Idea for an adult game site

[DoAdventures]

Moving from one locked garden to two others (App Store and Google Play) doesn't feel like a move towards progress. Shouldn't this just be a website instead so it can truly remain independent? Apple will try to get rid of it as soon as it gets any attention, regardless if it's OK in the current App Store guidelines. It doesn't seem like Google is as puritan as Apple yet, but not exactly a solid foundation if you wanna build something resilient.

You’re absolutely right that anything even adjacent to adult themes gets extra scrutiny from Apple and Google, and that relying on those ecosystems alone would be risky.

That’s why the current plan isn’t to make Ember Games exclusive to the app stores, it’s designed as a hybrid approach:

• The core app (on iOS/Android) is a directory, launcher, and companion hub, completely clean, compliant, and free of user-generated or explicit content. It’s essentially a discovery tool with optional account sync.
• The actual adult or age-restricted content (like NSFW game builds, Patreon links, etc.) is web-hosted externally, just like how Reddit, Twitter, or OnlyFans link out to restricted content without hosting it directly.

That means:

• There’s no user-generated content moderation overhead within the app.
• We don’t store or serve adult assets, bypassing the legal minefield.
• The same app build can run on Android, iOS, or as a PWA (Progressive Web App) in any browser — giving us full independence and resilience.

So yes — the Ember Hub is effectively a website too, but packaged as a native app for discoverability and mobile usability. The goal is accessibility, not dependency.

Long term, the ecosystem would prioritize:

• Direct browser access (via a PWA or web viewer)
• Optional Android sideloading
• Optional desktop launcher
• App store presence purely as a discovery funnel, not as a choke point

In short, the app is the entry point, not the fortress.

 

[Crimson Delight Games]

Funding's the main issue. You'd need someone to bankroll the endeavor, without guarantee of success.

 

[DoAdventures]

Funding's the main issue. You'd need someone to bankroll the endeavor, without guarantee of success.

I don't mind covering everything at the moment. At the moment the costs aren't really my concern. It is dev accounts for Apple and Google, it is time that I'll spend on the DB (Already built but needs fine tuning) it is confirming what can and can't be done whilst sticking within the policies that I need to make sure are squeaky clean. Because it is only like a landing page though, or Hub (Certainly from an initial perspective) the games are web hosted, which developers can do for free or minimal costs. I have two free web hosting providers for two of my games and another paid provider for another - and there isn't anything wrong with my content on those) If it can be helpful and if devs want to get involved, the discord is open to anyone who would like to challenge, advise, support or lend a hand. The content will be age-gated and as a possible solution, either access through current tiers or creation of new tiers for subscribers that only have an iphone for example (I have two of my highest paid tiers that have an iphone and need to use web hosted versions to play the game)

 

[Crimson Delight Games]

I don't mind covering everything at the moment. At the moment the costs aren't really my concern.

Fair enough.

Also please consider a scaling revenue split. Steam and most other online stores take a 30% cut, which is a lot. Some people in the thread here suggested 5% or 10%. I think it'd be best to have the revenue scale to units sold (or overall profit, whichever you prefer). Have games start at 5/95 by default (dev keeps 95%, site gets 5%), then increase it to 10% and 15% after certain sales thresholds are met.

This way the site remains competitive with Steam, and newbie devs have a chance to keep a larger cut of their profit. It's only when a game exceeds X or Y units in sales that you'd crank up the revenue split to 10/90 and 15/85. In practice this would mean larger and more popular games would receive a smaller cut, but in general such games to tend to also outsell the majority of other titles so their devs end up taking in much greater profits.

Steam currently has an inverted setup where the more your game makes, the less you give to Steam (IIRC a game has to earn $10mil to enter the next tier where the revenue split is 25/75). But this only helps already popular games, while most indies struggle to break even $1000 in revenue. IMHO it'd be more fair to do the opposite and let smaller indies keep more money, while better-selling games (which already made a mint) pay a bigger cut to the site.

