Roblox is a trendy international online gaming platform. So while it’s easy to think of it as a standalone game, it’s really platform . This means that people using Roblox are creating their own games for others. Visually it looks like a marriage lego and Minecraft .
Your kids can play it, or your kids might have asked to be part of Roblox. Should they be? Well, here’s what parents need to know about the gaming system.
Is Roblox a game? Yes, but not exactly. Roblox is a gaming platform that supports multiplayer games, created user . Roblox calls it a «social platform to play». Players can play games by seeing other players and chatting with them.
Roblox is available on most platforms including Windows Mac, iPhone/iPad, Android, Kindle Fire and Xbox One . you also can play roblox on chromebook . Roblox even offers a line of toy figures for offline creative play.
Users can also create groups or private servers to play privately with friends, chat in forums, create blogs, and share items with other users. Activity is more limited for children under the age of 13.
What is a Roblox object?
Roblox has three main components: games, a catalog of virtual items for sale, and a design studio for creating and uploading the content you create.
Different games will have different goals. For example, Prison Break game is a virtual cops and robbers game where you can choose whether to be a cop or a criminal. Restaurant Tycoon allows you to open and run a virtual restaurant. «School of Fairies and Winx Mermaids» allows virtual fairies to learn to hone their magical abilities.
Some kids may be more social, and some choose to spend time customizing their avatar with both free and premium items. Besides games, kids (and adults) can also create games that they can download and let others play.
Is Roblox safe for younger children?
Roblox complies with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act ( COPPA ), which governs the information that children under 13 may disclose. Chat sessions are moderated and the system automatically filters out chat messages that sound like attempts to reveal personally identifiable information such as real names and addresses.
This does not mean that predators will never be able to bypass filters and moderators. Talk to your child about safe online behavior and use reasonable controls to make sure he doesn’t share personal information with «friends». As a parent of a child under 13, you can also turn off the chat window for your child.
When your child turns 13, they will see fewer restrictions on chat messages and fewer filtered words. It’s important to make sure you keep in touch with your middle and high school age child regarding online social platforms. Another thing that older players should watch out for is scams and phishing attacks. Like any other gaming platform, there are thieves who try to access their accounts and rob players with their virtual items and coins. Players can report inappropriate activity so moderators can deal with it.
Violence and younger children
You can also watch a few games to make sure the level of violence is acceptable. Roblox avatars resemble LEGO minifigs rather than realistic people, but many games use explosions and other forms of violence that can cause the avatar to «die» into multiple pieces. Games may also include weapons.
Although other games (Lego adventure games come to mind) have similar game mechanics, adding a social aspect to the gameplay can make the violence more intense.
We recommend that children be at least 10 years old to play, but this may be young in some games. Use your best judgment here.
Minor language on Roblox
You should also be aware that when a chat window is open, there is a lot of «dog talk» in younger chat windows. Filters and moderators remove more traditional swear words while leaving a bit of «minor» language, so kids like to say «poop» or give their avatars something tagged in it.
If you are the parent of a school-age child, this is probably not surprising behavior. Just be aware that your house’s rules about acceptable language may not match Roblox’s rules. Turn off the chat window if this is a problem.
Development of your own games
Games in Roblox are created by users, which means that all users are also potential creators. Roblox allows anyone, even players under the age of 13, to download Roblox Studio and start game development. Roblox Studio has built-in tutorials for setting up games and 3D worlds for gameplay. The design tool includes default generic backgrounds and objects to get you started.
This does not mean that there is no learning curve. If you want to use Roblox Studio with a younger child, we suggest they need a lot of scaffolding if parents sit with them and work with them to plan and create.
Older kids will find plenty of resources both on Roblox Studio and the forums to help them develop their game design talents.
Roblox is free, Robux is not
Roblox uses the Freemium model. It’s free to create an account, but there are benefits and improvements for spending money.