ROBLOX Releases New Rules for Its Metaverse: No Politics, Romance, or Cross-Platform Promotion of Its Virtual Currency Allowed

ROBLOX just updated its Terms of Use for customers, and given the many reports describing the massive virtual world platform as a Metaverse, the updates are fairly fascinating. They provoke the blunt question, "Is ROBLOX really making a Metaverse, or is it still making a game for kids?"

Because for starters, ROBLOX's version of the Metaverse forbids any virtual expression of romance or real life politics:

We value friendly debate about issues and topics that matter to Robloxians. However, to maintain a civil and respectful environment, we prohibit the discussion or depiction of: Current candidates running for public office, including their slogans, campaign material, rallies, or events... [s]itting real-world elected officials.

Roblox is a safe space for meeting online friends, chatting, and collaborating on creative projects, but we prohibit content that seeks or portrays romantic relationships, including: Animations of kissing, hand holding, or other romantic gestures... [e]xperiences that depict romantic events, including weddings, dates, and honeymoons

The rules against politics are fairly strict even by contemporary standards. For instance, Joe Biden had an official campaign presence in the new Animal Crossing. And one of the key reasons Second Life was deemed to be a metaverse was because it allowed real life politics. Indeed, the 2006 Second Life appearance of Virginia Governor (now Senator) Mark Warner as he was considering a run for President in 2008 was a milestone for the virtual world.

As for the new rules against romance, according to top ROBLOX YouTuber KreekCraft, they run counter to what the ROBLOX community is already doing in-world now:

"There was always a 'no online dating' rule," he tells me, "but nothing against roleplayers. Like having a fake 'wedding' or something like that. There's plenty of games with weddings as settings for the games too that will be affected."

Other updates to the ROBLOX rules have community creators like KreekCraft scratching their heads, worried that they might impact their real life living. For instance, as he tweets, streamers like him can no longer "give out Robux/toy codes (even if you buy the card)" -- a common way of growing and maintaining their subscription base.

The specific rule prohibits "[s]elling, trading, or giving away Robux, game codes, or in-experience digital goods outside of Roblox". This again runs counter in spirit to most conceptions of the Metaverse, in which the virtual world's economy bleeds into the real one. (Indeed IMVU recently launched VCOIN for that very purpose.)

KreekCraft isn't exactly sure what to make of all this, or how it will impact the community as a whole. "It's tough knowing what exactly Roblox means by a lot of these and how much they're actually going to enforce them." 

He's hopeful to get some clarification from ROBLOX, but isn't holding his breath. About a year ago -- i.e. just before the company's successful IPO -- he tells me, "They don't really interact as much now as they used to. But hopefully they will."

Then again, seeing as there are now hundreds of Squid Game imitations in ROBLOX which also seem to run against the company's Terms of Service but are still on the platform, I'm not sure either. I've reached out again for an official reply.

Comments

[Adeon Writer]

It doesn’t have to be one of the other, it’s both. It’s a Metaverse for kids.

[Nodoka Hanamura]

Methinks Roblox is going downhill fast with this pursuit.