After running ads for multiple days my retention was great at 11%, average playtime was at 9.7 minutes, but now that I stopped ads it is just.. dying.
I poured my soul into it - crates, cup skins, daily rotating shop, playtime awards, wheel that players can spin every day FOR FREE (other games all require robux) - so everything. Everything a popular game has. And did it become popular? No, not even close.
Search impressions are falling, one day it was 900, then 700, then 500. Roblox is sending 1 player randomly who just quits so.. no wonder my average playtime for today is 2.8 minutes. This is a minimum 2 player game, not a one player game.
I’m wondering if I should fully quit roblox game developing. I pour my heart into my games and I get pennies back. Pennies. Jobs out there pay like 1000x better than developing a game.
What do you think about this? Should I quit game developing?
I still have great ideas beside Poison Sip that I could develop but I don’t know…
All my games previously got some visits and plays from ads and then it died off.
So my cycle was → developing → spending on ads → seeing game die down → thinking of another idea
I’m not trying to make a bank of 10K dollars per month, just a couple hundred bucks per month.
Although, then why should I make games? Spend money on thumbnails, icons, ads and expect nothing in return? That is not a viable investment.
This is my point. Obviously it depends where in the world you are, some places $200 is great other places you would do better with a Saturday job at a supermarket. I like to play with roblox to have fun and I think that is the best way to treat it. If it is a grind and you need cash, maybe consider other options
I believe the same and I have motivation. Let’s say we ignore the money part, I still have 0 players. If I would have lets say 10 CCU and 0 robux from it I would be happy, but I have no users. None.
This is why I’m thinking about quitting. I’ve put in the work, made a good game and get nothing in return from roblox. Only if I pay for ads.
I’ve found success in the sports genre. What’s good about sports is that people know about sports irl and they search for your sport on Roblox, finding your game. Your game ideas are okay but I personally don’t have a reason to play them. No one knows what a Poison Sip game is going to be about so you will need to spend more effort promoting that idea.
Worst case, do what you enjoy. If you enjoy coding then continue coding both on and off Roblox. After all, it’s a valuable life skill. I was coding for fun for 10 years before one of my games happened to hit 2000 ccu. I could’ve quit 5 years in and never seen that success.
target a different audience. you make dumb kid games for dumb kids(no offense). dumb kids dont see your game because they’re already hypnotized by front page games. make quality games for quality people. at least that’s what I would’ve did.
I’m just gonna be blunt. The ads are not failing., your games are just not fun. The fault is NEVER with the player either. I played each of your games and here’s my summed up thoughts.
Match your color is very slow. Twenty seconds to start each game, then 5 seconds before each round for the paint animation, and then another 15 seconds to walk to your color. There’s no challenge, and there’s nothing to keep players busy enough that they won’t leave the game. Additionally, there’s no gameplay loop. What’s the point of playing? There isn’t a shop, or if there is then it’s not obvious. Wins aren’t worth anything.
Pick a Bridge is a flawed concept. You pick a bridge. If it’s right you have to do it again and again. But if it’s wrong, you die and you then have to walk all the way back from the start, which can take 30+ seconds. The only motivation is competition. I would never play your game again if I’m at the last bridge and I choose the wrong one, die, and now I’m last because the correct bridge has been revealed and I’m at the start. The rolls and trail shop are not big enough rewards to outweigh the negatives.
Lastly Poison Sip. I have no idea what it’s about, because I didn’t have a partner and you didn’t showcase the gameplay. Requiring multiple people when you don’t know how to make a successful game will kill your chances of it being successful 99% of the time.
My advice is to go and research the psychology behind game design and how to create a proper gameplay loop. Additionally, If the gameplay isn’t fun enough to be listed as part of the reason you poured your soul into a game, then that is an issue.
Had the same issue with my own game on release and how to give in and create a solo version for when there isn’t enough players turning the game concept from a raising lava game with players working as a team to escape to if you’re lucky enough you’ll atleast be working in a team lol.
I’ve been tempted to quit sometimes and especially since I’ve also got experience in unreal engine and unity with C# experience but then again Roblox is just so easy to get player’s and easy to make a profit. You just need the advertising funding to make it happen and make sure the game doesn’t have a minimum players requirement or has ways around it since stuff like steam is going to be a lot more difficult to get an audience (that and the publishing fee).
Also consider how old you are and what qualification certificates you have. If you’re younger then go into a course on games development or computer science and if older then work with what you already have.
Stop making “farm” games. Think of a unique idea, make it so that you yourself want to play your game. Look for existing games in roblox, Play for a while and an idea will come to you. Don’t make children’s games.
I feel like the real issue with this is you usually cant just make ads and call it a day, if you really want to gain players looking into marketing is def the way to go.
And game design, level design, things like that that would apply to your game.
Popular games work for a reason, they’re engineered to work.
I feel like the only form of luck with making a game get players is just getting it out there, which even then if you know what you’re doing doesnt require that much luck.
After that if your games good, and works well and is enjoyable, people will play it.
I think it’s just the polishing of the game. When I join I have no idea where to go, and first impressions are the most important part. There are no shadows, and most things feel bland.
I also don’t know if this is true or not, but you started development on 8/7/2025? That means it’s been probably under a month of working on it. Usually thats not enough time to make a actually polished game.
I’d just continue for the hell of it if I were you.
This is coming from someone who doesn’t do gamedev for profit, just as a fun pastime, mainly because Roblox dev isn’t a good way to make money unless you’re one of the top dogs on the front page 24/7.
Make something fun that you want to work on instead of front page money farms (no offense).
My game entirely generic kit battling game (shameless plug) is just a passion project and I’m happy with it. If you’re making games just for money you won’t succeed.