Image via darkmodeonn on the Roblox Developer Blog
Since the first mention of Roblox voice chat in February 2021, there have been many rumors as to when a new site-wide update will hit the platform. Now, in October 2021, players are just months away from voice chat, but also new age verification settings, avatar customizations, and more. While there's no set date for these features to roll out to all Roblox players, it's been hinted that at this point it's only a matter of time.
Avatar Update
With many announcements coming out of the 2021 Roblox Developer Conference, the one that caught the most attention was the promise of in-depth facial recognition and avatar creation services. This update will bring dynamic heads, which as defined by Roblox will allow avatars to play facial animations and trigger facial expressions to help highlight certain moods and feelings. It is also said that in the future, players will be able to use virtual reality to track the movements and expressions of their own face and head in real life and mirror them on their Roblox avatar.
This addition will allow players to show more opportunities for expression and personality to their Robloxian, and will even affect some dynamic facial accessories such as glasses and beards. These props will be made to react alongside any emotion or animation displayed. A video of this technology is available below.
Video via darkmodeonn on Roblox Developer Blog
In addition to changing facial features and expressions, these new avatars will also become more bodily dynamic, meaning their movements will be executed more fluidly and realistically. To test out these new body animations for yourself, try jumping into @StronbolYT's New Facial Anims Roblox experience and clicking around.
As mentioned above, there is no fixed date as to when this particular update will be released, but it is currently available in beta for Roblox developers. Voice chat and age verification should appear before the end of this year, while the avatar customization update may not appear until 2022 or 2023 due to its massive size and necessary changes .
To stay up to date with all things Roblox, both news and guides, be sure to check the Roblox section of the Pro Game Guides regularly!
