if you want to write mature stories, you should write on an app that allows mature stories. I understand that you like the platform for writing stories on generally, but if they don’t support the type of story you want to write, write elsewhere. I don’t agree there should be a section, but the Ivy/separate app thing was a good idea.
Tl;dr There’s no real good reason for episode to sacrifice it’s 13+ rating
Also want to add that episode is hypocritical with its own 13+ stories with it’s original stories
The thing is that some of the things that I want to include aren’t extremely violent or anything like that, it’s not like I want to include g*re or steamy scenes. But let’s put an example… EVERYONE complains about mafia stories, they think that authors are glamorizing that lifestyle and they don’t like that. But one author tried to show the bad side without being graphic or obscene, but her story got deleted. They let you show the good side of every toxic ambient but you have no right to show some of the negative effects (even if you respect the guidelines, sometimes they are too picky).
As I said, people often tell “you should look for another app if you want to write x thing”, but why? I remember reading interesting stories before the guidelines changes and they weren’t +18, I say this because I miss that era. Maybe we should question why we are ok with 14 years old reading stories like the ones that include love affairs with bosses, mafia mobs, stepbrothers, etc.
That’s my problem, you want a minor-friendly app? THEN BE A MINOR-FRIENDLY APP. I like some cartoons and I’m ok with the fact that they won’t touch some topics, but are least they are coherent with their audience. You don’t see Disney targeting teenagers and showing TV shows that include sexual innuendos
I don’t even like steamy scenes or sexual innuendos, but I think it’s hypocritical to prohibit some things on the app because “minors are reading” but don’t apply that to sexual topics
Episode should make Ivy available so people can write whatever they want without worrying if a 15-year-old girl is going to read that. It’s not that hard :(( they would gain a lot of money doing that since many readers want mature topics (sadly, most of them want steamy scenes, but I won’t judge them)
