why did roblox remove chat
Roblox hasn’t removed chat completely, but it has been changing and removing certain chat systems and features, mainly for safety, moderation, and parental control reasons.
What actually got “removed”?
When people say “Roblox removed chat,” they usually mean a few different things:
- The old/legacy in‑game chat system is being phased out and replaced by the newer TextChatService system.
- Some custom chat systems that developers made on top of the old system are breaking or will stop working because the underlying “legacy chat” support is going away.
- Under‑13 accounts are losing some DM abilities and will have stricter limits on how they can chat, especially outside games (platform DMs and direct messages in experiences).
So chat itself still exists, but how you chat, and which accounts can use which features, is what’s changing.
Main reasons Roblox is changing chat
Roblox has given several reasons for these changes, and players/developers have added their own theories:
- Safety & moderation: Roblox wants all chat to pass through one standardized system so it can be filtered and moderated more reliably (including AI moderation, logging, and parental controls).
- Parental controls: A big stated reason is making sure privacy settings and parent controls actually apply to every message, which is harder if older/custom chat systems keep using different APIs.
- Compliance with laws & policies: Different regions and age groups have different rules, so a unified chat system makes it easier to adjust to local laws and platform policies.
Developers on the official forum also point out that some old APIs linked to legacy chat created moderation headaches and possible exploit paths, which Roblox may want to close off entirely.
What’s happening to legacy chat?
Roblox announced that the legacy chat system will be removed and fully replaced by TextChatService , with deadlines for when new and existing experiences can use it.
Key points:
- New experiences are being blocked from using legacy chat ; they must use TextChatService.
- Older games that still rely on legacy chat or custom systems built on it may stop working correctly unless developers update them.
- Roblox describes this as part of a move to standardize chat to keep it easier to moderate and connect to parental controls.
This is why some players feel like “chat is being removed,” especially in classic games where the old UI or custom systems were a big part of the experience.
Why are under‑13 chats changing?
There’s also a separate, age‑focused change:
- Users under 13 can no longer freely use direct messaging outside of games (platform chat), and in‑experience DMs may require parental consent.
- Under‑13 users can still use public/broadcast chat in games, but their direct/private communication paths are being tightly restricted.
Roblox ties this directly to better safety and privacy for kids , making sure younger users are less exposed to risky one‑on‑one or small‑group conversations without parent oversight.
Why some players think it’s “removing chat”
From community discussions and videos, you see a few recurring reactions:
- Older games breaking: If a favorite classic game used legacy or heavily custom chat, losing that system can make the game feel half‑unplayable, which looks like “no chat.”
- Stricter age checks: Features like AI age estimation and more verification steps for some chat options make it feel like chat is being shut off unless you pass extra checks.
- Frustration from developers: Some devs argue that it’s unfair to expect them to update long‑abandoned or nostalgic projects just to keep chat working.
On the flip side, others welcome the change as a necessary evolution for safety, less abuse, and more consistent filtering , especially with younger players on the platform.
TL;DR: Roblox didn’t kill chat entirely; it is phasing out the old legacy chat system , tightening rules for younger players , and centralizing everything into a newer chat framework to improve safety, moderation, and parental control support.