Roblox's Hit Farm Game Spurs Underground Digital Fruit Economy

Roblox Corp. 's 2-month-old Grow a Garden video game has quickly become one of the most-played titles in its history — and spawned a market for virtual crops and livestock that appears to violate company rules.
At a recent peak on Saturday, May 24, some 8.7 million people were playing at once, roughly the population of Switzerland, according to data from RoMonitor Stats, an independent analysis site.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Forbes

4 hours ago

• Forbes

‘Irem Collection Vol. 3' Review: Totally Worth It For ‘Mr. Heli'

'Mr. Heli' is a classic shmup that has been unavailable to play for a long time. Having reviewed the first and second Irem Collection releases, the third is now here, and it finally includes the much-loved Mr. Heli. Following the previous releases, this new collection contains Mr. Heli, Mystic Riders, and the weirdly compelling Dragon Breed. Starting with Mystic Riders, this is a fairly straightforward side-scrolling shmup where you ride around on a broom, firing magic and using the broom for other attacks. It was a decent shmup for its time and a lot more colorful and even cheerful compared to other Irem releases from the period. As for Dragon Breed, it has a similar element to X Multiply's tentacles that can shield the player. In this instance, it's the dragon Bahamoot that can be used to coil around its rider, Kayus, to protect him from attacks. 'Mystic Riders' is a bright and colorful, magically themed shmup. FEATURED | Frase ByForbes™ Unscramble The Anagram To Reveal The Phrase Pinpoint By Linkedin Guess The Category Queens By Linkedin Crown Each Region Crossclimb By Linkedin Unlock A Trivia Ladder Dragon Breed also has a similar art style to X-Multiply and definitely stands out as one of the more fantastical-looking Irem shmups. Then there is the beloved Mr. Heli. It's been a long time since we've had a home version of this arcade classic. I think the last time we saw Mr. Heli in any kind of Irem-related collection was back in 2011 for the Irem Arcade Hits release from DotEmu. In any case, its premise is fascinating, as Mr. Heli has you somewhat explore levels and mine for jewels that then unlock upgrades for your weapons. The pacing and feel of the game is unlike most common shmups and feels more exploratory in nature. The game starts off suitably cheerful, but gets more involved and bleaker later on. The art style is still very vibrant, and the gameplay is really unlike anything else. While many, myself included, rate the 1987 release of the original R-Type as being a definitive and excellent shmup, I feel that Mr. Heli, also released in the same year, often gets overlooked despite its inherent excellence. 'Dragon Breed' shares elements with 'X Multiply', as the titular dragon can shield its rider. Mr. Heli is also a really big game. Stages are split into sections with mini bosses and tunnelling levels with some quite tricky enemies. Each stage is also wildly different from the last and do become insanely challenging later on. To be honest, this collection is worth getting purely for Mr. Heli alone. It's an amazing and unique shmup and one that hasn't been readily available for over a decade. The other bonus is that this collection also includes the PC Engine version of Mr. Heli, which is not only a more humane game in terms of difficulty but is also a very good port. Much like the original PC Engine version of R-Type, it seems that this era of Irem's games lent itself very well to the PC Engine system. As for the other goodies in this collection, each game has a handy rewind function, as well as cheats and all manner of screen filters. Overall, this is yet another great Irem Collection, and much like the first and second releases, this third instalment is excellent. However, its star attraction is the adorable Mr. Heli, which is still just as fun to play as when I played it in the arcades as a kid. Irem Collection Vol. 3 Platform: Nintendo Switch (Reviewed), PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S Developer: ININ Games Publisher: ININ Games Released: 1st July 2025 Price: $24.99 Score: 8/10 Disclosure: ININ Games sent me a copy of this game for the purposes of this review. Follow me on X, Facebook and YouTube. I also manage Mecha Damashii and am currently featured in the Giant Robots exhibition currently touring Japan.

