As a small developer, I CANNOT AT ALL GET 500 PLAYERS for my game to be public to all ages.
It is extremely hard. I promise you. You cannot just get 500 players immediately, especially adult players.
For my game [ We Sell Machines - Roblox] and many other small games such as Wubby, Aggrieve and really any small game with a small playerbase, even some that probably haven’t even launched, you will not be able to get people 16+ to play easily in those games.
Please add an optional way of doing this OR remove the requirement altogether. Please.
Bump. Developers who rely on organic algorithmic growth like me compared to paid advertising are basically disregarded.
Getting 500 players is already difficult enough for me, especially with the algorithm not picking my game up at all, and only ever so slightly after I publish an update (between 5-10 new visits).
This is over multiple days, mind you. Updating a game takes a lot of effort and it’s really demotivating to see that hard effort basically amounts to nothing.
With Plus and all, it’s even more difficult as I don’t want to exactly spend hundreds on an algorithm that already wasn’t co-operating.
This is from an all-ages standpoint, too, though. Imagine how much more restricted my game is when I need to get 500 16+ players frequently. It’s practically impossible.
I have been on the platform for quite a few years, and expect that this should be enough to class me as a ‘safe’ developer, and as such I shouldn’t need to get 500 active players.
After all, why would a bad actor genuinely spend 5 years waiting to get a bad game out? I’m sure there are much faster ways in less than weeks.
this was already addressed you can pay 1k robux (refunded once ur game is peak) to make it public for all ages no subscription required but u need ID scan and 2fa enabled tho
I’m a little lost on this. I haven’t seen any announcement on this.
Are you saying :
a) Just to be picked up on the Algorithm - you need 500 active players ?
or…
b) You need 500 Players for your game to “Go Public on All Ages”
If your game is all ages, then it should also appeal to the adults. And reaching 500 won’t be difficult if it appeals to the adults first. Yeah it’s definitely not easy like before, you have to put in effort coz adults won’t be liking low effort games. But it’s not impossible. Games like GAG did this in a massive scale, but games like SAB will 100% fail now!
I would give you a honest advice buddy, and it’s because of Roblox’s changing direction. Make a game actually targeting 16+. I’m sure you’re probably 16+, you know your friends, so what’s stopping you from making something for them. And if the game is good, you can easily scale it to under 16!
And of course Roblox WAS a place for easy 2 hr or one day made games. Coz kids are gonna play them anyways. But with recent changes, I’m honestly telling you buddy, the big or established studios are going to take the entire kids market. Now it would be difficult for a solo dev to get into this below 16 market easily.
So better ride the wave, rather than going against it.
What I’ve said in simple words – If you’re making a game for ALL AGES, then it has to appeal ALL AGES, that includes the adults too. You can not cry on “oh I can not get 500 adult players”. And if you can appeal also to 16+, it’s not difficult to get 500 players.
But If you’re making a game only for kids U16, that would be a different matter. But you yourself said you are publishing for all ages. So you have to appeal all ages buddy, and that includes adults too (16+) not just kids/ younger teens (U16) .
do you think this appeals to toddlers? NO!!!
you don’t even HAVE an active game. you CANNOT experience what WE are experiencing. if you want to actually comment on this thread, experience what we are experiencing first.
update: this looks more like you’re just trying to shell your 18+ game
First of all, that game is 18+ not as you’re thinking (See the maturity is moderate, so there is no 18+ stuff as you’re thinking, but I added 18+ lebel coz young people won’t get it). It’s a game for older audience. And it’s more of a “Make for a Change” social impact game, coz it’s based on ADHD and autism and it’s having a philosophical depth. Your brain perhaps won’t get it . And btw this is an experiment, not a final product that I’m monitizing.
Buddy I’m already working for others, so I know. And if this would be problem, than devs should be protesting this, not the subscription. Everybody is ok with 500 players, they’re just worried about the subscription.
Your game is not working, it doesn’t mean it would be an universal problem.
And btw, I have already seen your game. And I’m telling you a hard truth, you are not realizing this will most appeal to kids/ teens not adults. I’m above 18 myself, I will never play sandbox games. I will prefer RPGs, shooters, adventures etc. Please do a research what appeals to adults first, not just random guessing.
So yeah your game does appeal to the younger than older, and perhaps that’s why you are mad. It’s not toddlers but it’s definitely not adults either. The main audience is 10-18.
Just do a simple search buddy – “what is the majority audience of sandbox games”. But even in sandbox games, make it such that it appeal to 16+. You can combine genres to do that!
Yeah of course! But read to the end of my reply above.
You can make a sandbox game or any games played mostly by young players CAN appeal to older audience by combining genres. And you have to do the work if you want to appeal the older players. There is no choice, but to do it.
PS. That was just a friendly advice, otherwise it’s your choice, I’m not loosing anything coz If I want to just think only about myself why I would talk to you in the first place! Because personally I’m good to go, as I build for the 16+ only. But as a game dev myself I really care for other devs. And I’m just spitting the reality after the controversial changes Roblox did in past some months.
You indeed need active players to get into the algorithm, but like, it’s much more difficult to share to other 16+'s compared to anyone and everyone.
Most people I share my game with irl are actually younger than 16, and they enjoy the game. (ie, my younger siblings). Older players my age and above tend to not enjoy it as much (it requires quite a bit of attention and a strong attention span, which your TikTok Teens dont exactly have)
But, since my game works better with friends, its more of a family game (ie, better when you play with siblings and all), and I rely on natural systems to get more players to play compared to heavily advertising.
So, for me to get picked up by the <16 algorithm effectively, my game needs to have ~500 16+ players per month or so. Already difficult enough for a new game w/o spending on adverts.
