Roblox morning briefing — September 16, 2026: The Hunt opens tomorrow, a Texas hearing Roblox skipped, and in-game anime licenses go live

The Hunt: Roblox 20 opens tomorrow

• Date: September 17, announced on stage at the Innovation Awards and repeated in Roblox's awards recap, which closes by pointing readers to the celebration. 1
• Early access: Plus subscribers can enter the hub before it opens. Because the event starts for everyone at once, the perk is time in the hub ahead of the crowd rather than a head start on the event itself. 2
• The teaser: Roblox's own account posted a one-line riddle on September 13: "on september 17, left is right. down is purple. tomorrow is pizza." The same account posted "20 years of roblox. THANK YOU." that day. 34
• Still to come: Roblox has yet to publish the reward list or a start time for the event.

Roblox skipped a Texas hearing on minors and gaming platforms

• Five pages: The Texan reported that Roblox sent five pages of written testimony in place of an appearance. 6
• The company's statement: "Roblox has a robust multilayered safety system and we share Texas lawmakers' deep commitment to keeping kids safe online," a Roblox spokesperson told FOX 4, adding that the company would "continue to engage constructively with policymakers." 5
• What was said in the room: Dr. Cathy Martinez-Prather of the Texas School Safety Center told the committee that gaming platforms "can provide characteristics that bad actors may exploit," listing large youth populations, social interaction, and anonymity. Dr. Daniel Flint, a clinical psychologist at Texas Children's Hospital, testified that heavy technology use is linked to depression and anxiety symptoms. 5
• Where the charge came from: House Speaker Dustin Burrows issued the gaming charge on April 20 as a supplemental interim assignment, after Rep. Don McLaughlin reported finding a virtual recreation of the 2022 Robb Elementary shooting on Roblox. September 15 was the panel's first public hearing on it. 7
• What the committee is weighing: The notice asks members to judge whether platform safeguards work and what a state can require that survives Section 230 and federal preemption. Two weeks earlier the Fifth Circuit upheld an injunction against the monitoring-and-filtering section of Texas's SCOPE Act on those grounds. 7
• What happens next: The hearing was an interim one, so the panel took no votes and has no bill before it. Testimony feeds the committee's interim report and the online-safety bills filed for the 90th Legislature, which convenes in January 2027. 7
• The backdrop: Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued Roblox in November 2025 over how the company described safety to parents, and a U.S. Senate subcommittee opened its own investigation in August. Roblox has settled child-safety cases with Nevada, West Virginia, and Alabama for $35.8 million combined. 8

In-game sales licensing is live, with three new Kodansha franchises

• What the rights holder takes: A share of sales on the licensed items alone, set by the rights holder and shown in the license terms before you apply. Roblox says the rate varies by IP; the example terms on Roblox's own screenshot of the application come to 30%. 9
• Three new Kodansha franchises: FAIRY TAIL, Knights of Sidonia, and Ghost Encyclopedia, described by Roblox as a fantasy franchise, a science-fiction manga and anime series, and a children's ghost-story series based on books and a live-action film. 9
• When a license ends: The creator pulls the licensed passes and developer products from sale. Players keep what they bought, and the game can keep supporting those items. 9
• A rule that is easy to miss: One game can hold in-game sales licenses for several IPs, and it cannot pair a full-game license for one IP with an in-game sales license for another. Licensed subscriptions are not covered yet. 9
• Where to apply: License Manager in Creator Hub. Find the IP, review its terms, choose an eligible experience, describe how the licensed items will be used, add mock-ups, then wait for the rights holder's approval. 9
• Not every title is ready: The catalog note says a missing license type may simply have yet to arrive. The catalog lists FAIRY TAIL and Knights of Sidonia as its most recently created entries, alongside properties including Squid Game, Stranger Things, Like a Dragon, Blue Lock, and Skibidi Toilet. 10

Roblox Plus adds app themes, profile frames, and avatar backgrounds

• The tier: Roblox Plus costs $4.99 a month and replaced Roblox Premium on April 30, 2026. Benefits include discounts on in-game and avatar items, free private servers, and a monthly Robux grant. 12
• What other players see: Profile frames and avatar backgrounds sit on the profile, where anyone who opens it can see them. App themes change the app on the subscriber's own device. 11
• The reaction so far: Roblox's post drew about 50 likes and eight replies in its first day. One reply asked what the features mean for players without Plus, and another asked when a free month of Plus would arrive. 11

Shorts ideas to chase first

1. The Hunt: Roblox 20 opens tomorrow: film the hub in its first hours. Capture the hub during the Plus early-access window and again when it opens to everyone, and keep Roblox's riddle, "left is right. down is purple. tomorrow is pizza," on screen. Ask viewers which reward they are hunting first. 23
2. Roblox was invited to a Texas hearing on child safety and sent five pages instead. Put the hearing footage beside Roblox's written statement and explain what the committee was asked to judge. Ask viewers whether the company should answer in person. 56
3. Anime game passes are official now: here is the License Manager screen. Show the Creator Hub catalog with FAIRY TAIL and Knights of Sidonia, then the application step where you list the developer product and game pass IDs. Explain the revenue split and the rule that licensed items come off sale when the license ends. 910
4. Roblox Plus now sells a look. Show a profile with a frame and an avatar background, then the app with a custom theme, and explain that the tier runs $4.99 a month. Ask viewers whether profile cosmetics should sit behind a subscription. 1112