Companion Service Review #2: Egirl.gg / Epal.gg
Average Read Time: 21 minutes
All images within this article are sourced from the https://www.epal.gg website, or https://archive.org, unless otherwise specified. All images and contents are intended for research & commentary purposes only.
Epal.gg
Online companion services come in many varieties. Some platforms are relatively harmless, whilst others leave you questioning the morality and ethics behind its creators. For me personally, Epal.gg lands squarely in the latter category.
Epal.gg is a “companions-for-hire” freelancing service, with a focus on providing customers with new people they can play competitive, online video games with. The service began in early 2020, conceptualized by two Chinese founders who allegedly had hopes of connecting isolated gamers to paid playmates; as they themselves admitted, “it felt difficult at times to reliably find other people to play games with [online].” [1]
Epal.gg touts itself as a service to join and find “like-minded people to play video games with”; providing a variety of companions, time slots and pricings. Through all of this, they claim to help you create “genuine, lasting friendships” in the process through each paid order. An Epal companion is expected to be courteous and enthusiastic during the duration of their orders, and keep the flow of conversation / intrigue going between themselves and the client, (while providing the impression of an already preexisting friendship).
Though, when the platform started out, it certainly portrayed itself as if it had very different intentions – all of which were noticeable right from the moment you visited the landing page. During its launch it almost exclusively employed women as its companions-for-hire, and marketed itself with a risque tone (even though the services were still with 100% platonic companions). Since then, it has toned down its suggestive nature – but still holds quite a few questionable traits in my book.
Many users have described the platform's early days as demeaning and abusive, whilst others have praised the fact that they can make a simple paycheck for relatively little legwork. As far as it goes today, nothing very eventful happens on the site. And those who use it, frequent it without too much trouble.
A Brief History
For as tame is it is now, Epal.gg holds quite the provocative past. Its branding and marketing styles have changed drastically across its 3-year lifespan. Originally, the platform went by a different domain name – Egirl.gg
Egirl.gg had a very different focus and design than its current iteration of Epal.gg.
While Epal.gg focuses on providing customers with gamer friends for payment, Egirl.gg focused on providing attractive women as your gaming companions instead. The services were always intended to be platonic, but evenso the marketing was very suggestive – sometimes even fantasy-based.
A few months into it, they shifted away from this “attractive companion” model and provide much more casual companion platform that anyone can be apart of.
Perhaps their goal had been to shift away from this suggestive styling from the start – merely using the shock value and controversy it brought, as a springboard to land to where it is today.
Certainty a viable strategy given how volatile social media and online networks can be. Many people can't help but speak about what makes them angry or shocks them; and don't realize they might be taking part in “manufactured outrage” as a publicity stunt.
Clothing Racks & Loading Screens
In early 2020, Egirl.GG's major focus seemed to be bringing in women who'd become their platform's semi-provocative companions for hire. The ladies would dress to show a bit of skin, put on a cute voice, and then presumably fluff up their client's ego in hopes of getting follow-up orders. All of this was intended to be 100% platonic – although, the marketing sure did play into a flirty fantasy.
Source - InternetArchive: https://web.archive.org/web/20200310222153/https://www.egirl.gg/ - Mar 2020
Source - InternetArchive: https://web.archive.org/web/20200310222153/https://www.egirl.gg/Mar 2020I mean, if you just look at the loading screen above from one of their earlier iterations of the website, it's hard to argue what intentions they might have had for the platform. There's no reason to have underwear hanging everywhere if you're only trying to find casual friends to hang with.
A few months into their Q1 2020 launch, small online news outlets and YouTube channels began to catch wind of this strange business model – and from there, its mixed reputation took off.
After many women spoke out about how they felt that these “e-girls” were being put up as “online platonic escorts for gaming” – and the mixed receptions from the public about at the angle the company was taking – the platform began to pivot and encourage men to join in as employable companions.
Many visitors disliked the feeling that people were being advertised as if they were on some online deli. Human beings whose personal time and appearance was being sold as it were being ordered from a lunch menu.
The website was a whole felt very impersonal, callous and demeaning towards both client and customer. Attempting to take advantage of those who were isolated and emotionally despondent, whilst capitalizing on young women to be used as the catalyst.
Dudes Join the Female Dudes
As far as I can tell, there were never any hard and fast rules that men weren't allowed to join as companions. However, it was very clear (what with the bra hanging over the loading frame, for example) what demographic they were trying to attract. After a bit of time and a few popular male streamers joining the site, the platform altered their domain's name to “Epal.GG” in order to be more inclusive of their new male counterparts – some of whom were getting just as many sales as the women, depending on their popularity.
This helped them get away from the saucy way they'd been marketing themselves since the beginning.
