'Download Episode - Choose Your Story APK 12.26.1 Simulation game, full new and old versions. Rated 4.20 out of 5 based on 2 reviews.

As smartphone ownership surges, we’re seeing a drastic rise in the use of mobile apps, many of which are marketed towards impressionable young audiences.

One such app is Episode – Choose Your Story, a free game with more than 50 million downloads and five million weekly users.

Episode is coming under scrutiny by parents and users, many as young as 10, for its inappropriate themes. Such apps are far-reaching, and parenting their use can be tricky.

According to a US report published this year, which surveyed 1,677 kids, 41% of tweens (aged 8-12) and 84% of teens (aged 13-18) owned a smartphone.

There’s an increasing number of games targeted at these age groups, of which many follow a “choose your story” format.

The stories are divided into episodes and the user, or “reader”, can interact with storylines and even create their own. Readers can choose from a list of responses to influence things such as a character’s appearance, dialogue and reaction to events.

While most storylines focus on romance and high school relationships, many have raised alarm bells in parents. A number of parents have voiced concerns on Common Sense Media, a leading source of entertainment recommendations for families.

What your child engages with online

Episode features numerous storylines about sexual discrimination, underage sex and pregnancy. Many of these glorify adultery and are potentially promoting reckless decision making, pettiness and unkind acts.

On inspection, there are several issues with the app.

First, storylines can be written by anyone, even those aged 13-17. And while there are more than 12 million creators, there is little content regulation, even when the Episode community expresses concern.

One story regarding sexual consent raised uproar with users, who were concerned at the poor moral message of a young female character being “blind drunk” and not consenting to a sexual liaison with an older male character.

Yet, the story was not removed, and the author did little to address the backlash.

Another concerning aspect of the game is that in many situations, users have to pay money to make morally correct decisions, yet reckless choices are free. This reinforces inappropriate reactions to events. This is also where players can unwittingly spend huge amounts of money.

Read more: The app trap: how children spend thousands online

What about parental guidance ratings?

On the Common Sense Media website, parents have given Episode a parental advisory rating of 14+, whereas kids have rated it suitable for ages 13+.

On the Apple App Store, the game is rated 12+ and on Google Play it’s rated “Mature”.

That said, players of Episode are often impressionable older children and teens. A 12+ rating offers little guidance to parents, and ratings overall don’t seem to deter children from playing.

This is hardly surprising. At this stage of development, peer relationships are highly rewarding. Many players are introduced to apps such as Episode by siblings or friends, and are enticed by the excitement they offer.

Research shows several areas of the brain make adolescents more sensitive to the rewards of peer relationships than adults. This motivates teens to focus on their peers in decision-making situations that involve risky behaviour.

This is apparent in one comment from a 13-year-old made on a Common Sense Media forum about Episode:

WOW!!! The best app!!!!! I love it!!!!! P.S. – kids, make sure your parents don’t know you’re using Episode! ;)

No universal standard

Although different countries offer their own classifications for online sites and gaming, there’s no universal standard apps have to meet in order to establish suitability for children and teens.

Read more: Is that porn your child is watching online? How do you know?

Due to the discrepancy in app store ratings, the best prevention of a child or teen using inappropriate apps is to refer to guidance sites such as Common Sense Media. Prey mooncrash kill claire.

But an even better defence is for parents to test questionable apps themselves. From those adults who offer valuable feedback online for childrens’ apps, many are parents who have personally tried the apps.

Until there’s an improved consensus on app classification, parental monitoring remains best practice.

Other things parents can do

To prevent the use of unsuitable apps by children and teens, parents can try establishing a verbal and written contract with their child before they are allowed to own a smartphone, or other smart device.

It should contain guidelines for when, how long and what can be viewed on the device. There should also be transparency around what’s being downloaded, with parents checking the device(s) on a regular basis.

Furthermore, due to the tendency of apps such as Episode to encourage consumerism, children and teens should not buy gems, tokens, cards or any app-related digital currency, without first discussing this with an adult.

As it is, the estimated daily revenue of Episode is US$105,000.

Passive versus interactive

A major criticism of screen time and app use is that it’s passive and requires little or no involvement from users.

Research suggests typing on a keyboard to calculate times tables, rather than writing by hand or using a smartphone, can hinder long-term learning and memory.

Instead of encouraging device usage, children benefit from more reading, storytelling and imaginative play. As they mature, such activities enable greater fluency, theory of mind (which is understanding that others may have different beliefs and desires to you), and moral reasoning abilities.

Read more: Five reasons why you should read aloud to your kids – and pick their favourite book

The good news is, app developers have also started to heed such advice, with many promoting the interactive components of their product.

And this isn’t just to appease parents.

Apps that encourage storytelling, many led by research and developed by educators, are popular with children and teens too.

Story Game – Direct Your Own Love Story

Want to be the director of your own love story? Want to give your character the best chance to fall in love with the right person? Well, then this story game is an ideal choice for you. Episode – Choose Your Story is a cool game in which you get the chance to call all the shots on how your story progresses and ends. It lets you assume the role of the director and dictate how the characters interact with each other. It will be your choices that will impact the outcome of the story. So, choose wisely. You will get to dress up your character in different outfits and also choose their look as per your preferences. In some stories, you might even get the chance to change the look of your love interest too.

Episode – Choose Your Story has slick gameplay that is beautifully complemented by stunning graphics and animations. The interactions between the characters are so realistic that you will feel as if you are a part of the story. You will find the controls to be very user-friendly and easy to understand. There are multiple choices available and you just have to pick one from them. So, you only have to tap on the option you like. However, do keep in mind that once you have tapped on an option, you can't go back. You will have to stick to your decisions and go further in the story. If you want the story to go as you want them to be, you will have to make your decisions carefully.

This story game provides multiple stories for you to play. Each story has a different plot and characters. All the stories are divided into multiple chapters. You have to go from chapter to chapter and take the story forward. At each step of the story, you will be given multiple choices. Each choice you make has the potential of giving the story a new direction. You will meet different characters in each story. It is up to you to decide which character your avatar should be interested in. Some of the choices are locked, though. You can unlock them by spending gems. These gems can be bought either for real money or by completing story chapters. Also, you will need free passes to move on from one chapter to the other.

Episode – Choose Your Story gives you the chance to dress up your avatar into a variety of different clothes and outfits. Moreover, you will get to decide the look for your avatar too. This means that you can choose the avatar's hair type, face type, hair color, and other facial features like lips, nose, and mouth. In some stories, you will be suggested special hair colors and designs for your avatar. However, just like the locked options, they would be locked as well. You can only unlock them after spending gems. This story game allows you to play multiple stories at once. You can leave a story at a certain chapter and take it up again from where you left off.

Features:

• Lots of different stories to choose from
• Pick the story that you like
• Various chapters available for each story
• Multiple options on offer at each step
• Make decisions by choosing the option you like
• Guide your character towards their lover interest
• Help your character in starting a relationship
• Dress up your character in fancy clothes
• Give your character the perfect look
• Spend gems to unlock premium content

Conclusion:

Episode – Choose Your Story is a gaming app that is aimed towards romanticists and people who love the idea of falling in love. It allows them to craft their own stories and make decisions regarding the direction they want the stories to take. It is a fun story game and you will find yourself addicted to it after playing it for a few minutes.