[NEWS]Roblox targeted in the Philippines for resembling gambling

[promise444c5]

I’ve tested a couple of Roblox game before .. I can say that I played some games that have some similarities with how gambling works but most of it never really felt like gambling itself. A lot would have changed since more and more developers kept creating games on Roblox.

The article itself didn’t mention the particular Roblox game, if truly it promotes and allows  gambling then the game itself should be banned and removed from Roblox . Kids carries a higher percentage as players in Roblox games, exposing real gambling  games to kids is bad and shouldn’t be allowed and this shouldn’t be a matter of region.

[Satofan44]

Exposing underage audience to gambling is unacceptable. I don't know about Roblox much, but if they are doing this,  Philippines are doing a great job investigating them.Even without real money involved, I don’t think it’s a good idea to teach kids those games.

Almost every single application that most parents are letting their children use on their phone, and this includes every single game practically has various aspects of gambling mechanism in it. People tend to have the most basic and wrong idea of gambling, that it has to involve actual money or be related to casino games -- it has nothing to do with that. It is about the mechanism that keep you coming back for more, giving you dopamine hits and slowly draining you of money -- while giving just enough back in wins to keep you coming for more. How many games have some sort of daily spin thing to get some in game items or coins for free? How many have spins that get enabled after spending more time in the game per day? And it is not even that, it is from the layout of the interface to the color pallet, over to the sound -- everything is designed in order to facilitate the addiction by hijacking the brain.

I’ve tested a couple of Roblox game before .. I can say that I played some games that have some similarities with how gambling works but most of it never really felt like gambling itself. A lot would have changed since more and more developers kept creating games on Roblox.

It does not matter what you feel, it is completely besides the point. All of these applications have various gambling mechanisms, that includes all social media. Therefore, just because it may have not an actual casino-style games that involve real money that does not mean that it does not have gambling mechanisms. Time for some of you to get educated a bit:

https://ihpi.umich.edu/news/social-media-copies-gambling-methods-create-psychological-cravings

[STT]

Most of the games are free, I've played plenty and you don't have to pay.  If you wanted to criticize it would be for pay to play or DLC type upgrades for cash, its how they self fund and encourage people to design games for others I guess.  Its cheaper then publishing for the very small type start up adventure designs within that engine.

   I do remember in the last game I played the lobby contains a spin the wheel type game, free to enter with modest fun prizes.  You got 3 free spins and then the rest you pay for or wait till the next day.  I wouldn't call that gambling but some might, it depends if we are being that strict but I think that's where it gets silly tbh.

[freedomgo]

I wouldn't call that gambling but some might, it depends if we are being that strict but I think that's where it gets silly tbh.

Almost every game has something like that already, so I don’t think it can really be called gambling. In gambling, you risk money because you want to win money. Here, that’s not really the case. You’re just buying items, skins, upgrades^{( Sorry not so familiar)}.., or whatever the game is offering, so it’s not really compulsory. You can still enjoy the game for free if you want.

I remember my daughter asked me for money before for her Roblox game. I paid around $10, I don’t even know what she bought, but she was happy with it, so that was enough for me. And honestly that’s understandable too, because that’s really how developers make money now. No game is ever truly free. If it looks free, then usually we are the product, that’s what I always read.

[TopTort777]

I wouldn't call that gambling but some might, it depends if we are being that strict but I think that's where it gets silly tbh.

Almost every game has something like that already, so I don’t think it can really be called gambling. In gambling, you risk money because you want to win money. Here, that’s not really the case. You’re just buying items, skins, upgrades^{( Sorry not so familiar)}.., or whatever the game is offering, so it’s not really compulsory. You can still enjoy the game for free if you want.

I remember my daughter asked me for money before for her Roblox game. I paid around $10, I don’t even know what she bought, but she was happy with it, so that was enough for me. And honestly that’s understandable too, because that’s really how developers make money now. No game is ever truly free. If it looks free, then usually we are the product, that’s what I always read.

Despite games where you buy "items, skins and upgrades", there are games where you spin wheel and get random element of in-game skin or item. For example in game like this https://x.com/ponchokings/status/1566897261354881032/photo/2. If you want get more in-game currency, you need to get rare pet, which you can get by buying case with random drop chance. You can pay in in-game currency, or skip farming stage and buy in-game currency for Roblox.

