New Roblox Feature Has Started Another Collecting Craze & Players Are Already Overpaying
Roblox players put an extraordinary amount of work into their avatars. If they’re going to portal through the Bloxverse, players want to look their best. Outfits are coordinated, hairstyles coiffed perfectly, and even clever accessory combos can create unique faces that Roblox never officially offered. None of that effort is solely for the person controlling the character. Avatars are meant to be seen by friends, other players, and anyone curious enough to visit a player’s profile after a game. They function as costumes, calling cards, and occasionally proof of bragging rights for an achievement in a game. Roblox‘s newest customization feature expands that need to display without asking players to add another object to the already overcrowded avatar options. Players now have a new piece of their presentation to personalize. Up until recently, avatar backgrounds have just been the empty frame players could display their fresh looks in, but now Roblox has given creators the opportunity to fill that space with designs of their own.
Selected UGC creators can now publish custom avatar backgrounds through a new Roblox pilot program. Most of the first wave of backgrounds cost 200 Robux, but creators are already experimenting with designs intended to feel rarer than the standard selection. Creator Cloakedyoshi’s Liminal Tree depicts a solitary tree sitting at the edge of an eerie landscape. Compared to other released backgrounds, the premium image is surprisingly simple, but it was released as a UGC limited item with only 33 copies available for 1,000 Robux. Despite costing five times more than most backgrounds, every copy sold out almost immediately.
How Roblox Players Can Get Avatar Backgrounds
Players have three avenues to acquire custom backgrounds so far: buying designs from the marketplace, earning limited releases inside games, or receiving them as a subscriber exclusive. Streamer SirDapper dropped his custom background for free inside a Roblox experience designed to reward their livestream following from Twitch. Players have to watch the stream for a UGC code that they can then redeem in-game. Since the backgrounds are a hi-res image instead of a modeled and rigged accessory, they’re easier to create, so expect a lot of creators to get in on the action. Publishing is currently limited to creators accepted in Roblox‘s pilot program, but the selection will grow as access expands.
As far as the future of the customization option, Steam already demonstrated that profile backgrounds can develop as a collector market and Roblox has assembled many of the same ingredients very quickly. For their part, the company is also making money before the players purchase a thing. Creators pay an 80 Robux upload fee and have reported a refundable 2,000 Robux publishing advance. Don’t let the wording fool you. That “advance” is paid to Roblox and is released back to the creator as a rebate on their earnings. This arrives at an uncomfortable time for the platform as U.S. Senators are investigating whether they financially exploit its younger users. The earliest UGC Limited backgrounds are still inside a required holding period, but players will be able to sell and trade them soon, establishing a secondary market with variable pricing. Some creators are already playing to that crowd with copy on their item pages that might run afoul of the SEC, like “INVEST NOW BEFORE PRICE INCREASE.” Players are hoping this doesn’t become the next speculator’s market, putting everything cool behind high Robux prices. Though, once the first resale locks expire, hold onto your blocky butts. Roblox‘s backgrounds are about to find out whether they’re another fun customization option or the platform’s newest digital assets capable of holding value. At least they’re not NFTs.
