Roblox has rolled out a fresh set of guidelines aimed at shielding younger users from games that blend media feeds with reward systems, particularly on its Roblox Kids and Select sections. In a recent announcement posted on the company’s creator hub, the platform clarified that the new policy targets any title that merges a scrolling or autoplaying media feed with incentives that encourage continuous viewing.
According to the official statement, the rule applies to games that feature any combination of the following elements: short‑form video streams, image galleries, or story‑style feeds that automatically play, loop, or scroll without user input; and a reward mechanism that either explicitly requires or subtly suggests that players must keep watching the content to earn in‑game benefits. The policy’s intent is to prevent scenarios where children feel compelled to sit through endless streams of media simply to unlock virtual items, currency, or progression milestones. "We are actively reviewing games for compliance with the new policy.
Games that do not follow this policy will be removed from Kids and Select unless the game mechanic is redesigned," Roblox wrote. The company emphasized that any titles found to be in violation will be taken down from the child‑focused sections unless developers modify the offending features to meet the new standards.
The timing of the announcement appears to be linked to recent coverage of the pet‑collecting simulator Steal an Egg, which was reportedly pulled from the platform after it incorporated a mechanic that urged users to run on a virtual treadmill while a continuous feed of content played, rewarding them for sustained viewership. While Roblox has not explicitly confirmed that the new rule was drafted in direct response to that incident, the correlation has been noted by industry observers.
GamesIndustry.biz reached out to Roblox for clarification, asking whether the policy was a reaction to the Steal an Egg situation. Roblox responded by outlining the specific criteria that trigger the policy: - The game must present a media feed to the player, such as short‑form videos, image carousels, or story‑like updates reminiscent of social‑media platforms.
- The feed must incorporate at least one of the following mechanics: autoplay, a continuous replay loop, infinite scroll, or automatic scrolling. - The game must also contain a reward system that either requires or implies that ongoing consumption of the media feed is necessary to obtain the reward. Roblox stressed that the rule does not extend to traditional rewarded video advertisements, which remain permissible as long as users actively choose to watch the ad and the platform enforces limits on how frequently a single user can view them. "A user must actively initiate the ad, and [the platform] applies rate limits to how many a user can watch," the statement clarified.
Developers whose games are flagged will have the opportunity to adjust their titles to comply with the new standards. Once the changes are made, Roblox will re‑evaluate the games for approval. The company also reassured creators that all other eligibility requirements for inclusion in the Kids and Select catalogs remain unchanged, and that the Engaged Player metric will not be reset as a result of the policy shift.
The policy rollout arrives amid heightened scrutiny of Roblox’s approach to child safety. Just last week, the U.S. Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Counterterrorism announced an investigation into the platform, accusing it of prioritising revenue generation and engagement statistics over the wellbeing of its younger audience.
The Senate’s inquiry underscores growing concerns among lawmakers about the potential for exploitative design practices in games that target children. In a related move, Roblox has also taken steps to improve its AI safety infrastructure. The company recently open‑sourced three of its artificial‑intelligence safety models through the Robust Open Online Safety Tools Model Community (ROOST).
By sharing these models with the broader research community, Roblox aims to foster collaboration on safeguarding AI‑driven features and ensuring they are used responsibly within its ecosystem. Overall, the new policy reflects Roblox’s attempt to strike a balance between fostering creative, engaging experiences for young players and protecting them from design patterns that could encourage compulsive media consumption in exchange for virtual rewards. As the platform continues to evolve, developers will need to stay attuned to these guidelines, ensuring that their games provide fun and safe environments without leveraging endless scrolls or autoplay loops as a hook for monetisation.
The ongoing Senate investigation and Roblox’s proactive safety initiatives suggest that the conversation around child protection in online gaming will remain a focal point for both regulators and industry stakeholders in the months ahead.