If you're the parent or carer of a school-age child, you've probably heard of Roblox.
Launched in 2006, it's now one of the world's most popular video games, with more than 100 million monthly users, mostly between the ages of nine and 15.
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This really works guys. Roblox is the ultimate virtual universe that lets you play, create, and be anything you can imagine. Join millions of players and discover an infinite variety of immersive worlds created by a global community!
But while it offers a dizzying amount of interactive entertainment for its target audience, it has found itself in the news more than once due to fears over its safety.
Here's what parents and carers need to know about it – and how to ensure your child has an enjoyable and safe experience when playing it.
What is Roblox?
Roblox is more than a single game: it's a huge collection of different games made by a range of different creators using the platform's built-in tools.
Players choose a game and then go online with up to 100 other people, in experiences that often mimic the sort of imaginative play you might find in the school playground – for instance build a theme park, compete as a professional driver, star in a fashion show or become a superhero.
As in the playground, these games evolve quickly from player feedback. The result is not only finely honed challenges, but also a sense of fun and silliness often absent from the commercially designed experiences elsewhere.
Is Roblox a game or a social media platform?
Although we often think of video games and social media as separate forms of interaction, for children there is no such divide – and Roblox illustrates that perfectly.
Many games now offer a way to connect, communicate and share with friends, while social media platforms often offer game-like challenges and interactions.
For many children, Roblox will be one of the first places where they interact online with other people, whether via the platform's in-game chat options or by adding ‘friends' and sending them messages.
Where can you play?
Roblox is free to download on all modern smartphones, tablets and computers as well as on Microsoft Xbox One, Oculus Rift and HTC Vive. It's not available on Sony PlayStation or Nintendo Switch currently. To download the game and play online you will also need an internet connection.
You can play with other people on Roblox even if they are playing on a system different to yours. How to download photoshop cc 2017. Whichever system you are using, you start by creating an account that enables you to specify how you look in the game and how you interact with other players.
Is Roblox free?
You can download Roblox and start playing for free. There's no requirement to pay for a subscription and there are no upfront costs – although on Xbox you do need an Xbox Live Gold subscription to play online.
In-game purchases are available, but these are optional. These are all bought using the game's own Robux currency and can be used to progress faster and access cosmetic enhancements and other features. You can also spend Robux in the main user area to purchase outfits and customisations for your character.
Robux are purchased with real money. You can buy different bundles of Robux from within the Roblox app:
- £0.99 for 80 Robux
- £4.99 for 400 Robux
- £9.99 for 800 Robux
You can also subscribe to get 450 Robux a month plus discounts on buying more Robux and access to selling and trading items with other subscribed Roblox players.
Download Roblox On My Computer
On Xbox, you can make larger purchases via the online store:
- £48.99 for 4,500 Robux
- £99.99 for 10,000 Robux
- £199.99 for 22,500 Robux
The games generally encourage the spending of Robux to progress, as a proportion of the money spent goes to the person who creates the game. However, the vast library of titles means there's always the option to play something else, if the need to buy Robux for a particular game is too high.
You can limit spending on Roblox via the settings on your device, either by requiring a password before a transaction or simply by turning off in-game transactions. And you can avoid the need for these transactions at all by purchasing book token-style cards which let you add Robux to your child's game without the need to add credit card details to their account.
How to set parental controls
To play Roblox, you need to set up an account for your child. This is achieved on the device itself for PC, tablet and smartphone. On Xbox, you can link your user to a Roblox account via the menu.
It's important that you use an email address that you regularly check, as communication about the game, including notification of purchases, will be via this address. You should also specify an accurate age, as this determines whether settings for under 13s are applied.
In the Security section of the account, you can specify an account PIN to ensure settings can't be changed without your permission.
The most important setting in terms of content is the Account Restrictions option. This restricts the games available to play to only those that have been curated by Roblox themselves.
Although Roblox is PEGI 7+, the user-created content falls outside this rating and may contain elements that are only suitable for older children. Setting the restricted option prevents any unchecked games being played.
The Privacy settings enable you to specify how the player interacts with other people they don't know, such as who they can message and who can contact them. It can also be used to restrict access to private games and to making friend connections that can enable other interactions.
Healthy play on Roblox
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The complexity and risks outlined so far can make it feel like it's easier to just suggest your child tries something else. However, Roblox offers really engaging and creative ways to play. Not only is it a lot of fun, but it's a great way for children to learn how to behave online, how they want to be treated and how to treat others.
It also offers a lighthearted and familiar way for children to stay in touch with their friends – which is particularly welcome when they can't see each other at school. Communication is mostly done via in-game text-chat. This content is monitored to ensure no personal details or inappropriate language is used, making it a good way for your child to get used to the concept of public chats, but in a relatively safe space.
You can help your child get started in this online space by playing Roblox together. Keep the game in shared family spaces, so you can see what's happening. Ask your child about the Roblox games they are playing. Which are they enjoying? What sorts of challenges are they taking on? Who are they playing with?
It's also a good opportunity to talk about appropriate behaviour online and digital civility. An open approach to this topic makes it more likely that a child will tell you if anything upsetting happens. Roblox, like other games, offers a way to report inappropriate behaviour.
Approaching the game in this way, and taking advantage of the Roblox account settings and family controls on the system you are using to play, will help your child have a safe, secure and positive experience with it.
More information:
Roblox Parents Portal
PEGI Ratings
Roblox Guide on Ask About Games
Andy Robertson is the editor of AskAboutGames.com and has recently written the book Taming Gaming for parents
How to set parental controls
To play Roblox, you need to set up an account for your child. This is achieved on the device itself for PC, tablet and smartphone. On Xbox, you can link your user to a Roblox account via the menu.
