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The Games That Raked in Robux This Summer

September 10, 2013

by Andrew Haak


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Games Page ImageOn ROBLOX, content creators stand at a path to success that forks in myriad directions – from traditional building, coding and game development to more niche routes like film-making, character asset creation and advertising. What drives someone to succeed at any one thing is wholly individual, but many are fueled by the social capital and wealth that can stem from a great ROBLOX creation. In this article, we’re going to dive into games and worlds that have earned their creators both fame and riches using three features we’ve launched in the last year.

To start, let’s look at the games that have most effectively monetized players. These are the games that have earned the most Robux off of Game Passes, Affiliate Gear sales, and Paid Access. Making it this high in the rankings requires a blend of the right items at the right prices, and an underlying game that attracts players in the first place. This list dates back to May 1st and is current as of yesterday, September 9th.

Top earning games (overall) since May 1st

1. Sword Fighting Tournament

2. Kohl’s Admin House (NBC Version)

3. Pokemon Reborn RPG (V.095)

4. AdventureBlox

5. Broken Bones

6. [USA] Washington, District of Columbia

7. SuperHero City III

8. Kohl’s Admin House (BC Version)

9. The Greenwood Town

10. The Cave of Untold Secrets!

11. The Hunger Games by Ozzypig

12. ROBLOX Titanic

13. Minecraft Tycoon

14. Sword Art Online: Fantasy

15. ROBLOX Point Theme Park

16. Welcome to the Neighborhood of ROBLOXia

17. Survive the 93 Disasters!

18. Mega Fun & Easy Obby

19. Kohltastrophe’s Realm

20. Intense Sword Fighting

21. Climb to Heaven!

22. Undead Nation

23. Grand Theft Auto V: ROBLOX Edition

24. Boys vs. Girls Island Wars!

25. Skybound
Some points worth noting:

Sword Fighting Tournament does not use Paid Access, but it sells desirable Game Passes and uses Affiliate Gear sales effectively. There’s a roughly 80/20% split between Game Passes and gear, respectively. TheGamer101 leads both categories, so look to Sword Fighting Tournament for guidance!

ROBLOX Point Theme Park is the only game in the top 25 to earn the majority of its Robux via Paid Access. (To be fair, Paid Access didn’t launch until July, limiting its presence.) The place is a work in progress, but starmarine614 is using the Paid Access to feature to give paying players early access. It’s a high-quality place, so many (i.e., more than 16,000) have bought their way in.

Welcome to the Neighborhood of ROBLOXia stands out as the best gear seller. Testin423 offers 10 gear items, the majority of which allow players to traverse the large level quickly. Smart move: sell gear that enhances (without interrupting) the gameplay experience.

Most of these games have been around for a while — they have staying power. In contrast, Skybound only enjoyed a short stay at the top of the Games page (but was effective), while newcomer Intense Sword Fighting has earned tons of Robux in a very short time.

Sword Fighting Tournament

We published an article not too long ago about how builders and developers are leveraging Paid Access, so you can read that for a deeper dive on the topic. Today, we’ll focus on specific Game Passes and Affiliate Gear sales that are working really well, and try to determine why that is.

Trends and success stories

Game Passes

Not everyone (i.e., the author) understands the allure of Kohl’s Admin House, but let’s face it: a lot of people love it. The place gives players godly powers that they don’t have elsewhere, and the top-selling Game Pass makes said powers automatic and permanent. It works in this fringe circumstance, but this sort of Game Pass could offset the balance in games with fine-tuned gameplay.

The second-best-selling Game Pass is Sword Fighting Tournament’s Super Insane VIP. While it is still the kind of game pass that empowers players, this implementation makes more sense. It’s a package of perks that lets players advance and improve faster than they otherwise could. It’s not game-breaking and doesn’t give unfair advantages; it hastens progress toward a better arsenal of weapons and in-game currency.

USA Washington, District of Columbia

Many Game Passes are of this nature, which makes sense considering they’re an easier implementation of something ROBLOX developers have long been doing (selling access to special abilities using scripts and special clothing items known as “VIP shirts”). Some game developers are taking unique approaches, though – for example, TheGamer101 offers special weapons in Sword Fighting Tournament, Nightgaladeld offers the power to drive vehicles in the expansive Washington D.C. and White House access, and Imaginaerum created an entirely new (and cool) vehicle for Skybound that is a floating island. These are all top-30 Game Passes between May 1st and September 9th, and they all enhance the base game in relevant ways.

Another useful approach is that of zamsongod in Broken Bones: use Game Passes to sell access to bonus content. The most successful Game Pass from Broken Bones is the Athletic Package, which offers a new map and five character upgrades. There’s also the option of selling sheer vanity – Space Knights sells a 500 Robux Game Pass that lets players do nothing other than customize their armor color. And it’s been sold 800+ times.

“Admin” powers continue to dominate Game Pass themes, but there are many alternatives that may better fit the theme, structure and balance of your game. Think about the above successes and how you might be able to do something similar.

Affiliate Gear sales

It’s really easy to add gear to your game – you simply browse the catalog for gear and, instead of buying it, you click the blue “Add to Game” button. It’s so easy that it can be dangerous, so you should be smart about what gear you allow/sell in your game.

Welcome to the Neighborhood of ROBLOXia

The most effective gear salesperson is testin423, who sells the ROBLOX World Tour Hot Air Balloon via Welcome to the Neighborhood of ROBLOXia. The balloon costs 1,500 Robux and the seller takes a 10% cut of each sale, which means testin423 has earned more than 60,000 Robux with this item alone. Testin423 has also made a good haul by allowing/selling the Ro-torcycle in the same place. Transportation gear is very popular and very effective, especially when it’s sold from roleplaying games with vast expanses of land (RobloMall, City of London, ROBLOX City Tycoon).

The Grapple Hook continues to be a valuable gear item, especially in military-style and disaster-survival games. The Gravity Coil, too, appears often in the list of top gear sales. These are both gear items that don’t necessarily give owners an unfair advantage, but they help, and they’re very fun to use. As was the case with our first exploration of what gear is selling, it’s all about cool weapons that fit the theme of the game and transportation items.

Top Affiliate Gear items (since May 1st)

ROBLOX World Tour Hot Air Balloon via Welcome to the Neighborhood of ROBLOXia

Tempest Blades via Sword Fighting Tournament

Ro-torcycle via Welcome to the Neighborhood of ROBLOXia

Katana via Sword Fighting Tournament

Elegant Blade via Sword Fighting Tournament

Deluxe Blue RoPed via Welcome to the Neighborhood of ROBLOXia

Spray Paint via The Cave of Untold Secrets!

Grapple Hook via Survive the Volcano Waves!

Historic ‘Timmy’ Gun via Sword Fight on the Heights Original

Ro-Ped via RobloMall

Remember, Game Passes and Affiliate Gear sales can be enhanced using the in-game purchasing feature and plugin.

We’re working behind the scenes to improve the quality of games that rise to the top of ROBLOX’s Games page and offer new ways to make it big. If you have a quality game in the works, you might consider leveraging Game Passes, Affiliate Gear or Paid Access to get noticed — the Top Earning and Top Paid sorts are waiting for competition!