A mother has gone viral after her impassioned explanation of the dangers of Roblox to her 7-year-old son. The platform, which has approximately 380 million monthly users, has come under fire recently for its handling of grooming and child abuse.
Featured VideoThe clip, which has garnered 7.7 million views, begins with Marla Branyan’s (@marla_branyan) 7-year-old son asking why he can’t play Roblox.
“So, number one, Roblox is made up of a bunch of different games, and there are people who create those games like players, and they don’t always have the best interests of little kids in mind,” she explained. “There’s some content on there that’s suggestive.”
@marla_branyan I’ve gotten 2 emails in the last week about class action lawsuits against Roblox…. What I said here just scratches the surface. #roblox #nomoreroblox #parentsoftiktok #videogames ♬ original sound – ᗰ ᗩ ᖇ 🔆Advertisement
She then cited the “addictive” qualities of Roblox as a reason, explaining that Roblox is made up of “open loop games” where there’s “no actual end” and “it just keeps going and going and going. […] Whereas if it had a closed loop and the game ended, and it was like, good job, you’re finished.”
While her son was insistent that he wanted to keep playing, he also mentioned that there can be some “scary” games, which the mother cited as another reason to limit his Roblox use. “You’re not doing a good job pleading your case,” she joked.
What’s going on with Roblox?
Currently, Roblox is facing backlash for kicking off the notorious user Schlep. The creator, who is 22 years old, is a self-described “predator hunter” on the platform. He claims that he assisted in the arrest of six child predators on Roblox.
AdvertisementHe and his team did this by posing as minors, who would then lure these predators into meeting in person or having sexual conversations. Schlep said he was motivated to do this because he was previously groomed as a minor on Roblox.
On August 9, Roblox sent Schlep a cease and desist — and he was entirely banned from the platform a day later. At the time of writing, it seems like Schlep is still banned.
Social media weighs in
Fellow parents and teachers largely applauded Branyan’s decision. “Roblox made my son not my son anymore. He was acting out so badly,” one shared. “We took it away for good, and he was back to normal. Roblox is scary.”
AdvertisementAnother added, “The endless game loop is so stressful on their little brains. I’m a teacher, and I constantly get asked about Roblox and other games. I always advise parents to play it themselves, and if it stresses them out, think about how much it stresses their kiddo out.”
While a third shared: “The Roblox parental controls don’t really work, so we don’t have that in our home anymore.”
Other commenters were divided into two categories: those who mocked her decision and those who agreed with it.
“As someone whos played games all my life i highly agree with you” one wrote. “Instead, get him into games such as Minecraft, Mario Kart, Toy Story 3, and Animal Crossing.’ While another disagreed and said, “Dude, just get parental controls.”
AdvertisementHowever, despite the diversity of her comment section. Branyan is remaining steadfast in this position.
In subsequent TikToks, Branyan opened up further about why she wants to stop her son from using the platform.
In one clip, she stated that Roblox’s decision to add an adult dating feature “solidified” her decision to remove her son from the platform, while in another, she mentioned that she was veering away from the platform after they sent a cease and desist notice to user Schlep.
AdvertisementBranyan didn’t immediately respond to The Daily Dot’s request for comment via TikTok comment and Instagram direct message.
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