'We're putting virtual Oxford on the map in Roblox'

A pair of young game designers are helping to put a virtual version of Oxford on the map, after they recreated the city in the popular game Roblox.

Oxford Roleplay lets users undertake everyday jobs in a digital version of the city of dreaming spires, complete with iconic landmarks including Carfax Tower and Folly Bridge.

The game, which people can find within Roblox, has been played by more than 7.4 million people since its launch in August 2025.

It was the brainchild of two designers, Kam Mughal and Neo Mendes - neither of whom had ever visited Oxford - but say they picked the city because of its "beauty".

"Our idea is a role-play game set in Oxford, - it's basically an experience where they can be any job they want," Mendes explained.

Mughal said: "It's a city simulation in a sense, you're free to roam and to do as much as you want really."

Roblox is a platform where users can create their own games or play games made by other creators, and is set up like an open world, where players can interact with each other.

It was on the platform that Londoner Mendes and Mughal, from Warwickshire, first met eight years ago. Since 2024, they have been developing their Oxford-based game.

"We picked Oxford because it is such a beautiful city and it's just so well known across the world," Mughal said.

Mendes said: "We just thought it was a really prestigious city to choose, because there's a lot of games on Roblox that are already emulating London and Birmingham."

"So we wanted to do something that hadn't been done before. Nice name as well, Oxford."

The game attracts "a lot of different types of players", Mendes said - with some robbing Oxford's in-game bank, whilst others act as virtual policemen trying to stop the digital criminals.

"Different players want to do different things, some people are managing the roads, some people are being firefighters and some people enjoy the criminal side," he said.

As of October 2026, more than 12,000 individual users visit Oxford Roleplay everyday, earning in-game sales of 16.1 million Robux - the equivalent of £45,000 in the platform's currency.

Mendes said more than 25% of this audience was coming from outside of the UK, with users from America, Asia and Africa all regularly visiting the virtual city.

"If they didn't know what Oxford is, then now they do," he said.

"More people are experiencing the city of Oxford all over the place, all over the world - I think we've definitely put it on the map," Mughal added.

In recent years, Roblox has been widely criticised by developers, experts and parents for its child safety measures - which some say do not go far enough.

It is the most popular gaming platform in the UK among eight to 12-year-olds, and roughly 40% of global daily users are under the age of 13.

"It's targeted towards the younger audience, so you're very restricted to what you can do," Mughal said of Oxford Roleplay.

"Roblox themselves have [introduced] a lot of protection and moderation now that they never used to have."

"At the moment you're not able to talk to people outside of your age group... which for safety reasons I think is great."

With more than seven million people having trodden the virtual streets of Oxford since the game's launch, you'd think the pair of developers would now rest their fingers and just watch on as players experience their creation.

But Mendes said he and Mughal are still working on the game "everyday", adding: "We fix things every day, we're really active on it."

Mughal explained: "I think we really enjoy game development - it's fun to make games and it's fun to see them do well and people enjoy it."

"I love to play my own game as well because if you're going to make a game, you have to enjoy the game itself."

Oxford Roleplay can be accessed through the search feature in Roblox, with Mughal recommending first time players begin by taking in the virtual sights of the city - which he and Mendes happened to do in the real Oxford for the first time earlier this week.