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Everyone Can Experiment with Paid Game Access

July 16, 2013

by Andrew Haak


Archive

Games PageA couple weeks ago, we launched a beta test for Paid Access – an experimental configuration setting that allows builders and game developers to charge players once for permanent access to their places and games. Yesterday, we enabled the feature on ROBLOX.com, but not before making significant changes to its inner workings based on your feedback.

  1. All ROBLOX builders and developers can sell access to their creations. There is a 90% marketplace fee on Paid Access sales for non-Builders Club members; Builders Club members have the standard 30% marketplace fee.
  2. The price you choose is configurable (from 25 ROBUX to 250 ROBUX).
  3. There is an entirely new game sort (“Top Paid”) for games that sell access, meaning another way to rise to the top. This is in addition to Paid Access sales factoring into the Top Earning sort, which displays by default on the Games page.

The overarching goal of Paid Access is to increase the quality of content on the Games page. After all, players will only spend ROBUX on good games, and we have the ability to “quarantine” any game that is not as advertised, is broken, or otherwise unplayable and refund any purchases still in escrow. This will mitigate scamming and false advertising.

We understand that some gamers – especially those that do not receive a daily stipend of ROBUX via Builders Club – are averse to Paid Access, primarily for its expense. On the flip side, many ROBLOX builders and game developers pour a huge amount of time and effort into creating on ROBLOX, and we believe they deserve to have a potentially high-leverage path to success.

By the same token, game developers and builders are aware that enabling Paid Access will reduce player count, and many have considered applying the feature for early access to games in beta and “premium” versions of games that are otherwise free to play. In the early phase of Paid Access, those of you who are creators will have to experiment, listen and find a successful balance among your audience.

Hunger Games by Ozzypig

The Hunger Games: a good example of a game that earns through quality.

You can enable and configure Paid Access on the Configure Place page. To get there, go to the Build page, then click “Configure” under the drop-down gear icon for the place you’d like to make pay-to-play. You’ll see the option (and an FAQ link) under the “Sell Game Access” header. Comments cannot be disabled on games that take advantage of Paid Access, as potential players need to know what people are saying before making the purchase.

While Paid Access is live, it’s still an experimental feature – now, we’re waiting to see how it’s adopted and how it affects the collective ROBLOX community and economy. If you’re one of ROBLOX’s many creators, we encourage you to experiment with Paid Access and help us determine the future of the setting.