Question about the drug use rule in ROBLOX

In my game, the player can find an empty pill bottle. Upon picking it up, the player will remark that it’s their anti-depressant bottle and question why it was there (player woke up in an abandoned asylum)

You can’t use the anti-depressants and any attempt to use them will cause the player to say that they’re empty and, again, question why they were there in the first place. The pill bottle is also a sort of secret the player can find and affects the story if found.

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image

Here’s what the bottle looks like in-game

I dont think this is allowed. You could always not do a bottle and do a different shape like potion etc.

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From the Roblox community guidelines:

  • Pills, syringes, or other content representing drug paraphernalia or drug use are not permitted.

Be careful with this, it could get your game moderated.
Nevermind, see below.

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In contrast to what AwesomePossum said; I’ve said this before on the forums - if there’s a narrative reason behind having a specific asset or design, you can generally have it in your game. In this case, you’re probably fine.

For instance, if I needed a syringe for a character that narratively needs insulin injections, then that’d be fine. If I needed the syringe so my players can use illicit drugs for the hell of it, obviously not. Same asset, narratively different.

They’re case-by-case guidelines, not strict laws. Usually that division happens at a narrative level, but not always.

HOWEVER

When portraying characters with mental health issues, you must be mindful of how you describe and show how your character thinks and acts. The media, and more recently in game media specifically with Overwatch adding a new character where they try to “sell the asylum look” is a good example of missing this mark. This is not only offensive to those who are impacted with mental health issues, but also increases the stigma around it.

I’m not saying you shouldn’t do anything involving mental health - in fact I’d love to see more media accurately portray it. Just be mindful of what you’re showing to your audience :smiley:

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I’ll keep that in mind. Thanks!