Epal Today
Moving on to the Epal.GG of today, you'll encounter quite the world of marketing differences.
Source – https://www.epal.gg/ – Jan 2023
You'll see that the website itself has done quite the 180. It's focus now has shifted toward the professional e-sports scene; showing off popular social media figure and pro players who use their platform to make additional income by hiring themselves out as companions to their fans.
In that regard, I do think the platform has some merit. You can play with your favorite streamers and have a streamlined process for getting into game sessions with them; all while guaranteeing them a financial incentive in the process. This is particularly helpful for streamers who have hundreds or thousands of viewers at time, as corralling all those viewers into groups and subsequent lobbies can be daunting. Speaking from experience!
Outside of this aspect however, Epal enjoys laying claim to the idea that by using their service and hiring a companion, you'll be making “genuine, long-lasting friendships” through their platform.
As a matter of fact, its actively encouraged in their FAQ that after an order is complete, a seller should intentionally try and manufacture a friendship with their client – as it will help them “gain more customers.”
Platform Presentation & Layout
Epal makes it relatively simple to find a companion you'd like to hire.
All you have to do is select a game, toggle a few filters, and then you're served a variety of companions to chose from.
Each companion profile comes equip with a profile picture, service description, and a short introductory vocal recording you can play back to hear what they'll sound like before you place an order.
Pricings are done through a virtual currency that we'll go into later. But for now, 1.00 = $1.00 USD – so all of the Buff pricings you see equate to real cash values, with the duration of the session listed adjacent to the price.
Epal actually has multiple built-in virtual currencies. Some are used for orders or tips, while others can be used to redeem digital gifts or physical rewards. Virtual currencies like this are often intended to keep the money locked within the platform’s ecosystem. Obfuscation can also be another intent.
What Happens During An Order?
The experience of hiring a companion is very similar to what you'd expect from other platonic platforms. Like Fiverr.com, customers pick a game or personal service and scroll through a list of companions who're providing it. Once they've selected their person of choice, companions reach out and set a time with their client.
Epal companions will hang out and be cordial for the purchased duration, sometimes even allowing contact post-order if they enjoyed the experience.
Most Epal experiences are just casually playing a game with another person, but sometimes there will be coaching or carrying sessions. Non-gaming related companion services play out a bit differently, but we'll get to those shortly.
Virtual Currencies
Epal.gg has a number of virtual currencies that are required to use their services. Users can convert their real cash for use on the platform. These currencies are non-refundable keep the real-world cash locked into the website's ecosystem, making them synonymous with cash shops in modern-day mobile games.
The main currency users will interact with is called Buff.
What is Buff?
Buff” is the primary virtual currency of E-Pal.gg. It is used to pay for companion services, setting up new orders, and tipping Epal companions. 1.00 Buff = 1.00 USD – it is a direct comparison to USD, (just without the dollar sign so you don't feel so bad spending it). And as you would expect, Buff is a non-withdrawalable currency once converted – which can only be spent within the Epal.gg ecosystem. The only circumstance in which it is converted back into tangible currency, is when an E-pal companion wishes to cash out their earnings from orders they've completed. Earnings of which Epal naturally take a percentage of; scrapping off the top of any money their Epals earns.
This pricing chart for purchasing Buff functions in exactly the same method as an in-game cash shop, for those familiar. It is designed to obfuscate the amount of money you're actively spending, while also locking your money into a non-refundable system.
E-Coin!
The second virtual currency is called E-Coin. E-Coin is used to send digital gifts through a built-in chat messenger and is not directly purchased with real money. Instead it is automatically converted from Buff – with 1.00 Buff = 100.00 E-Coins. (So, $1.00 for 100 E-Coins.)
Companion Advertisement Styles
You'll find little diversity in profile biographies of the Epals themselves. Many try and lean into the “cute friend you can rely on” angle, while others are simply talking about their interest in gaming and what they can bring to the party or table.
There are a number of profiles which seem reasonably down to earth in their presentation, but then I remember they're asking for money to hang out and that kind of clears the encroaching smoke from my mind.
Pricings are fairly consistent between E-pal companions regardless of the game or service. Many orbit around the $5-7 dollar mark – while times for completion of the orders can vary. Some will even offer up their first orders with you for free.
Even so, there are always a good handful of absurdly priced services, coupled with flowery language, hoping to swoon you out of $100 just for them to look at you.
The advertisement style Epal companions employ is often synonymous with other self-marketing tactics used on other online companion services.
However, something unique to Epal is the implementation of vocal recordings – used to allow a buyer the chance to hear what an Epal companion will sound like, before making their purchase.
Epal Voice Recordings
When signing up and creating a profile as a seller, each companion is required to provide an “appropriate profile picture” and “a short voice recording to allow customers the chance to hear your voice, and get to know you better before an order”.
