To wrap up 2014, the ROBLOX engineering teams have been working diligently to release some really exciting features for both gamers and game developers. One of those features is something that our community has been requesting for while: private game servers. Today, we launched the beta of VIP Servers, allowing you to purchase a private server for any game that supports the feature and select the people who can play on it with you. We know that you want it to be easy to socialize and play with your friends (or foes, for the competitive types), and this is an initial step toward giving you more control over your gaming experience on ROBLOX.

Creating a VIP Server

Once a game developer chooses to enable VIP servers on their game, players can create one by visiting the game’s page and opening the “Games” tab, which traditionally displays all of the running instances of the game and the people playing in each one. Now, there is a new category of servers called “VIP Servers” and a green button labeled, “Create VIP Server.”

Simply click the button and you will be prompted to purchase your private server for 200 ROBUX and give it a name. The server will be active for 60 days. Both the purchase price and life of the server may change as we collect your feedback and learn more about how you use VIP Servers.

Once you purchase your VIP Server, you can find it on the details page of the game from which it was purchased, or in your inventory as a tab within the Places category. In either location, you will see a screenshot and find the configure button, which allows you to add the players – a max of 50 – by name who are allowed to join you in your VIP Server.

Once someone is added to the list, he or she will see your VIP Server on the game’s page (under the Games tab) or in their inventory (under the Other VIP Servers category) and be able to click Join to play with you.

For additional information on using VIP Servers, check out this entry in the ROBLOX Wiki.

For Developers

We recognize that not all games are built to support private servers, so game developers will need to manually enable private servers during the beta period. To enable this feature for your game, visit the game’s configuration settings. Under the Access tab, check the new “Allow VIP Servers” box and click the Save button. Players will then be able to create private servers and invite their friends.

For Players

If you find that your favorite game doesn’t allow for private servers, please contact that game developer to encourage him or her to enable this feature!

You can imagine that private servers will work great for games in certain genres.

There’s more to come

This is the first phase of VIP Servers. Ultimately, we want to enable:

• Group-versus-Group VIP Servers
• Full permissions layer for friends, followers, etc.
• Recurring ROBUX transactions to keep your server running over time
• Developers to receive some ROBUX for each VIP Server purchased for their game

While this is only the beginning of what’s possible with VIP Servers, we’re already very excited to give you the tools you need to play games with your friends. Let us know what you think.