Roblox highlights eye-popping user-made games at dev conference

Roblox highlighted some of the best new games coming to its platform at its developer conference in San Francisco today.

The games include Playgrounds Basketball, Eternal Heroes and Skullbeat. Both Eternal Heroes and Skullbeat are playable in alpha form today, while Playgrounds Basketball will debut in the coming days.

Roblox provided funding for the titles with the goal of supporting developers who experiment with new technology and push the boundaries on Roblox. The Roblox Game Fund is a $35 million international game fund for creators building the next generation of experiences on Roblox. The money helps de-risk creation and helps guide the developers.

Playgrounds Basketball

They include Playgrounds Basketball by Saber Interactive. It’s an original arcade-style basketball experience from the creators of the NBA Playgrounds video game franchise.

The experience features colorful arcade-style 2-on-2 and 1-on-1 gameplay with power-ups, huge jumps, and acrobatic jams that fosters a seamless first time user experience across platforms from mobile to PC to console. There are five locations based on real-world cities.

Saber has been a platform-agnostic developer of video games for more than 20 years, developing original hits like World War Z and SnowRunner.

“We are excited to bring Playgrounds Basketball to the Roblox platform,” said Corey Wade, Saber’s head of business development, in a statement. “Saber’s Playgrounds Sports brand is all about pick up and play arcade sports, which we feel is a great fit for any gamer of any age. We can’t wait for Roblox users to experience both the familiar Playgrounds elements and the new features we’ve created with this version.”

Any basketball court is a place of competition and community, but Rucker Park in Harlem, New York, takes everything to another level. Saber drew inspiration from this iconic “playground”, where crowds gather daily to socialize and watch outstanding talent play game after game. They seek to make Playgrounds Basketball the Rucker Park of Roblox.

Eternal Heroes by Supersolid

Eternal Heroes is a 5v5 arcade team battler with a cartoon style 3D animation.

You can choose from a range of heroes, customize them, and master their abilities. Team up with friends and find your role to claim victory.

Eternal Heroes is the first and only MOBA (multiplayer online battle arena) to ever launch on Roblox and the company hopes it stands out in the genre alongside fan classic League of Legends.

Eternal Heroes comes to Roblox from the team behind RoPets, whose vibrant art style and hundreds of animated pets have captivated the Roblox community.

Edward Chin, CEO of Supersolid, said in a statement, ​“Supersolid has been making games for over 10 years now.” He continues, ​“we are excited to launch Eternal Heroes on Roblox. We hope players on this amazing platform find something new and surprising in the game, and that they enjoy playing it as much as we’ve enjoyed making it.”

Supersolid is a United Kingdom-based team of more than 60 people creating games since 2012 for Apple App Store, Google Play and Roblox. They had numerous free-to-play mobile hits — including South Korean favorite SuperPenguins — before creating on Roblox.

​Supersolid is a London-based independent games studio with over 110 million mobile games downloads and 45 million visits on Roblox.

Skullbeat by Kong Orange

Skullbeat is a multiplayer auto-battler fused with the game experience we all know from Guitar Hero in the story world of Felix The Reaper. Skullbeat is the second game in the Felix the Reaper franchise, transporting its dancing agent of death to a completely new setting, platform, and genre.

In Skullbeat, you are a member of a gang of rogue employees at The Ministry of Death who hold secret dance-offs in the basement of the ministry. You can plan, combine and execute dance-moves with precision to earn style-points and sweep the competition off the dance floor.

Founded in 2011, Denmark-based Kong Orange is known for device-agnostic games like Felix The Reaper (playable on XboxOne, PS4, Nintendo Switch, PC/Mac and iOS) and Heartbeats – A Galactic Requiem for iOS. The game was also co-developed by Denmark-based Chop Chop Games.

They have been nominated for awards for their creations via Gamescom, SXSW, Danish Game Awards, Spilprisen and Nordic Game Awards. PocketGamer and Touch Arcade, and many more.

“Skullbeat has been a blast to see come to life, we have created a game that really fits our dynamic rendition of the Danse Macabre,” said Esben Kjær Ravn of Kong Orange, in a statement. “As a game developer, I feel quite accomplished and fortunate to have been able to make a second installment in this franchise. It’s a clear testament to the grid and tenacity that roars beneath the hood of any good game studio in my mind, and now we can share that with the world.”

Kjær Ravn added, “Going full on multiplayer rhythm gameplay in a game inspired by the Danse Macabre and that colorful art history has been a hand in glove experience to us. Being part of this new wave of Roblox games has been a real blast. We really feel we’ve been let into a wild and generous community, that has rekindled our experience of making games all over again. Everything is new, yet we are still making games, the way we know how to. Very refreshing.”

And Dario Rahimic of Chop Chop Games said in a statement, “Working on Skullbeat has been a blast. As a big Rhythm game fan, I’ve always wanted to bring a fresh twist to the genre, and I think Roblox has been a great place for that. The Roblox community is very embracing of new things and has throughout the alpha given us great feedback and helped us improve the game a ton.”

Rahimic added, “Felix the Reaper is an awesome IP to work with, and I hope this groovy spin on the Danse Macabre does it justice. The big value in creating a game for Roblox is the immense community support and feedback, the ease at which friends can play together and how accessible our game has become to just about anyone with any device.”