What exactly is Roblox?
Roblox has been around since 2004, yet it is frequently eclipsed by the more famous and straightforward game Minecraft. Minecraft is a game where players create and explore pixelated worlds and share them with friends. It was purchased by Microsoft in 2014 for a relatively low price of US$2.5 billion. Roblox allows users to build and share whole games and play any of the millions of games already generated.
In 2020, Roblox had 32.6 million daily active users, playing for an average of 2.6 hours per day across PCs, gaming consoles, and mobile devices. For comparison, the popular and widely discussed game Fortnite has only around 25 million active daily users.
What is the reason for this success?
Not just a game, but a game design playground
Roblox is ultimately a playground for designing games.
Using Roblox Studio, anyone can create virtual worlds and games that can then be easily released on the Roblox platform, instantly becoming available to millions of players.
This user-created content can then be played by other players. Roblox has an embedded system for making small purchases within the platform, and creators receive 30% revenue. In 2020, Roblox paid out US$328.7 million this way.
Not just a game, but a game design playground
Roblox is ultimately a playground for designing games.
Using Roblox Studio, anyone can create virtual worlds and games that can then be easily released on the Roblox platform, instantly becoming available to millions of players.
This user-created content can then be played by other players. Roblox has an embedded system for making small purchases within the platform, and creators receive 30% revenue. In 2020, Roblox paid out US$328.7 million this way.
What parents need to know
So, if you have an eight-year-old at home badgering you about joining their friends online in Roblox, what do you need to know?
For children interested in programming, Roblox can be a great way to get started. With its relatively simple code editor, even kids as young as eight or nine can learn how to develop their own games, with numerous courses available for kids, parents, and teachers.
However, the openness and interactivity that has made Roblox so successful mean that there is a chance your child could encounter troubling content. There have been reports of sexually explicit games and games with themes that parents might not want children exposed to.
There are also contact risks: adults can “friend” children in-game and then message them privately or on third-party apps such as Discord. And as in all online spaces, cyberbullying is also a risk.
However, Roblox has been proactive in addressing safety issues. It has joined the Australian eSafety Commissioner’s Tier 1 social media scheme, meaning the commission can promptly remove reported content. Roblox has also employed a “Director of Digital Civility” and partnered with university researchers to work out how best to make the platform a safe space for children to play.
Roblox also has been assessed as complying with the US Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act regulations regarding privacy and collection of data. Broader changes are afoot, too, with children’s rights online now officially recognized by the United Nations.
What parents can do at home
There are also things parents can do at home to create a safe online play environment. Roblox provides information on its website about how to limit chat functions and report problems. Parents should also know certain games allow trading of in-game items, including ones purchased with real money. The eSafety office has some great resources too.
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