It's important that you use an email address that you regularly check, as communication about the game, including notification of purchases, will be via this address. You should also specify an accurate age, as this determines whether settings for under 13s are applied.
In the Security section of the account, you can specify an account PIN to ensure settings can't be changed without your permission.
The most important setting in terms of content is the Account Restrictions option. This restricts the games available to play to only those that have been curated by Roblox themselves.
Although Roblox is PEGI 7+, the user-created content falls outside this rating and may contain elements that are only suitable for older children. Setting the restricted option prevents any unchecked games being played.
The Privacy settings enable you to specify how the player interacts with other people they don't know, such as who they can message and who can contact them. It can also be used to restrict access to private games and to making friend connections that can enable other interactions.
Healthy play on Roblox
Download Roblox For Computer
The complexity and risks outlined so far can make it feel like it's easier to just suggest your child tries something else. However, Roblox offers really engaging and creative ways to play. Not only is it a lot of fun, but it's a great way for children to learn how to behave online, how they want to be treated and how to treat others.
It also offers a lighthearted and familiar way for children to stay in touch with their friends – which is particularly welcome when they can't see each other at school. Communication is mostly done via in-game text-chat. This content is monitored to ensure no personal details or inappropriate language is used, making it a good way for your child to get used to the concept of public chats, but in a relatively safe space.
You can help your child get started in this online space by playing Roblox together. Keep the game in shared family spaces, so you can see what's happening. Ask your child about the Roblox games they are playing. Which are they enjoying? What sorts of challenges are they taking on? Who are they playing with?
It's also a good opportunity to talk about appropriate behaviour online and digital civility. An open approach to this topic makes it more likely that a child will tell you if anything upsetting happens. Roblox, like other games, offers a way to report inappropriate behaviour.
Approaching the game in this way, and taking advantage of the Roblox account settings and family controls on the system you are using to play, will help your child have a safe, secure and positive experience with it.
More information:
Roblox Parents Portal
PEGI Ratings
Roblox Guide on Ask About Games
Andy Robertson is the editor of AskAboutGames.com and has recently written the book Taming Gaming for parents
Massively popular with kids but weak in terms of gaming, Roblox presents a dilemma for modern parents. Although arguably educational in nature - and on several fronts - the online user-generated world structure gives way to genuine safety concerns and a whole new way for kids to spend your money.
A popular game that parents love to hate
Massively popular with kids
Unless you live under a rock (or perhaps far from kids), you'll probably have heard of Roblox, a user-generated gaming platform open to all but aimed at kids aged 8 - 15. For the uninitiated, it's important to remember that this isn't a game; it's a platform that lets you create games or join games that others have created.
Roblox allows you to create games that are limited really only by your imagination. You could make - or join - battles, obstacle courses, racing games, treasure hunts, and more. As games are built by anyone, really, and quite probably children, they're full of knock-offs of famous games, brands that have nothing to do with the originals, and weird and inane storylines. Admittedly, some fairly decent games also occasionally slip in.
To play, you'll have to jump through some registration and downloading hoops, but the basic game is free. There is a premium tier, called Builders Club, which gives access to premium features, allows you to trade, and removes ads, among other things. How to redownload safari. There is also an in-game currency, Robux, which allows you to purchase premium items in exchange for real-world money.
In terms of the regular ways we judge the quality of a game, Roblux doesn't score highly. The graphics are terrible, the controls are clunky, and the gameplay is erratic. That said, the kids who are playing it don't care. The Roblox developers maintain that despite the shortcomings, it's very educational. There is a lot of creativity involved in building games and figuring out structural or other challenges and there are certainly lessons to be learned from buying, trading, and selling within the game.
Even so, there are people who argue that the game is unsuitable for children. This is true to a certain extent. Firstly, the game is entirely based on user-generated content - some users are nice people, and some are not. There is also no way of ensuring that users are indeed kids - like anywhere else on the internet, they could well be adults and have dubious motives.
Secondly, the game is often hacked (most often for fun by other kids) but sometimes these hacks end up in games and changes that are patently unsuitable (of a violent or sexual nature). There are also theoretically several ways unsuitable content could make it to a child's screen - games can be unsuitable, received messages can be unsuitable, friend requests..you get the idea.
Both Roblox and parents have and can take steps to minimize this threat and the platform is monitored. Roblox also has created a vast amount of content especially for parents, offering a lot of advice about how to set the platform up as safely as possible, how to report problems, and how to help your child be safer online.
Even so, the nature of the platform - and the nature of the internet - means that it cannot be absolutely safe, all the time. If you have a kid who wants to play, that's something you should always bear in mind.
Where can you run this program?
This version is for Windows. You can also access it on many other platforms, including Mac, iOS, Android, Amazon Devices, Xbox One, Oculus Rift, and HTC Vive.
Is there a better alternative?
From an adult point of view, most certainly. There are literally thousands of games that are better than Roblox. For a child who wants to play Roblox, nope: it's probably Roblox or bust.
Our take
Roblox is a game with room for improvements in many aspects. Taking solely the merits of the game platform in terms of potential for entertainment, it is disappointing in some aspects and not something most adults would choose to play. Secondly, the safety worries are legitimate and something that should definitely concern you if you're responsible for a child. Thirdly, although there are probably some genuine educational benefits you can get from Roblox, they're outweighed by the cons and the money-centered focus of the game.
Should you download it?
A kid may insist, but no adult in their right mind would download Roblox voluntarily.
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