Video games and parenting are two things that rarely go hand-in-hand. After all, most gamers will remember being told off for spending too much time glued to their consoles.
Naturally, in 2024, kids still love gaming. And one of the most popular games out there is Roblox. For those unaware, Roblox itself isn’t actually a game – it’s a gaming platform. It functions as a central hub for video games created by the Roblox community.
The games can differ greatly and many are designed with aim of getting players to spend Roblox‘s virtual currency, known as Robux. As a result, some games are considered low quality and exploitative.
Recently, the parent of a young Roblox player took to Reddit’s r/gaming to call the platform’s content “garbage” – and most people seem to agree.
u/eljefe3030 titled their post “I’m beginning to suspect that Roblox is 98% garbage. Am I missing something?”. They explained that they are the parent of an eight-year-old daughter who “has been asking for Roblox for a while.”
Assuming that Roblox was like Minecraft – “a fantastic game with lots of opportunities for creativity and quality interactions with friends” – u/eljefe3030 agreed to let their child play it.
However, having spent some time playing it with their daughter, u/eljefe3030 has started to suspect that Roblox is full of “98% money grabs” with children “gravitating towards the high-dopamine-triggering pay-to-win type games.”
While the parent notes that there are some exceptions “like Doors that aren’t too bad”, they feel these games are in the minority. As such, they have minimised their child’s time on Roblox. Hoping to find some games on the platform “that aren’t pure cash-grabbing fluff”, u/eljefe3030 closed out their post by asking for suggestions from other gamers.
Surprisingly, the response has been gigantic. The post has attracted 6.8K upvotes and 1.1K comments at the time of writing.
u/vellian shared similar thoughts: “Nope, it’s mostly garbage. There’s a few higher effort things on there like Doors or various obstacle courses (obbys), but most of if is people trying to get your Robux like you mentioned.”
u/cravindeath explained that “it was great back in the early days,” but said that it is now “plagued by the same sh*t all mobile games are.” u/MetroExodus2033 bluntly called it “f**king terrible”.
Despite the overwhelming criticism in the thread, some parents did speak favourably of the platform. u/Weed_Me_Up said they thought it was mostly harmless fun for their child as long as the money spent was limited and they played exclusively with people they knew in real life.
Similarly, u/Tac0Destroyer compared it to “playing dolls”. They elaborated that most Roblox titles are “essentially digital dolls mashed together for some semblance of game. Don’t take it seriously and don’t let them buy anything”.
Negativity towards Roblox has been on the rise in recent years following numerous controversies, including accusations of aggressive monetisation in its games, poor moderation, and inappropriate content.
While this Reddit thread is unlikely to impact the platform’s incredible popularity, it’s clear that many parents are becoming increasingly weary of its low quality games that seek to extract cash from players.
What are your thoughts on Roblox? Do you agree with u/eljefe3030’s take? Let us know in the comment section below and don’t forget to check out our other gaming articles…
