Add a Global Time Scale for Controlling Game Speed

As a Roblox developer, it is currently too hard to create gameplay experiences that require changing the speed of the entire game world, such as slow motion effects, fast forward moments, or time based mechanics.

Right now, if I want to create something like a slow motion effect, I have to manually handle many different systems separately. Animations, tweens, physics, sounds, particles, and custom scripts all have their own timing, which makes creating a consistent time change across the whole game very difficult.

For example, creating a simple slow motion scene requires developers to modify every system involved instead of having one way to control the overall speed of the experience. This becomes even more complicated in larger games with many different scripts and systems running at the same time.

If Roblox is able to address this issue, it would improve my development experience because it would make it much easier to create cinematic moments, special abilities, and unique gameplay mechanics without needing complicated workarounds.

Some examples of where this would be useful:

  • Slow motion effects during combat or important events
  • Time manipulation abilities
  • Faster gameplay modes or temporary speed boosts
  • More cinematic cutscenes
  • Easier testing of physics and gameplay systems at different speeds

Having a way to control the overall speed of the game would give developers more creative freedom and make it easier to build experiences that rely on changing how time flows.

5 Likes

Another multiplication applied every frame.

Another tax.

Another global engine state.

Another subsystem that has to respect it.

All for functionality that can already be implemented at the game level.

This is exactly the kind of feature that permanently increases engine complexity for every experience, even though only a subset of developers would ever use it.

If your game needs global time scaling, build it into your game’s architecture. That’s what game logic is for.

The engine should provide powerful primitives - not continuously expand with convenience features that introduce permanent maintenance and runtime costs.

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