Roblox.com - Virtual World-Building Game

If you were a fan of legos as a kid (or still are), Roblox could be described as legos on steroids, for the tech-savvy crowd. Users build virtual worlds and games up from the ground using blocks, and can post them for multi-player use. Everyone is given a free player avatar and “world,” which they can design and develop in any way they choose (users can create add-ons using Lua scripting or buy them; items range from lampshades to blue fluffy clouds to firefighter helmets). Upon entering Roblox, there are no rules or formal protocol; users can navigate however they choose. Roblox is touted as safe and accessible for players of all ages.

“Roblox is an free online Multiplayer game, where you play in user-created worlds with blocks. Unlike most other games there aren't any pre-defined goals. You are given blocks and left to do whatever you want. With your free account, you get a Character and a Place. You can customize your place however you want, and visit anyone else's place as well. With over a hundred thousand players, there is plenty of creativity to go around.”

Roblox is an excellent forum for unleashing creativity; with no pre-defined goals and a very active community (not only in terms of numbers, their forum is buzzing), Roblox really has nothing stopping it. It has the ability to continually adapt to exactly what the user is looking for. Moreover, the site is ad supported (and users can buy items or buy a premium membership), so the site has the potential to make money.

How can you expand membership to include the more technologically illiterate? The draw seems to be heavily focused on creating your own games and avatars, but undoubtedly some of those games are good enough to be marketed toward the general public.