So this has been an issue for a few years now but it seems to me that nearly any game you see with a 90%+ rating will include some variation of “Like and favorite this game and join the group to receive x reward”. Some games deserve that rating but a lot of them do not (subjective) and it has made the game rating system meaningless.
Of course there’s no way for a game to query whether or not a player has left a rating, which is why devs bundle it in with something like joining their group. And to be clear I don’t mind devs giving rewards for joining groups; what I have a problem with is devs outright lying to players in order to manipulate ratings.
Awhile back, Roblox added an optional feedback input for when you like or dislike a game. One possible solution to this would be to include a very noticeable checkbox or option to say “I liked this game because I was promised a reward”. And if yes, throw away that rating.
Or a better solution, in my opinion, would be to just not allow this sort of thing in the first place. Lying to players isn’t cool and should be an offense just like lying on the game maturity questionnaire.
Like and favorite this post and I will give you a cookie.
I fully support the core issue raised here. Bad actors tell players to “like AND favorite AND join the group to get the reward” and are able to hit them with the rejection screen if skip the favorite (or the group) because those API points are verifiable. This trick effectively gets a player thinking that Roblox actually lets games check likes the same way everything else works.
Heres a simple way to do this exploit:
local AvatarEditorService = game:GetService("AvatarEditorService")
AvatarEditorService:PromptAllowInventoryReadAccess()
local favorited = AvatarEditorService:GetFavoriteAsync(game.PlaceId, Enum.AvatarItemType.Asset) --devs have been abusing this for years
You can pair it with the group join method using :GetRankInGroup. Once the kid clicks “allow” on the prompt (most do without reading), the game can silently check favorite status forever and revoke the reward if unfavorited…
The service was meant for avatar items, deprecate public developer access to :GetFavoriteAsync.
What I don’t like about the like and dislike thing is that if players mass dislike a game and gives it a low rating even tho the game is really good it hurts the game this happened to me like they should make it where you have to play for a specific amount of time before rating it
this is just such a non-issue, nothing wrong with asking for likes and giving a reward for doing so
the situations where this is an issue is a minority compared to every other game (literally only simulator and RP games do this)
an actual issue with the rating system is dislike botting (which one of my games is a victim of) rather than some random obby/simulator/RP game asking for likes with a reward
I have to agree with you on this one, you can beg for likes as much as you want but if your game fundamentally sucks then players will downvote it anyway
I see what you did there—and I’ll take that cookie, provided it’s not just a clever string of code designed to track my browsing habits!
You’ve touched on a massive “elephant in the room” for the Roblox ecosystem. The manipulation of the rating system creates a feedback loop where quality isn’t the primary driver of discovery; instead, it’s the ability to gamify the player’s psychology.
Here’s a breakdown of why this remains such a thorn in the side of the platform:
The “Incentive” Illusion
You hit the nail on the head regarding the technical limitation: Roblox does not allow developers to check if a user has Liked or Favorited a game via API. This was a deliberate choice by Roblox to prevent exactly what you’re describing.
However, developers bypass this by using Social Engineering:
The “Group” Proxy: Since developers can check group membership via Player:IsInGroup(), they bundle “Like/Favorite/Join” together. The player assumes the game knows they liked it, when in reality, the script only rewards them for the group join.
The Honor System (Lying): Some games simply have a button that says “Check if Liked” which, when pressed, just gives the reward regardless of the actual like status. It relies on the player’s fear of missing out (FOMO) to secure the rating first.
Why Your Solutions are Interesting (and the Hurdles)
1. The “I was promised a reward” Checkbox This is a clever psychological approach. If Roblox added a “Disclose Incentive” flag, it could act as a filter for the algorithm.
The Catch: If players are willing to “Like” a game for a sword or a pet, they are likely willing to lie on a feedback form to ensure they get (or keep) that reward. Most players, especially younger ones, prioritize the immediate digital dopamine hit over the integrity of the platform’s sorting algorithm.
2. Outright Prohibition (The Legal/Moderation Route) Treating rating manipulation as a TOS offense (like the Age Guidelines questionnaire) sounds great on paper, but enforcement is a nightmare.
The Semantic Loophole: Developers often phrase it as “Support the game for more updates!” or “Like goals: New code at 50k likes!” Is a “Like Goal” a reward, or is it a community milestone? It’s a very blurry line for human moderators to walk, let alone an automated system.
The Impact on Discovery
The real victim here is the Discovery Algorithm. When a mediocre “Simulator” gets a 94% rating through manipulation, it pushes down innovative, high-effort projects that don’t want to stoop to those tactics. It effectively creates a “Tax on Integrity” for honest developers.
Is there a “True” Solution?
The only way to truly fix this would likely be for Roblox to move toward a weighted rating system:
Playtime Weighting: A “Like” from a player with 10 hours in-game counts more than a “Like” from a player who spent 30 seconds and then left.
Robux Spend/Engagement: While controversial, weighing ratings from “established” accounts higher could filter out botting and “hit-and-run” incentivized likes.
It’s definitely a cynical side of game dev, but as long as “Number Go Up” equals “More Players,” developers will keep finding ways to poke the hive.
Since I can’t actually check if you liked this response, I’ll just give you the “Incentive Reward” anyway: .
Would you like to discuss how to structure your own game’s rewards (like Group Joins) in a way that’s actually helpful for retention without feeling “scammy” to the players?
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