Roblox Takes Action Against ‘Doomscrolling Games’ That Make Players Watch Ads While Running on Treadmills
If you’ve been keeping up with Roblox lately, you might have noticed it’s become a hotspot for low-quality content, including AI-generated games and simplistic dopamine traps aimed at keeping kids engaged. Recently, a concerning trend of in-game doomscrolling emerged, prompting the Roblox team to take action against certain game types. This week, they rolled out a new policy aimed at reducing the visibility of games that reward players for endlessly scrolling through in-game feeds reminiscent of TikTok. According to the Roblox team, any game that meets all three of the following criteria will be banned from Roblox Kids and Select, which are automatically applied to younger users:
1. It features a media feed for players, such as short videos, image streams, or social media-style stories.
2. It includes or imitates at least one of the following mechanics: autoplay, continuous replay loops, infinite scroll, or autoscroll.
3. It has reward systems that require, or suggest the need for, ongoing viewing of that content.
This policy likely stems from the overwhelming popularity of games like Steal an Egg, which inspired numerous imitators. In Steal an Egg, players collect eggs from wild animals to hatch pets on their farms. As is common in many Roblox games with titles starting with “Steal a,” other players and the pets that laid those eggs can also snatch them, creating a competitive and stressful atmosphere. To keep up, players can gain speed by training on a treadmill or by spending real money, allowing them to outrun potential egg thieves.
Training on a treadmill is a typical feature in many of the platform’s vibrant incremental games. However, Steal an Egg’s treadmills initially included a large screen called “Reels,” where players could watch short videos primarily made up of AI-generated content and uncredited popular TikToks while preparing for their next egg-stealing adventure.
After the crackdown, Steal an Egg was quickly re-released without the Reels feature and currently boasts nearly 800,000 active players, making it the most-played game on Roblox despite its recent removal. Interestingly, the Reels feature seemed to play a significant role in its rise to popularity, with many players in the game’s Discord expressing dissatisfaction over its absence.
It feels like a significant portion of Roblox is already filled with mindless engagement games. Doomscrolling is the last thing that should gain traction on this platform! While it’s reassuring that Roblox acted swiftly, it’s disheartening to see the platform devolve into a space where games like this could flourish in the first place.
