Roblox to Add Age Restrictions for Social Hangouts and Unrated Experiences

Roblox is limiting its more interactive spaces and unrated games to teens and older users, according to the company's latest round of child safety updates announced this week. 

These updates mean that kids under 13 years old won't be able to access social hangout elements in games, which Roblox says includes "vibe games, clubs, socializing and supportive spaces where the primary theme or purpose of the experience is to communicate (e.g. in text or voice chat) with other users as yourself." It also prevents young gamers from accessing free-form creation tools. Gamers under the age of 13 won't be able to access these interactive features in games starting Monday, Nov. 18. These restrictions do not include roleplaying games or real-life simulations, which let a gamer adopt another character or identity.

Roblox is also changing its default to prevent gamers under 13 from accessing unrated games. The company says that games without these ratings -- usually indicating the level of violence, gore and other sensitive content -- will not be searchable or playable for players under 13. Developers will have until Dec. 3 to fill out a questionnaire for each experience they want to be accessible to players under 13 and to let Roblox know what kind of experience they offer so a rating can be given. Creators who don't fill out the questionnaire will have their experiences labeled as unrated and will then be unplayable for preteens.

The updates come as the gaming platform faces increased scrutiny over its child protection measures. Investigations from law enforcement and news organizations have found worrisome cases of predators using Roblox to target children, along with a lawsuit alleging illegal gambling on the platform. This is a major deal for a platform primarily aimed at young kids; more than 40% of its 78 million users are preteens, according to Bloomberg's report. 

In October, the company announced via email that it was rolling out a set of parental controls, including the ability for parents to limit access to some chats and certain games, depending on the age of their child.