Children’s gaming site Roblox under scrutiny over disturbing Kirk ‘assassination simulator’

An “assassination simulator” appeared on the children’s online gaming site Roblox shortly after the brutal killing of conservative star Charlie Kirk.

Children as young as 5 could access the simulator and its animated, bloody depiction of the Sept. 10 shooting of Mr. Kirk as he spoke with students on the campus of Utah Valley University.

The company quickly pulled down the gruesome game and more than 100 other user-created “experiences” on the platform related to Mr. Kirk’s death that company officials said violated their content rules. The macabre video raised new criticism of the site, which has 380 million monthly active users, nearly 40% younger than 13.

Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond announced an investigation into whether the state can take legal action against Roblox, which he said “lacks adequate safety measures and is overrun with harmful content and child predators.”

The violent Roblox video games associated with Mr. Kirk’s death are the latest content that has provoked outrage and fear that the multibillion-dollar platform is harming children. Many games are user-created.

In April, Roblox banned a swath of games that critics said generated sexually explicit content, including “Public Bathroom Simulator” and other “house hangout” games that became hubs of simulated sexual activity.

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill had sued the gaming giant, alleging the platform is dangerous to children.

Ms. Murill said the platform “prioritizes user growth, revenue and profits over child safety.”

In August, an Iowa family sued Roblox, accusing the company of allowing adult grooming of children on the site that led to the kidnapping of their child, who was trafficked across multiple states, sexually abused and raped.

The law firm representing the family said it is planning to litigate more than 250 additional lawsuits against the gaming company.

Roblox revenue topped $3.06 billion in 2024, a nearly 30% increase over 2023.

Parent groups have called on Roblox to improve safety on the site. In July, the company announced new features to protect children. It said it was testing an AI feature to verify age.

This month, the company adopted the International Age Rating Coalition standard for content ratings to help ensure children are not viewing mature content.

“Roblox is committed to creating a safe platform for our users and empowering parents to make the best decision for their children,” said Matt Kaufman, chief safety officer at Roblox.

The site does not require age verification beyond entering a date of birth.

A sampling of games recommended for users 18 and older ranges from the benign “Wordie” puzzle to the terrifying “Survive the Killer,” in which the winner kills as many players as they can “before they escape and time runs out!”

Roblox content connected to the Kirk assassination appeared soon after videos of his horrific shooting went viral on social media.

Within hours of the news, Roblox players “uploaded experiences that allowed users to relive the shooting or participate in virtual rallies chanting that Kirk deserved to die,” the gaming website Gaming Amigos reported. Some players created avatar clothing that mocked his death, the site reported.

User-created games included “survival the Charlie Kirk the killer,” and “Charlie Kirk memorial game.”

Roblox pulled down the content by Sept. 12, two days after Mr. Kirk’s death but not before Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, Florida Republican and one of Mr. Kirk’s close friends, threatened to ask Apple to ban the platform from its App Store. She also threatened to get the Federal Communications Commission involved.

Roblox founder and CEO David Baszucki said the company pulled down the content as soon as it was flagged.

“I am saddened by the passing of Charlie Kirk. Our Community Standards prohibit content and behavior that re-enacts specific real world violent or sensitive events or promotes terrorism or hatred against individuals or groups, and we do not allow any image or video sharing in chat,” Mr. Baszucki said. “In addition to automated scans, our moderation team is taking swift action. If anyone sees content that violates our policies, please flag and we will rapidly review.”

Roblox has had mixed results seeking the legal protection provided to other social media platforms under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.

Courts have ruled that Roblox, like Facebook, X and other social media sites, isn’t liable for user-created content.

Another court ruled that the company is not shielded in a lawsuit alleging that Roblox permits minors to gamble on the site using digital currency purchased with a parent’s credit card or gift card.

The gaming giant cashes in, the lawsuit claims, by charging gambling websites a 30% fee to convert Robux back into cash.

The company is seeking a Section 230 defense in other cases involving allegations of enabling predators on the site.

One of the lawsuits involves a girl who joined the Roblox gaming platform at age 9 and was “methodically groomed” on the app by an adult predator. He lured her to another online platform, traveled to her home in Wabash, Indiana, and sexually assaulted her while recording it on video. The man then took her in his car to Georgia and repeatedly sexually assaulted her.

“Roblox attracted millions of kids to its platform by marketing it as kid friendly. In truth, Roblox knew it was creating an environment that was enabling predators to prey on vulnerable children,” said lawyer Tyler Hudson, who is representing the family.

In a statement Thursday provided to The Washington Times, a Roblox spokesman said the company is “deeply committed to the safety and well-being of our community, with tens of millions of our users having positive experiences every day where people connect, learn and create. We invest significant resources in advanced safety technology, including a combination of machine learning and human moderation teams working 24/7 to detect and address inappropriate content and behavior.”

“Everyday we take swift action against any content or users found to be in violation of our Community Standards and policies, which explicitly prohibit the portrayal of sensitive real-world events. Roblox is designed with rigorous built in safety features, and our policies are purposely stricter than those found on other platforms, including limiting chat for younger users, not allowing sharing images through chat and filters designed to block the sharing of personal information. Because no system is perfect, we also encourage anyone to report content or behavior that may not comply with our Community Standards by using our Report Abuse feature, and will take swift action as necessary,” the spokesman said.