Kids

Roblox: What’s The Big Deal and Why Kids Love It

by Kevyn Gohu
September 18, 2024

Every kid’s gone bananas over Roblox! So, we played it a bit, and here’s why we think kids love it.

Roblox — we’ve heard this name several times but what it actually is doesn’t always add up. Some kids say it’s a fighting game, others say it’s a building game — that leaves us parents confused on what Roblox is. And when we try to throw a Roblox-themed party, we’re also overwhelmed and confused about where to start! So, here are some things we’ve discovered about Roblox and why kids love it so much.

Why kids love roblox — Photo from roblox Instagram

1. Roblox is not the same as Minecraft

It’s easy to mistake Roblox for Minecraft and vice-versa because of their 8-bit art design but they’re quite different in terms of gameplay. While Minecraft focuses more on building environments, Roblox has a variety of game modes where kids can meet other players. It even has a creator mode where kids can share the games they created with other kids.

Its popularity sky-rocketed due to the pandemic where kids couldn’t make friends physically.

2. It is free to play

Unlike Minecraft, anyone can make an account to play Roblox. That means, kids just need to borrow their parents’ emails and make an account to use Roblox’s services. But how does the game stay free? The game offers power-ups that the kids can buy using money called “Roblux” which they can use real money to buy. So before handing the kids the gadget to play Roblox, better remove your card so they don’t make random purchases.

3. It’s their version of LEGO and Megablocks

Although we love LEGO and Megablocks, let’s be honest: we hate cleaning those up. Not only are there so many small pieces, but stepping on them barefoot is an absolute nightmare! So, to reduce the cleaning but to expose our kids to the joy of building, we get them either Minecraft or Roblox. They look like building blocks, behave like those — they may as well be a digital form of building blocks.

4. It fulfills an item on every kid’s bucket list: to create their own games!

Every kid dreams of creating their own video games and sharing it with others. Roblox makes it so easy by providing them with the “assets” or tools they need to build their dream game, without the nitty gritty of true coding. Want to build a game where they need to slay a dragon? Need a level where everyone can fight each other to the death? All the kids have to do is use the Game Creator mode to bring these games to life.

5. It doesn’t need a high-performing gadget to play

Usually what stops kids from playing a certain game is their hardware (AKA their computers, tablets, etc.). The better the graphics, the more demanding it is on the computer. That’s why video games have a category known as the Triple-A games — these are the games that either have complex and highly immersive storylines or realistic graphics that can transform a CPU into an induction cooker.

Roblox on the other hand has such a low requirement with computers even operating on Windows 7 being able to run it. Many recommend however the computer be at least Windows 10.

6. It gives kids a high level of control over their environment

While most games are programmed to work a certain way, Roblox is so flexible as a game that some consider it more as an engine rather than a video game. An engine, in Game Development terms, is a tool that allows a person to create a video game within that environment. From there, kids can create their own world. And for kids who live in a volatile home or parents who don’t pay attention to them (whether willingly or unwillingly), nothing is more godsend than a game that can transport them to a world where they feel safe.

Mixed receptions about Roblox

While kids love Roblox, it’s also made them targets for predators, hackers, and scams. The foolproof user interface (UI) makes it easy even for the most non-tech-savvy people to figure it out.

The game has also been banned in some countries due to the serves having more unsavory netizens. But that’s the reality of the digital world: people are more vicious online because there’s no punishment. In most cases, trash talking and bullying are considered normal because there’s no “physical” effect should they get caught.

However, that doesn’t mean the game is bad. It’s some of the players we need to be more wary about. Roblox is like our kids’ Facebook, YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram; we need to teach them how to interact with these people. Especially on when or when not to engage them.