Or game like this (found random game roblox with spin element in google). You spin wheel to get in-game random bonuses. You buy spins for real money (Robux). That is totally gambling for me.

And yes, you can enjoy any game for free. But when you see that others have something better and fancy, and you a kid, a wish to get the same or be better appears very quickly.

[Satofan44]

Most of the games are free, I've played plenty and you don't have to pay.  If you wanted to criticize it would be for pay to play or DLC type upgrades for cash, its how they self fund and encourage people to design games for others I guess.  Its cheaper then publishing for the very small type start up adventure designs within that engine.

Almost nothing is free in this world, if you believe that something is free and is being provided by a big corporation you are just being delusional. If it is "free", you are the product. They would not be there losing money in order to give you the opportunity to play some shitty game. There absolutely does not need to be any kind of "pay to play" bullshit, any kind of optional content that can be paid is sufficient.

  I do remember in the last game I played the lobby contains a spin the wheel type game, free to enter with modest fun prizes.  You got 3 free spins and then the rest you pay for or wait till the next day.  I wouldn't call that gambling but some might, it depends if we are being that strict but I think that's where it gets silly tbh.

Free spins are also gambling, read the definition of gambling mechanisms instead of having a very superficial and wrong definition of what constitutes gambling. Instead you should call your own misinformation and false knowledge about these things silly, since a child could understand the information related to these games. The free spins are literally designed as a gambling game and they are there to encourage you to get hooked so you start paying for spins too, but hey let's pretend it is not gambling because it is "free", smart-ass. 

Despite games where you buy "items, skins and upgrades", there are games where you spin wheel and get random element of in-game skin or item. For example in game like this https://x.com/ponchokings/status/1566897261354881032/photo/2. If you want get more in-game currency, you need to get rare pet, which you can get by buying case with random drop chance. You can pay in in-game currency, or skip farming stage and buy in-game currency for Roblox.

Any kind of random drop chance activity is a gambling mechanism and as such it should be banned. These things should never have been allowed to be added to games, but capitalism. Then again I also blame the consumers, how many idiots have spent boatloads of money on microtransactions of the most useless nature? Skins that cost the company $100 to produce by a freelancer, but simp weaklings need to defend their life mistakes at all costs or their fragile egos will lead them into depression or potentially even suicide.

[Hispo]

Most of the games are free, I've played plenty and you don't have to pay.  If you wanted to criticize it would be for pay to play or DLC type upgrades for cash, its how they self fund and encourage people to design games for others I guess.  Its cheaper then publishing for the very small type start up adventure designs within that engine.

   I do remember in the last game I played the lobby contains a spin the wheel type game, free to enter with modest fun prizes.  You got 3 free spins and then the rest you pay for or wait till the next day.  I wouldn't call that gambling but some might, it depends if we are being that strict but I think that's where it gets silly tbh.

i think it is fair to classify them as gambling, because the result is random and in case of winning one receives a prize which have an economical value. not even mentioning that in order for one to keep up playing, one needs to invest money...

since we are talking about a game which is targeted towards little children and teens, when it is clear regulators are supposed to be strict, in the same manner they care strict with games which are targeted towards children and they include gambling like-mechanics, like slots or roulettes.

ironically, it would be counter-productive for the economy of roblox to limit those experiences, because i am sure they get a lot of money from them...

[qwertyup23]

Not just as a casino but as an immoral platform in general.

Roblox has been under fire for years due to its creative platform where users can freely create, customize, and generate any kind of game or social aspect where they can circumvent the terms and conditions. Due to this, lots of creators take advantage of the innocence of the youth and create a pseudo-gambling game via crates and rare items. Not only does this go against their ToS but it also corrupts the minds of the young exposing them to the perils of addiction.

I am not entirely sure on how the government of the Philippines plans to address these issues considering the ease of entry of the young to these games.

Most of the games are free, I've played plenty and you don't have to pay.  If you wanted to criticize it would be for pay to play or DLC type upgrades for cash, its how they self fund and encourage people to design games for others I guess.  Its cheaper then publishing for the very small type start up adventure designs within that engine.

   I do remember in the last game I played the lobby contains a spin the wheel type game, free to enter with modest fun prizes.  You got 3 free spins and then the rest you pay for or wait till the next day.  I wouldn't call that gambling but some might, it depends if we are being that strict but I think that's where it gets silly tbh.

