Roblox is the biggest game no one talks about. Around 71 million people log into the gaming platform every day, which is higher than the sales of Spider-Man 2, Baldur’s Gate 3 and Super Mario Bros. Wonder combined.
So big is its influence that other games are starting to copy it. Fortnite’s latest design, featuring a crude hotchpotch of games created by users, bears a striking resemblance to Roblox. Neither will win any prizes for aesthetic beauty, but their players don’t seem to care.
That’s because Roblox’s users, who are mostly kids, are mainly there to hang out with their mates. In that sense, it may even be a misnomer to call Roblox a game at all. Instead, it’s more like a social platform where you can interact with others across a bunch of edgy playground games. In Tower of Hell, players race each other to the top of a giant spire. While Red Light, Green Light is filled with familiar mini-games like Tug of War and Marbles.
At the heart of Roblox is your avatar, the digital identity you take with you to every game. Buying a snazzy new outfit for your blocky persona is a bit like turning up to school in a fancy new pair of Nikes.
After launching on PS5 and Meta Quest virtual reality headsets last year, the game is now available on every platform under the sun, including phones and tablets. So, if you’re thinking of jumping into Roblox for the first time, or you’re just curious about what the kids are getting up to, here’s where you should start. These are the most popular games on the service, from the lavish life simulator Brookhaven RP to the hide-and-seek macabre of Murder Mystery 2.
10 Best Roblox games 2024
Brookhaven RP
Adopt Me!
Blox Fruits
Tower of Hell
Murder Mystery 2
Piggy
Royale High
Bed Wars
Pet Simulator X
All Star Tower Defense
Brookhaven RP
Age rating: All ages
Visits: 45 billion
Roblox users can play at being the Kardashians in Brookhaven’s virtual take on Los Angeles. Invite your buddies to an indoor pool party at your mansion, jump in a private jet, and drop your kids off at nursery - there’s not a care in the world in this popular life sim. That helps to explain why it’s currently one of the biggest games on Roblox.
Adopt Me!
Age rating: 9+
Visits: 35bn
Jump into Adopt Me! on any given day, and you’ll bump into players accompanied by their pets in a candyfloss-hued utopia. Here, you can trade items with others, earn rewards for completing daily quests, and take part in seasonal mini-games and events. Wondering why the kids keep asking for more money to spend on Robux, Roblox’s in-game currency? It’s probably because they want new outfits for their pups.
Blox Fruits
Age rating: 9+
Visits: 31bn
Blox Fruits is a beat-em-up adventure in which players hop across themed islands to complete quests. Along the way, you can buy and chomp on the titular blox fruits to gain superpowers that can help you withstand attacks and travel further across the ocean. Younger fans of One Piece, the anime-turned-Netflix-show, should find plenty to like here.
Tower of Hell
Age rating: All ages
Visits: 23bn
Don’t be fooled by its devilish title, Tower of Hell is a breezy dash through a vertical obstacle course. The only person turning red will be the last player to the top.
Murder Mystery 2
Age rating: 13+
Visits: 14bn
A game based on the self-referential slasher movie Scream has yet to materialise, but Murder Mystery 2 may be the next best thing for kids. Let’s be honest, some of them have probably watched the latest chapter behind your back. In this role-playing whodunnit, one person is the killer, another is the sheriff, and everyone else plays the hapless innocents. The goal is to take down the murderer before he offs the lot of you. The ability to trade and collect knives probably landed the game the higher age rating.
Piggy
Age rating: 9+
Visits: 12bn
Piggy is the stuff of nightmares. Imagine being chased around by a demonic Peppa Pig as you scramble to escape a gloomy fairground. Plot twist: there could also be a traitor in your midst. If you dig indie horror and survival games like Granny and Among Us, Piggy is the place to start your Roblox journey.
Royale High
Age rating: All ages
Visits: 9.7bn
Visually, Royale High is the lip gloss of Roblox games. Players, who resemble Bratz dolls, are whisked to a shimmering, fantasy world where secondary school never ends. You’ll attend prom, hang out with friends, roleplay families, and probably stumble across a mermaid or two. Like Cher from Clueless, your main concern will be your wardrobe. Don’t like your fit? Shell out for a new one. We don’t have money here, silly - diamonds are a girl’s best friend.
Bed Wars
Age rating: 9+
Visits: 9bn
Some Roblox titles get so big that they spill over into other realms of internet culture. That’s what happened with Bed Wars when YouTuber MrBeast did a video in which 100 players jumped on the game. So, what’s all the fuss about? While it may look like a Minecraft rip-off, Bed Wars has an addictively simple conceit: Destroy all other beds while safeguarding your own. Cue a chaotic brawl on floating islands that players must invade or protect using building blocks as bridges and forts. Admit it, you want to give it a try.
Pet Simulator X
Age rating: All ages
Visits: 8.7bn
If you haven’t clocked on by now, pets are a big hit on Roblox. In fact, they’ve always been a hallmark of child-friendly games, from the hangry tantrums of Tamagotchi to the bonds forged on Pokémon. Pet Simulator X (or PSX as the kids call it) is no different. The goal is to hatch pets and then combine them to create stronger and rarer versions. No, it isn’t a parable about the dangers of messing with nature like The Island of Doctor Moreau. It’s another fluffy game about hoarding as many cute critters as you can. With hundreds of pets on offer, the grind never ends.
All Star Tower Defense
Age rating: All ages
Visits: 7bn
Young anime fans will have a blast spotting all the references in this strategy game. Players must summon heroes and villains who look like characters from Dragon Ball Z, Naruto and Bleach to defend their domains from encroaching enemies. Similar to Gacha mechanics, where you are granted a mystery item from a toy machine or loot box, players can use gems to call on powerful defenders. Your opponents get tougher as you progress through the three main modes, including the main story, Infinite Tower, and smaller Challenge missions.