Personally I'd cap the upper end at 15/85, to keep the site competitive with Steam and Apple, and attractive to devs.

The market's begging for an alternative platform to service adult-game players, anyone who pulls this off will make million.

Good luck!

 

[DoAdventures]

Fair enough.

Also please consider a scaling revenue split. Steam and most other online stores take a 30% cut, which is a lot. Some people in the thread here suggested 5% or 10%. I think it'd be best to have the revenue scale to units sold (or overall profit, whichever you prefer). Have games start at 5/95 by default (dev keeps 95%, site gets 5%), then increase it to 10% and 15% after certain sales thresholds are met.

This way the site remains competitive with Steam, and newbie devs have a chance to keep a larger cut of their profit. It's only when a game exceeds X or Y units in sales that you'd crank up the revenue split to 10/90 and 15/85. In practice this would mean larger and more popular games would receive a smaller cut, but in general such games to tend to also outsell the majority of other titles so their devs end up taking in much greater profits.

Steam currently has an inverted setup where the more your game makes, the less you give to Steam (IIRC a game has to earn $10mil to enter the next tier where the revenue split is 25/75). But this only helps already popular games, while most indies struggle to break even $1000 in revenue. IMHO it'd be more fair to do the opposite and let smaller indies keep more money, while better-selling games (which already made a mint) pay a bigger cut to the site.

Personally I'd cap the upper end at 15/85, to keep the site competitive with Steam and Apple, and attractive to devs.

The market's begging for an alternative platform to service adult-game players, anyone who pulls this off will make million.

Good luck!

That’s a brilliant point and I couldn’t agree more about the scaling revenue model.

One of the things that always frustrated me with platforms like Steam and Apple is exactly what you’ve described, they reward the biggest developers with better cuts and leave smaller studios struggling to even cover their base costs. Ember Games (or whatever we finalize the name as) is meant to flip that logic on its head.

Here’s what I’m thinking based on your input:

Base rate: 5% platform fee (95% to the dev) — this keeps it friendly to indies and those just finding their footing.

Scale-up structure:

Up to £1,000 revenue → 5% cut

£1,001–£10,000 → 10% cut

£10,001+ → 15% cut (max)

That makes it competitive, predictable, and fair, and as you said, the devs who are already doing well won’t feel the hit because their volume compensates for it.

What’s great about this approach is that it also builds goodwill in the community. Devs will know this isn’t a “cash grab” but a sustainable ecosystem for creators, which makes onboarding new titles much easier.

I’m completely with you that the market is begging for a fair, adult-friendly alternative that bridges accessibility and independence. And if I can get the core hub working smoothly (already most of the way there thanks to Firebase), I can start shaping this platform together, including how the backend handles revenue, payouts, and compliance if we go beyond the patreon subscribestar hooks.

Appreciate the thoughtful feedback, that kind of insight is exactly what’s going to make this project a success.

Once I’ve finished stabilizing the app build and the DB, I’d love to put together a small advisory group of devs who’ve been around the adult VN/AVN scene for a while to help shape policies like this. If you’d be up for that, I’d genuinely appreciate your insight.

 

[Crimson Delight Games]

Scale-up structure:

Up to £1,000 revenue → 5% cut

£1,001–£10,000 → 10% cut

£10,001+ → 15% cut (max)

Looks good for when you launch, those numbers are more than fair.

Appreciate the thoughtful feedback, that kind of insight is exactly what’s going to make this project a success.

Always happy to help. I hope you pull this off successfully, the market needs more competition between digital platforms. Monopolies suck. Censorship even more. And it's only gonna get worse as time goes on. Adult games (both devs and players) need a robust, censorship-resistant alternative that won't rugpull them at the first sign of governmental scrutiny.

If you’d be up for that, I’d genuinely appreciate your insight.

Sure, you can always DM me here or

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