Unfortunately, there are games that disguises itself as "free" but in essence rely on the game of chance to receive some rare item with a cost. You may argue that the wheel may be accessed by playing everyday but the existence of the option of paying for it makes it gambling in general.

[Betwrong]

Exposing underage audience to gambling is unacceptable. I don't know about Roblox much, but if they are doing this,  Philippines are doing a great job investigating them.Even without real money involved, I don’t think it’s a good idea to teach kids those games.

Almost every single application that most parents are letting their children use on their phone, and this includes every single game practically has various aspects of gambling mechanism in it.~

I don’t know, I don’t play games on those apps, but if it’s true, it should be investigated every time. If it only resembles gambling and no real money is involved, it’s a big question whether such a game or the entire platform should be blocked. But if it allows kids to gamble for real, it’s not a question — it should be blocked.

[TopTort777]

Despite games where you buy "items, skins and upgrades", there are games where you spin wheel and get random element of in-game skin or item. For example in game like this https://x.com/ponchokings/status/1566897261354881032/photo/2. If you want get more in-game currency, you need to get rare pet, which you can get by buying case with random drop chance. You can pay in in-game currency, or skip farming stage and buy in-game currency for Roblox.

Any kind of random drop chance activity is a gambling mechanism and as such it should be banned. These things should never have been allowed to be added to games, but capitalism. Then again I also blame the consumers, how many idiots have spent boatloads of money on microtransactions of the most useless nature? Skins that cost the company $100 to produce by a freelancer, but simp weaklings need to defend their life mistakes at all costs or their fragile egos will lead them into depression or potentially even suicide.

You cant change people Everyone wants to stand out and be unique. Nobody wants to be like the rest (like in life). If there is a chanse to look different, they use it no matter how much it cost. I can understand if adults play these games with elements of random. But these games are available for kids too. Rich accounts show off and force little kids to gamble to get better looking skins.

[junder]

I’ve tested a couple of Roblox game before .. I can say that I played some games that have some similarities with how gambling works but most of it never really felt like gambling itself. A lot would have changed since more and more developers kept creating games on Roblox.

The article itself didn’t mention the particular Roblox game, if truly it promotes and allows  gambling then the game itself should be banned and removed from Roblox . Kids carries a higher percentage as players in Roblox games, exposing real gambling  games to kids is bad and shouldn’t be allowed and this shouldn’t be a matter of region.

I think Roblox is often said to resemble gambling, perhaps because of the constant updates. I've played some Roblox games on my friends' phones before but they were just ordinary games, I didn't even notice any resemblance to gambling. What I'm worried about is the impact that Roblox could have on many children, as most children in my neighborhood play Roblox.

[STT]

Unfortunately, there are games that disguises itself as "free" but in essence rely on the game of chance to receive some rare item with a cost. You may argue that the wheel may be accessed by playing everyday but the existence of the option of paying for it makes it gambling in general.

Its not just an argument though or a new one.  People have been entering free gambling competitions for a very long time, on average (some) do win and some enter so many free entries they average out a gain without risking anything.  I dont know thats possible on Roblox but it seems some people do gain by their free entry.  Its also a great way to promote and encourage people to take a gamble and that means a profit for the operator.

[Hispo]

I’ve tested a couple of Roblox game before .. I can say that I played some games that have some similarities with how gambling works but most of it never really felt like gambling itself. A lot would have changed since more and more developers kept creating games on Roblox.

The article itself didn’t mention the particular Roblox game, if truly it promotes and allows  gambling then the game itself should be banned and removed from Roblox . Kids carries a higher percentage as players in Roblox games, exposing real gambling  games to kids is bad and shouldn’t be allowed and this shouldn’t be a matter of region.

I think Roblox is often said to resemble gambling, perhaps because of the constant updates. I've played some Roblox games on my friends' phones before but they were just ordinary games, I didn't even notice any resemblance to gambling. What I'm worried about is the impact that Roblox could have on many children, as most children in my neighborhood play Roblox.

I think the problem comes when children and teens are given tools to create whatever they want in Roblox and some of them decide to make literal casinos for others to engage with,.you know?
The whole point of Roblox is how teens and children are given the chance to create their own games (within Roblox) and those of those games are basically random number generators with prizes and a fixed cost in order to participate. That resembles much to gambling.

In my opinion, Roblox should take care of those games and only allow people to design experiences which are suitable for the general public, instead of letting children to develop gambling addiction or craving for lootboxes.

