The 2022 Roblox Developer Conference (RDC) has come to an end and it’s finally time to reflect on a weekend full of events, awards, and of course, announcements. Whether they came from builderman himself, CEO and founder David Baszucki, or his right-hand man, CPO Manuel Bronstein, the Roblox-related announcements were plentiful. So what were these announcements and what do they mean for the future of the platform? Continue reading below to find out.
All announcements made at RDC 2022
Dynamic/animated avatar heads
Originallybrought to lightin Oct. 2021, the whispers surrounding dynamic avatar heads have yet to cease nearly a year later. At RDC 2021, BaszuckidebutedRoblox’s 3D animation and capture project that allows users to track the movement of their head and facial features in real time and livecast them to their Roblox avatar. At the time, this feature was exceptionally limited and its details were highly under wraps. At RDC 2022, however, viewers were able to see even more of this technology in action.
A live look at Live Avatar communication in-experience, creating a new level of immersion when it comes to communicating with your friends. Coming soon!#RDC22#Roblox#RobloxDevpic.twitter.com/GayQ7s8kxc
The exact, platform-wide release date of this feature is still unknown, though it’s expected to begin rolling out in beta form sometime in 2023. In the meantime, players can look forward to a more simplified version of dynamic avatars with the addition of animated emotes and avatar expressions. Unlike fully dynamic heads, these features do not use real-time capture programs and are instead reliant on standard chatting. When avatar expressions are released, players will be able to type an emoji or emoticon in the Roblox chat bar and see their avatar express a face that reflects said emoji.
For example, if you type🙂in the chat bar, your actual in-game Roblox avatar will adjust their face to smile. On top of these expressions, players over the age of 13 with access to voice chat can also look forward to dynamic mouth movement, or the ability for their avatar’s mouth to move as they speak through voice chat. Though an exact date is still unknown, we’d expect to see these smaller features release before the end of 2022.
Chat filtering, parental controls, age rating system
One of the most talked about takeaways from Roblox’s Keynote livestream is the announcement of more laidback filtering for those over the age of 13. Currently, no one on the platform is allowed to swear or use any language that’s deemed offensive or inappropriate—in the near future, however, Roblox will be relaxing the restraints on its 13+ users, allowing them to discuss a wider variety of topics using a new pool of pre-cleared “mature” words. In the Keynote livestream, Baszucki acknowledged Roblox’s rise in users over the age of 13+, stating that there’s currently more users on the platform that are over the age of 13 than under, and pointed out that the age group of 17 to 24 is currently their fastest growing age demographic.
I #### you, Roblox. 🚫I love you, Roblox. ✅Reduced chat filters for users 13 and older are coming soon!#RDC22#Roblox#RobloxDevpic.twitter.com/JEe09XIfar
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Because of these changes to Roblox’s audience, the decision was made to institute an age rating/separation system. Soon, all experiences on Roblox will offer an age advisory in theirAboutpage that lets players, and parents, know if an experience is appropriate for their age group. While it may seem strange to some, this change isn’t surprising considering Roblox’s entireESRB rating changingfrom E10+ to Teen. As Roblox continues to pivot toward and brand itself as a multi-purpose, collaborative platform for all ages, these types of age restriction changes will continue to become a necessity.
Universal app
For those who prefer to play Roblox on the website, you may be unaware of the platform’s newest project—the universal app. This app, which is currently available to download on Xbox, PC, and mobile, aims to connect Roblox seamlessly between numerous devices and allow players to explore all that the platform has to offer with ease.
Roblox’s vision is to have one universal app for all platforms.#RDC22#Roblox#RobloxDevpic.twitter.com/VtVHcrL5f6
At the moment, it’s clear that the Xbox version of the Roblox app consistently falls behind its counterparts—with a difficult UI and clunky maneuvering system, it often feels like the forgotten sibling when compared to its intuitive and ever-changing PC and mobile versions. With further development on this universal app, however, Roblox hopes to fine tune all three versions of the Roblox platform and even bring it to new destinations, including PlayStation, Nintendo Switch, and VR.
Coming soon: Improvements to the Universal App to make it more ✨delightful, which will help move Roblox to more platforms, including additional consoles and VR support.#RDC22#Roblox#RobloxDevpic.twitter.com/2azwZ5s2xL
Anti-Cheat system
It’s no secret that Roblox has its fair share of hackers, exploiters, and cheaters running rampant on the platform—whether they prefer to lay low and exploit in the background by using the typical aimbots and speed boosts, or create full on havoc and attack/take over events and experiences (enter theParis Worldincident), it seems as though they never fully go away. Now, however, we could be seeing a change thanks to the introduction of Roblox’s platform-wide,Anti-Cheatsystem. Though details are fairly limited regarding how this system will be implemented in the future, it’s assumed to be client-sided, meaning it will search players individually for mods, exploits, and cheats when launching, rather than just doing a general server-wide scan.
Related:Roblox Game Codes (2022) – Tons of Codes for Many Different Games!
The future of advertising on Roblox is immersive, native, non-invasive, safe, and civil. Coming soon: Immersive Brand and Performance Ads.#RDC22#Roblox#RobloxDevpic.twitter.com/AgNhNGRq3g
UGC Marketplace updates
The final major announcement made during RDC this year relates to the Avatar Shop, or theNext Gen UGC Marketplaceas Baszucki called it. During this announcement, it was confirmed that any Roblox user will be able to create UGC items in the near future, UGC items will now be able to become Limiteds, and developers will be able to create their own promotional UGC items and then release them to players for free, meaning that Roblox will be taking a step away from creating UGC items and will instead leave the creativity in the hands of the users.
End
That’s everything you might have missed at this year’s RDC! What are your thoughts on these new features/announcements? Are there any in particular that you’re excited for, or any that you aren’t a big fan of? Let us know in the comments below!
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