Yahoo

7 hours ago

• Yahoo

Forget chocolate! The world now envies Switzerland's zero interest rates

The world envies Swiss chocolate, army knives, and now . . . interest rates? Housing market weakness triggers Lennar to offer biggest incentives since 2009 The Trump administration is trying to bring back asbestos 3 tiny behaviors that make you the calmest person in the room Swiss National Bank, Switzerland's central bank, moved interest rates to zero this week, a reduction of 25 basis points, and a notable detraction from other central banks around the world, such as the Federal Reserve in the U.S. and the Bank of England in the U.K. In a statement, the Swiss National Bank said that the move was made in relation to declining inflation worries—and that it's expecting the economies to buckle under the volatility created, in part, due to the Trump administration's trade policies. 'With today's easing of monetary policy, the SNB is countering the lower inflationary pressure. The SNB will continue to monitor the situation closely and adjust its monetary policy if necessary, to ensure that inflation remains within the range consistent with price stability over the medium term,' the statement read. 'The global economic outlook for the coming quarters has deteriorated due to the increase in trade tensions. In its baseline scenario, the SNB anticipates that growth in the global economy will weaken over the coming quarters. Inflation in the U.S. is likely to rise over the coming quarters. In Europe, by contrast, a further decrease in inflationary pressure is to be expected.' Meanwhile, in the U.S., the Federal Reserve's latest meeting wrapped up this week with no change in interest rates, despite pressure from the White House and others to lower them. Fed Chair Jerome Powell and other Fed governors have been reluctant to do so, as inflation data still has not gotten close enough to its 2% target, and employment data has remained positive. Across the Atlantic, however, another European country, Norway, also cut rates this week. And some experts think that the Swiss could go even further, instituting negative interest rates at some point this year. 'There are risks that the SNB will go further in the future if inflationary pressures don't start to increase, and the lowest the policy rate could go is -0.75%, the rate it reached in the 2010s,' Swiss National Bank's Chairman Martin Schlegel told CNBC on Thursday. 'But what I can say is that going negative, we would not take this decision lightly.' This post originally appeared at to get the Fast Company newsletter:

Forbes

9 hours ago

• Forbes

Today's ‘Wordle' #1463 Hints, Clues And Answer For Saturday, June 21st

How to solve today's Wordle. Looking for Friday's Wordle hints, clues and answer? You can find them here: Summer has officially begun this weekend, so get outside and soak in those rays—just remember to wear sunscreen. When you're up in the mountains like me, you have to be extra careful to protect your skin. The sun really beats down at 7,500 feet above the ocean. While the sunscreen soaks in, let's solve today's Wordle! How To Solve Today's Wordle The Hint: A woodland clearing. The Clue: This Wordle has more consonants than vowels. Okay, spoilers below! The answer is coming! . . . Today's Wordle Every day I check Wordle Bot to help analyze my guessing game. You can check your Wordles with Wordle Bot right here. STEAK wasn't a great opener today, leaving me with 240 possible solutions and two yellow vowels. CRANE put both of those in green but left me with a whopping 17 remaining words. I tried for a long time to come up with a word using all new letters, but at last I got frustrated and just guessed GLADE. Much to my surprise and delight, that was the Wordle! Huzzah! Today's Wordle Bot I get 1 point for guessing in three and 1 point for beating the Bot. The Bot gets 0 for guessing in four and -1 for losing to me. Our new June totals are now: Erik: 15 points Wordle Bot: 9 points The word "glade" comes from Middle English glade, meaning a clear space or open area, especially in a forest. Its exact origin is uncertain, but it may be related to Old English glæd ("bright, shining") or possibly Old Norse glöð ("bright" or "glowing"), suggesting a place where light shines through the trees. The idea is of a bright, open space amid the woods. Let me know how you fared with your Wordle today on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook. Also be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel and follow me here on this blog where I write about games, TV shows and movies when I'm not writing puzzle guides. Sign up for my newsletter for more reviews and commentary on entertainment and culture.