[Satofan44]

I don’t know, I don’t play games on those apps, but if it’s true, it should be investigated every time. If it only resembles gambling and no real money is involved, it’s a big question whether such a game or the entire platform should be blocked. But if it allows kids to gamble for real, it’s not a question — it should be blocked.

Anything that involves any kind of chance mechanism is a gambling mechanism, even if it does not involve real money. Add some fancy colors and sounds and things that have been proven to increase the likelihood that someone will spend time in an app, game or something like that and you have pure gambling as if in a casino. You can try random mobile games to check it out, most of them will have some free spin, watch AD to spin, reward spins after a few games and mechanisms like that. Since they all involve randomness of rewards and literally even visually resemble casino games like wheel of fortune, they are gambling. The thing is, this is so common and there is so much money involved that the chance of a blanket ban is very low -- they are not going to ban Candy Crush when there are thousands or millions of other games that do the same. Many users of these games would even complain if they were to be banned (but hey, they are totally not addicted). 

You cant change people Everyone wants to stand out and be unique. Nobody wants to be like the rest (like in life). If there is a chanse to look different, they use it no matter how much it cost. I can understand if adults play these games with elements of random. But these games are available for kids too. Rich accounts show off and force little kids to gamble to get better looking skins.

You can't change most people at all, you are correct -- only some can be changed and to different degrees (some a little bit, others a fair amount). However, the sad part of that is that the skins and all that bullshit does not make people stand out -- it gives them the illusion of standing out or being important. Similarly how drugs give you an illusion of happiness, but it could not be farther from real happiness. Those that have any working brains would never buy a single skin, even if it costs $0.1. Actually a person would never even add a credit or debit card to any game if they had a working brain. At least we can laugh how pathetic and desperate failures they are. 

I think the problem comes when children and teens are given tools to create whatever they want in Roblox and some of them decide to make literal casinos for others to engage with,.you know?
The whole point of Roblox is how teens and children are given the chance to create their own games (within Roblox) and those of those games are basically random number generators with prizes and a fixed cost in order to participate. That resembles much to gambling.

In my opinion, Roblox should take care of those games and only allow people to design experiences which are suitable for the general public, instead of letting children to develop gambling addiction or craving for lootboxes.

Roblox should not be a thing for people who are not legal adults at all. Actually children and teenagers should not be on any platform that allows people to do "whatever they want". Roblox sold itself as a good thing to the idiotic masses that can't understand the difference between left or right, the kind of people that get confused as soon as they get asked an unusual question in the most usual setting like a grocery store. It is cancerous, it should never been allowed to be marketed to children. Children do not benefit at all from games like this, stop deluding yourselves. Their overall capacities and skills are actively shrinking the more time they spend in stuff like this, or with tools like "AI". They are becoming less competent and less capable, with an added benefit of becoming great candidates for lifelong addictions.

[junder]

I think the problem comes when children and teens are given tools to create whatever they want in Roblox and some of them decide to make literal casinos for others to engage with,.you know?
The whole point of Roblox is how teens and children are given the chance to create their own games (within Roblox) and those of those games are basically random number generators with prizes and a fixed cost in order to participate. That resembles much to gambling.

In my opinion, Roblox should take care of those games and only allow people to design experiences which are suitable for the general public, instead of letting children to develop gambling addiction or craving for lootboxes.

Is it that serious? I didn't know, but what you said makes me aware of such incidents.

Besides, most teenagers and children these days certainly use smartphones. In fact quite a few parents even give their children their phones when they're crying, hoping to calm them down and stop them from fussing.

This certainly makes it easier for them to learn about things that aren't yet appropriate.

[bakasabo]

I have a child who plays Roblox because in youtube videos that my child watch people play it and gaming seems fun. My child asked me to buy Robux (Roblox currency) and used it in games where you need to spin to get random prize. It was done without even realizing it is gambling. As a parent, I see no way how can I fight with it because all my warning and forbid to play crashes into «everyone in our class are playing» and this game is «one of most popular among children». The only way I see to avoid gambling in Roblox is to play together and insist that the game you have chosen is interesting and better than «game everyone are playing» if it has elements of gambling.

[Satofan44]

Is it that serious? I didn't know, but what you said makes me aware of such incidents.

Yes it is serious, and even if it wasn't that changes nothing. It has been explained to do that you do not need to have explicit gambling games in order to have gambling inside of any applications. Most user-oriented applications that are not about accessing services already do have this.