Clicking this icon above a companion's profile will play their recorded audio.
For example's sake, I've plucked a few recordings and typed them out so you can get an idea of their contents and styles.
If you'd like to hear some of the recordings yourself, you're welcome out a random service page like this one: https://www.epal.gg/epals/osu
Be Fake, Befriend For Money
Looking through the guidelines which explain how to be a successful Epal companion, you'll find a startling sentence that became the catalyst for me making this article. Tucked inside the website's FAQ on “How to Improve Customer Retention”, is a sentence that I hope shows how far we've gone astray as an emotional species.
There is a section that encourages you to “form a long-term friendship with your customers after an order is complete, in hopes of gaining more long-term clients.” Quite literally a nail in the coffin, but I am just so surprised that they'd place an openly public admission that Epal Companions should and will utilize another person's emotional core as a pivot for commercial gain. This line really ought to blow the illusion of the service out of the water.
If you don't believe me that a company would oust itself in an FAQ, then click the link HERE – afterwards, select the dropdown menu titled “al Operation ?”
Now of course, this is a business first and foremost. We can infer from the get-go that whole, “genuine friend business” wasn't their entire objective. But I have never seen a statement so plainly obvious, in their public FAQ, to just outright manipulate another person in the hopes of keeping them around for future orders. That open admission was just kind of bonkers for me.
Another section further down, under “Epal Service ?”, states the following – with a little more... direct wording, shall we say?:
Botted Reviews?
Something else I found quite strange about this website, was how many Epal companions had 5 star reviews across the board. I've been wondering what was going on for a while now. So many sellers were left without any actual text descriptions in the reviews themselves, yet still contained 5 star reviews. When I was on Fiverr, the companion reviews almost always held a few sentences to back them up.
As it turns out, the FAQ blasts you with another humorous truth bomb. Under the “time period for customer review” section of FAQ page 18, you'll find the surprisingly bold admission the Epal platform makes regarding its use of automating its own review service...
Companion Gamification
Behind the curtain of Epal's initial landing pages and game categories, lies a whole 'nother layer you'll uncover once you create an account! This time it is a sort of gamification layer where you're incentivized to hire companions, chat with others, and be a companion yourself, for a variety of digital and physical rewards. Unbeknownst to myself, this reward system was a sizable facet of the Epal environment. The thing is, its not really advertised until you actually get in and set up an account. I'd love to link to a direct source for all of the images below, but they require an account to view; so I'll just be sourcing the main Epal website for now.Epal's Virtual Pet System
When a new account is created, an entire "virtual pet mini-game" opens up to you through a series of incessant notifications - asking you to "check in on your new buddy, eMeow!" "eMeows" are virtual cats that you are able to evolve, dress up, and interact with. Each Epal account comes with its own virtual eMeow attached, whether you're a customer or companion. The virtual pet section and the eMeows themselves are seemingly a function of the website designed to aid in user retention. The entire "gameplay loop" for eMeows requires constant maintenance through repeated interactions from the user. Even going to the extent of requiring you to "order companions" or "chat with new users" to progress your eMeow's level. So, not only do some people pay for companionship on this platform, but the reasons someone might be doing so can also be gamified; turned into a process incentivized by evolving a virtual pet. The eMeows themselves don't seem to offer any benefits or advantages to the user - other than for the privilege to show them off and dress them up.
Source - ( https://www.epal.gg )Daily Challenges, Timed Tasks
eMeows begin in a primitive state and require XP to evolve them visually and unlock new interactive actions. Daily Logins and visiting your eMeows page will count toward a certain amount of XP, but you are also offered a set of “Daily Challenges” to complete. These Daily Challenges are designed in such a way, that they usher new users around the site and even compel users to spend money on orders with other Epals. There are also “Timed Tasks” allowing for extra rewards when completed within a given time frame. It seems new users are given a lot of these to get a boost on their cat's progress.
eMeow Feeding Services
eMeows can also “go hungry” and will stop gaining XP passively if they are not consistently fed. This means you either have to login to your Epal account frequently, or enlist the help of a companion to keep up the feedings. The demand for keeping these virtual cats fed is high enough across the platform, that Epal companions offer custom “eMeow Feeding Services” to keep other users' cats fed. The price ranges for such services land anywhere between $2 to $6 per session.
You might be scratching your head about this whole eMeow thing at this point. But its wise to remember that Epal has an active mobile app for Android and IOS. It's assumed that this eMeow function doubles as a way to keep those on their phones hooked; as virtual pet games do quite well on devices that people can easily login from.
Which leads us to our next eMeow topic...
