Games parent company Roblox Corporation shared some fascinating news today at the Roblox Developers Conference. The company announced that developers make “paid access experiences” (think premium games) on Games will soon be able to earn a larger share of revenue than developers making free-to-play games.
This increase applies to games purchased with “real money value” on desktop. If you create a game priced at $9.99, $29.99, or $49.99, your revenue share will increase to 50 percent, 60 percent, and 70 percent, respectively.
The company says it plans to extend the increase to “other supported devices” in the future.
The announcement comes amid a series of other business updates, including an upcoming partnership with Shopify and a new creator affiliate program that will reward Games developers who bring new users to the platform. A specific increase in revenue share for premium developers is worth a pause, however, as it could mark a major shift in what developers make on Games.
Premium games have understandably struggled on newer platforms that also facilitate free-to-play games supported by ads or microtransactions. After all, especially for younger audiences, nothing beats “free” when it comes to trying out a game.
This means Games developers have had a lot of incentive to push for loyalty features and to avoid other types of games that are not economically sustainable. The fact that all transactions were first processed through GamesEven the premium currency Robux didn't help.
Now, being able to take up to 70 percent of the revenue from someone who buys your game brings the platform nearly on par (but not quite, with those lower rates for cheaper games) with the revenue share of Steam, Xbox, PlayStation, and the Nintendo Store.
These changes address concerns developers have with Games?
Changes like this could go a long way toward addressing concerns developers have had about how Roblox Corporation splits revenue with developers. Those in the free-to-play space won’t benefit from this change right away, but developers may now consider spinning up studios to make premium games with a more robust business model in mind.
That said, developers were concerned about the platform's ability to protect young players from abusers and predators you won't find much new in today's RDC announcements.