Besides, most teenagers and children these days certainly use smartphones. In fact quite a few parents even give their children their phones when they're crying, hoping to calm them down and stop them from fussing.

No child should ever have access to a smartphone, but let's pretend that people who give access to their children are not bad people. The primary reason why people are not criticizing others strongly for doing this is because either they themselves are doing it, or someone who they like is doing it. As you see, parents are lost because they are parents of the weakest generation. Combine that with their own narcissism and wanting to do their own things instead of spending a lot of time on their kids, you find yourself in this situation. The government does what it does usually, it ignores the problem unless people make it public enough -- or it looks for bribes in order to "solve" the problem in a way that satisfies everyone involved even if the measures that are initiated are completely useless. Only a blanket ban with criminal charges against both the companies and parents would be effective, everything else is a joke.

I have a child who plays Roblox because in youtube videos that my child watch people play it and gaming seems fun. My child asked me to buy Robux (Roblox currency) and used it in games where you need to spin to get random prize. It was done without even realizing it is gambling. As a parent, I see no way how can I fight with it because all my warning and forbid to play crashes into «everyone in our class are playing» and this game is «one of most popular among children». The only way I see to avoid gambling in Roblox is to play together and insist that the game you have chosen is interesting and better than «game everyone are playing» if it has elements of gambling.

Alright. Next time your kid finds yourself in a environment where everyone is doing heroin you tell them that they should do it too, since everyone is already doing it and missing out on it would be bad. This seems to be the logic behind your decision making in relation to this particular case. I'm waiting for a denial or a copium "but this is different" answer from someone. When everyone is doing the same thing, and the thing in question is wrong, you are supposed to take another path. There is absolutely not a single valid reason in the world for which a child should be exposed to these things, or any other thing that has gambling related mechanisms.

[STT]

Almost every game has something like that already,

This is true, so many games have gone not exactly dlc but micro transaction type near gamble type interaction with their users.   Its a grey area because its not money its in game worth and value, the variance makes very similar to gambling type games.   So not uncommon and yet still not very clear as to the lines.
   Like Roblox the audience is often sub 18 though some above I think is a fair cross section of players, if it was all above 18  people might not mind so much.

[ovcijisir]

Roblox is under investigation in the Philippines for having games similar to gambling. Just so people know, this isn't the first time Roblox has come under investigation because of games that resemble gambling. I remember discussions about it in the past where it talks about people filing a complaint that there are games inside Roblox that are basically a casino, where players can gamble. The main concern people have about this is that the majority of Roblox players are underage, and they are being exposed to gambling and possibly getting exploited, too.

~

I never played Robolox but I heard it is very popular amongst children and teenagers. Considering Roboloxes targeted audience I understand how their parents are cautious and worried that their children can have higher chances of being involved in gambling later in life, if they play games that resemble gambling during their childhood. On the other hand, considering popularity of that game, parents can't completely isolate their children from this, so in the end the best "cure" that parents can give to their offspring are the values they instill in them. If the children have correct set of values it will be harder for them to become gambling addicts.

[bakasabo]

I have a child who plays Roblox because in youtube videos that my child watch people play it and gaming seems fun. My child asked me to buy Robux (Roblox currency) and used it in games where you need to spin to get random prize. It was done without even realizing it is gambling. As a parent, I see no way how can I fight with it because all my warning and forbid to play crashes into «everyone in our class are playing» and this game is «one of most popular among children». The only way I see to avoid gambling in Roblox is to play together and insist that the game you have chosen is interesting and better than «game everyone are playing» if it has elements of gambling.

Alright. Next time your kid finds yourself in a environment where everyone is doing heroin you tell them that they should do it too, since everyone is already doing it and missing out on it would be bad. This seems to be the logic behind your decision making in relation to this particular case. I'm waiting for a denial or a copium "but this is different" answer from someone. When everyone is doing the same thing, and the thing in question is wrong, you are supposed to take another path. There is absolutely not a single valid reason in the world for which a child should be exposed to these things, or any other thing that has gambling related mechanisms.

But your example with heroin is different indeed. First of all my child will never be in such environment and be smart not to try it because everyone are doing drugs. Let me ask you first, do you have children? Because if you do, then teach me how you deal with situation, when other children are playing mobile games, watches youtube, and you tell your child that he can not do what his peers and friends do. Because "there are some content and moments" that might not be appropriate for your age.