Reward System & Points Shop (Redeemable for Digital & Physical Goods)
Beneath the eMeow layer, exists an entire Reward Points ecosystem that grants you points via completed orders with other Epals (both as clients and as companions); allowing you to redeem those points through a built-in cash shop for a variety of digital and physical goods. These goods range from outfits and accessory options for your virtual cat, Battle Passes in other live-service games, to entire physical game consoles.
This part is where it gets funny to me. The top tier of these redeemable physical rewards are the Nintendo Switch and Playstation 5 consoles. But, as one would expect, the amount of points you would need for redeeming either of these items is ridiculously inflated. In fact, if you look at any of the rewards – (more specifically, anything that isn't eMeow outfits or cat accessories) – all of them are much more expensive through Epal's point shop, than when purchased from the actual service they originate from.
Doing the math for this is pretty humorous.
According to their shop information here, $10 (10 Buff) = 200 points.
The Nintendo Switch is 60,000 points, while the PS5 is 100,000 points respectively.
MSRP for the Nintendo Switch is just shy of $300. And the PS5 sits around $400-500.
If we whip out a basic calculator, (which Epal executives expect us not to do apparently) this makes the Epal-graced Nintendo Switch $3,000 through their “rewards system”. Likewise, the PS5 comes in at a whopping $5,000 needing to be spent within the Epal ecosystem before redemption! Both of these “reward” prices are insane when you consider going out to a department store and getting either of these consoles for a fraction of the price!
As a historical note – in the early days when the service was still predominantly hiring women, people were asked to encourage their female friends to join as e-girls for the chance to win different tech prizes. I just thought that was kind of a silly thing to note. “Hey Samantha! Can you please sell your emotional capacities for a bit? I'd like this new PC!” lol.
Extra Services On Offer
Epal does provide a section for additional types of companion services one can pay for, in addition to their main gaiming services. Many of them were quite unexpected. I had known you were able to order things like “E-Chats” and “Group Karaoke” sessions, but I was a little startled by some of the other stuff they allowed in the Lifestyle and Custom Services sections.
Below is a list of the extra companion services Epal allows its sellers to provide.
List of Lifestyle services:
- E-chat – “Have a fun and relaxed conversation with ePals.”
- Relationship Advice – “Ask an experienced ePal for relationship advice!”
- Drawing Together – “Paint something together with ePals.”
- Off My Chest – “Talk about secrets you can't tell anyone else.”
- Movies – “Watch something with ePals. Movies, Anime, TV Programs.”
- Emotional Support – “ePals are here to help when you're in distress”
- Language Exchange – “Learning a different language from an ePal across the world”
- e-Karaoke – “Sing with ePals. Let's rock n roll together.”
- Wake-up Call – “Arrange an ePal to wake you up with a timely call”
- Upbeat Conversation (for a price) – “Only positivity and memes here!”
- ASMR – “Have ePals whisper into your ears.”
- Sleep Call (same as Wake-up, but they'll talk you to sleep) – “Talk and fall asleep with an ePal”
- Fortune Telling – “Check out your fate with an ePal!”
Sidenote: ( It makes me wonder how much of this stuff is regulated. How are they verifying that these people are qualified to give such advice? How do they acknowledge or even attempt to ensure the mental safety of the customers, when the sellers could be doing anything from manipulation tactics, recording private information, etc.? This is something that I've seen as a constant problem with apps or platforms which claim to be for “mental health” or “emotional support”, to be fair. They'll often have very unregulated systems, yet market themselves as a source of emotional support. The Replika AI software is a great example of this.
And surely this is only compounded by the fact that sellers receive 5-star reviews even when they're not actually reviewed? )
There are a number of Custom services that spring up every now and then. The Custom Services section is usually reserved for services that do not fit in any of the previous, official categories.
Custom Services are custom-created services made by ePal companions themselves. By simply creating a title and filling out a little information, you're allowed to make your own custom services as a seller. The Custom Services section is often reserved for services that do not fit in any of the official categories that Epal provides – and you'll see a lot of strange stuff in here, since anyone can make anything within reason.
Some notable services I've seen appear include:
- eMeow Feeding Services
- Group Drinking
- Personalized Selfie Services – (ePals will take personalized selfies, 'just for you')
- Cosplay Video Chats
- ASMR Mukbangs
- Day or Week Long Virtual Hangouts
In Closing
I hope what you read here was concise and informative. Its an awkward topic to condense into something palpable, but I'm trying my best amidst illness. Perhaps one day I'll try doing one of these over a spoken recording instead.
The next article will be a follow-up to this one: containing interview responses from twelve Epal companions about their experiences with the platform. It will candidly detail their interactions with customers, other sellers and the ups-&-downs of selling your emotional availability for a price.
Follow Up Links:
Companion Service Review #1: Fiverr.com Epal Companion Interviews (Coming Soon)