If you were to ask most people whether to use Windows or Mac for game design then you would overwhelmingly hear recommendations to use Windows and not Mac. While this is clearly true, it can cause a difficult dilemma for Mac users (like myself) who already own an Apple and don’t want to purchase a new PC for the sole reason of game design.

However, once we realize that Roblox does not care enough to fix the Roblox Studio bugs on Mac, what do we do?

The most fatal issue I’ve noticed with game developers using Roblox Studio on Mac is the script editor. If you’ve used Roblox Studio on Mac and you’ve typed things into a script without problems (basic word processing, one of the most simple forms of input in computer history: a keyboard), that’s great; it really is. Just know that the fact is your days are numbered. If you use Mac to edit Roblox games, the odds are eventually you will be forced to either erase all of your data, reformat your hard drive, then re-install Mac, or simply realize that trying to develop Roblox games on Mac is futile and it’s best to just use Windows.

This is not coming from somebody who is trying to dissuade you from Mac use; I’ve used Apple computers since I was a child (and not just at school, but at home too). Apple is great at many things, but game design is NOT one of them. Obviously Roblox is partially to blame for this, but I’ve noticed issues with using UE4 on Mac as well; so we can’t just blame Roblox for this. Clearly the fact that they don’t care enough to fix the problem is a major issue (and that is completely their fault), but the fact that the issue exists in the first place isn’t necessarily the fault of Roblox, but more the fault of the Mac OS.

If you don’t know what I’m talking about, I’m referring to the most crippling issue that exists in Mac OS Roblox development: the inability to input text into a script. Clearly anybody who has ever developed even the simplest game understands the importance of being able to input words via the keyboard in a form of instructions which we identify as a script. Now if you don’t mind spending 10-30 seconds per letter, Roblox Studio on Mac is just for you. However, if you would prefer to use a more modern system (something better than the type writer and MUCH BETTER than even papyrus) you will not be successful on Macintosh using Roblox Studio.

Now don’t get me wrong, when you buy a brand new computer and download Roblox Studio and run it on your brand new Apple, it will work pretty well – you certainly won’t have the major issues I’m mentioning. Of course the entire overall efficiency of the program is reduced (running a simple game on Mac takes MUCH longer than running the same game on Windows), and for the first few months you will be able to do things as “advanced” as inputting text. However, where most companies would immediately halt the public production of an application that couldn’t receive user input via the keyboard, Roblox stands uniquely alone. You will certainly be able to input text into a script editor in Roblox Studio on Mac for a certain period of time; it may be a few months or even a few years – but eventually you will be presented with the same problem that I and hundreds of other Mac OS Roblox Devs have encountered: you can’t type words.

Now understandably, not being able to type words into a program which uses words to operate is a huge problem. Now, before I’m being accused of being “extreme”, it IS possible that you can still write text into a script editor while using Roblox Studio on Mac OS, it just becomes prohibitively laborious and frankly rather insulting. After my Mac became affected with the virus of – I don’t know…just existing? – it took over 5 minutes to simply open a blank file on the application and enter a few letters of text. Now I can understand uninformed supporters of Roblox studio on Mac OS trying to dispute this fact, but they’ll ultimately fail since I have video proof. I’ll be honest, if it takes over 5 minutes to open a blank file, then you have a huge problem. Think about it this way: if you tried to open Microsoft Word and you used a blank file and it took over 5 minutes to open, would you be satisfied? Clearly you wouldn’t, and it gets even worse when you realize that Roblox accepts payments from developers using Mac OS without any intention of fixing the fatal errors in the Mac version of their development software. Why do I say this? I was personally notified by a member of Roblox Staff that they could not fix my issue and that they would stop trying. Think about that: they have millions of Mac OS developers, many of whom pay them each month, yet a fatal flaw that prohibits people from using their program on Mac goes unaddressed; they even explicitly mentioned the fact that they gave up. In my opinion this borders on behavior which is highly unethical. I’ll be clear: I love Roblox and think they are (on the whole) very good. But it’s VERY unethical to accept money from Mac OS developers while at the same time refusing to resolve a fatal flaw afflicting Mac OS developers. It is certainly true that SOME of the developers on Roblox who use Mac have no issues, and I’m extremely happy for them. However when you have a significant amount of Mac OS users reporting a fatal flaw which prohibits them from using the program for which many of them pay, that is a MAJOR issue.

Let’s be honest: Roblox could avoid ALL of this by simply amending their Mac OS version of Roblox Studio as a “Work in progress beta version”. If Roblox were to admit the fact that the Roblox Studio Mac version does not work very well and that they don’t have an interest in fixing the issues, then there would be very little I could say against them: if your product doesn’t work well and you admit it, then good for you. The fact, however, that they accept money from Mac OS developers without even attempting to fix fatal flaws which prohibit those same clients from performing the activities for which they’ve paid, is a huge problem.