Walmart Dives into Metaverse with Launch of Roblox Spaces for Kids

Multinational retail giant Walmart Inc (NYSE: WMT) has launched two new experiences on the metaverse platform Roblox that target kids. Within Roblox, there are now two new spaces dubbed Walmart Land and Walmart’s Universe of Play, both provide unique interactive content and entertainment.

Walmart’s chief marketing officer William White said:

“We’re showing up in a big way – creating community, content, entertainment and games through the launch of Walmart Land and Walmart’s Universe of Play. Roblox is one of the fastest growing and largest platforms in the metaverse, and we know our customers are spending loads of time there. So, we’re focusing on creating new and innovative experiences that excite them, something we’re already doing in the communities where they live, and now, the virtual worlds where they play.”

The first experience, Walmart Land, aims to embrace everything that concerns fashion and style. According to Walmart, it will feature a variety of immersive experiences, including Electric Island, House of Style, and Electric Fest. They will bring the best fashion, style, beauty, and entertainment items. For example, with Electric Island, you can play Netflix Trivia hosted by Noah Schnapp, attend live concerts with popular performers, compete in the Dance Off challenge, and even make beats in the DJ Booth Remix game. With House of Style, you can win fashion competitions.

Meanwhile, Walmart’s Universe of Play includes immersive games, sought-after rewards, as well as virtual adventures. Basically, the Universe of Play is the ultimate virtual toy destination in Roblox. There, users can explore different toy worlds to earn coins for various virtual goods, or complete epic challenges to build a personal trophy case, unlock secret codes, and more.

Both the spaces target younger users, generation Z, and generation Alpha. As Bank of America analyst Omar Dessouky said earlier,  teenagers could eventually see Roblox as a multi-purpose platform, similar to how social networks have been adopted.

About Roblox

Founded in 2004, Roblox is a gaming platform that allows users to play games and earn money. Most of the content on the platform is created by amateur game creators in Roblox studio. These game makers are able to create and publish games to the community using simple tools. Available on smartphones, tablets, desktop computers, the Xbox One, and some VR headsets, Roblox has over 52 million daily users and is designed for players aged nine years and older.

As it has historically drawn more young kids and teens, there has been a need to monitor the content created on its platform. Besides, Roblox has also put an age limitation. In other words, the minimum age to register on the platform must be 13. For that purpose, Roblox has also integrated a variety of parental controls directly into its Settings. The controls give parents the ability to curate the content their kids may encounter when playing, including options to restrict voice chat only to approved friends or turn it off entirely, create a white list of age-appropriate games for your kids, and more.