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Roblox tries to skirt app store fees by making Robux worth more on other platforms

Roblox logo illustration
Illustration: The Verge

Roblox is now incentivizing users to buy its in-game currency, Robux, on platforms that won’t take app store fees. You can now get up to 25 percent more Robux if you purchase the currency through gift cards, on your computer, or on the web, according to a developer forum post from last week.

As for how that might look in practice, here’s some examples from the post:

For example, users who purchase US $9.99 worth of Robux with a gift card, computer, or web would have originally received 800 Robux but will now receive 200 extra Robux or a total of 1000 Robux to spend on passes, in-experience items, and avatar items. Users who purchase a $10 gift card may now receive up to 1000 Robux when previously they would have received 800 Robux.

An image from Roblox showing Robux pricing.
Image: Roblox
Roblox’s Robux purchase page also shows the additional Robux you’ll get by buying on your computer or the web.

Roblox says this isn’t a holiday promotion. “We plan to keep this new pricing in place globally beyond the holiday season,” according to an FAQ in the post. And if you redeem a gift card on a computer or on the web that purchased before the change was announced, you’ll get the higher amount of Robux, too.

The company gave a very vague answer its own FAQ about why the change only applies to Robux purchased via gift cards, computer, and web:

Why is the new pricing only available for gift cards and on computer and web?

We’re always looking for opportunities to share more with our community, on all platforms and we’ll keep you updated on channels where the opportunity becomes available.

But it seems likely that Roblox wants users to buy Robux through those channels to avoid losing money to fees taken by app stores and game console stores. And Roblox isn’t the only company to do something like this; YouTube Premium costs more when you subscribe via the iOS app, for example.

Today, Roblox also announced its new Party tool to help users more easily hang out and communicate on the platform. Up to six people can be in a Party, though they only support text chat to start — voice chat will arrive in “the coming months.”