Exclusible's CEO shares his experience bringing the IP to life on the platform.
Every week we publish exclusive research about how brands are activating on the Roblox platform. At the start of each month, we gather data on how many visits branded experiences have accumulated during the previous month to see what's currently popular on the platform.
CloudCo's Care Bears is an IP that has been around for decades and still remains relevant to audiences. I grew up in an era (in the 1900's as my kids like to point out) where the toys were super popular. Many years later, my young kids are also familiar with IP, having had their own Care Bears plushies to play with.
Given the cute aesthetic behind Care Bears, the IP seems like a perfect fit for Roblox. Well-known traditional IP like Hello Kitty has found success with their own standalone My Hello Kitty Cafe, which has amassed over 436M visits on the platform. And cute creatures are part of massively successful hit games like Adopt Me! and Pet Simulator 99, which each have garnered billions of visits.
In order to learn more about how this project came to reality, I reached out to Olivier Moingeon, CEO of Exclusible, the developer of the Care Bears: Caring Quest on Roblox. Here are the answers he shared.
Why is building on Roblox a priority for your company?
Olivier: For 3 years, Exclusible's mission has been to bring brands into immersive technologies, such as Spatial or AR/VR experiences. With the shift in perception of Gaming at a cultural level, it felt right for us to dive into a platform that has gained so much popularity among the younger generations. Most brands are eager to capture the attention of GenZ or Gen Alpha cohorts. Roblox is the best place to start developing strong brand affinities. The latest announcements during RDC are further indication that Roblox is going to become an all-encompassing platform, including multi-level entertainment, media, socializing, brand discovery, and commerce!
How did you partner with CloudCo to bring the iconic Care Bears IP to Roblox?
Olivier: We started discussing in early 2024, and they immediately understood the opportunity in gaming. Working with CloudCo was an absolute breeze because they came with what we feel is the best mindset: excitement, humility, curiosity and ambition. With our background working for brands, they trusted that we would respect the Care Bears equity, and build a game that truly is a game that Roblox's users would enjoy playing, as opposed to just a marketing activation that loses traction quickly.
From the very beginning, we knew that we wanted to reach 2 objectives:
1. Players should feel that they are immersed in the TV show
2. This should be a true video game, and not a marketing activation
By all measures, we are on the right track to achieve these objectives! We have been overwhelmed by positive reception from both users and the Roblox eco-system.
What was your development process like in bringing Care Bears to Roblox?
Olivier: Our process is pretty standard, relying on the Game Design Document (GDD), with sketches, mock-ups and visuals of the entire game.
We validated and brainstormed with the CloudCo team at every step of the way. I don't think there is a single thing we proposed which they vetoed! That's how smooth the project was! We developed the game in about 4 months, with a very talented team of developers and 3D artists.
In terms of marketing, we wanted to leverage and involve the Roblox eco-system. Pre-launch, we secured and developed amazing collaborations with 7 native UGC creators, and many games. We have a total of 110 UGC items for sale in the game on launch-day and more coming up. We did not want to rely on free UGCs to drive traffic. 95% of our traffic is organic, meaning unpaid.
It took us about 8 days to reach 1 million visits, and players are spending more than 12 minutes on average in our experience. Our marketing strategy paid off because we are attracting and creating true fans of the IP.
We also included in the game short clips of the TV show, and we were so surprised to see how much users appreciate those, including my 9-year old daughter who had never watched an episode before!
What have you learned by building the Care Bears experience on Roblox?
Olivier: Beloved IPs attract a significant amount of attention and goodwill, but also a lot of scrutiny from the community regarding the quality of the experience, and how true to the IP it is. We have learned that the Roblox community is particularly protective of the platform they love, which was once much more closed-off. But since the “opening” of the platform in the past few months, facilitating entry for brands to create on Roblox, or for anyone to upload UGC items, we have seen an influx of brand experiences that have not necessarily been successful at capturing the heart and attention of the community. Our approach has been very Roblox-centric from the start, both in terms of the game we wanted to build, but also how to market it, build the Care Bears community on Discord.
With CloudCo, we have long-term plans, and a roadmap of updates coming multiple times a month. The first update was pushed just after a week, and the community received it very well.
Another learning was the audience. 75% of our audience is female, and 45% is 18+. It means the game caters to the "kidults" cohort more than we expected. Nostalgia IPs have a bright future on Roblox!
What advice do you have for other game developers in the space?
Olivier: Our advice for other developers is to truly take the time required to flesh out your game, not overlook any QA testing, ask anyone who’s willing to give you the time for their feedback and implement it before release. Build relationships and goodwill within the eco-system. When working with brands, it is also important to be confident in your choices, because ultimately, you know better than your client, and if you compromise too much during development, ultimately the game will suffer.
What advice do you have for brands who are considering entering Roblox?
Olivier: Our advice is to come to Roblox with the right mindset: be realistic with the objectives and expectations, especially monetization.
It's important to be humble and trust the creative direction of your chosen studio. Studios have a deep understanding of the Roblox ecosystem and what resonates with players. Likewise, it’s crucial to be daring and adaptable—willing to lean into what users on Roblox truly enjoy. Start small, test the waters, and build from there. Growth is gradual, and a strong foundation can lead to much bigger results over time.
Having a marketing budget and a budget for live-ops is essential for keeping the experience fresh and engaging. While it’s possible to launch a great game without an enormous budget, consistent updates and live operations are key to sustaining user interest. Collaborations with UGC creators or game integrations are also fantastic ways to enter the space with a lower budget while gaining credibility with the community.
Monetization is always a challenging topic. It is definitely possible to monetize—especially with new developments like Roblox’s integration with Shopify, coming in 2025—but it requires skill, patience, and creativity. Monetization should not be the sole focus from the start. Rather, brands should prioritize creating great experiences. In Roblox, players are agnostic to brands; if the experience doesn’t engage them, they won’t come or stay. Competition for attention is fierce, and brands need to be ready to compete against wildly popular independent games or the continuous influx of fresh, exciting experiences.
Finally, the most important aspect is to reach and connect with the Roblox community. It is important to develop a network and create win-win relationships with people who are native to Roblox, both as users but also as creators or developers. Engage with them frequently and involve them in the game's development. When done right, immersive experiences are the best way to develop fans, and build long-lasting relationships with a brand.
Have a Roblox game you'd like me to write about? Send me an email with more details: steve [at] metaversemarcom.io
Stephen Dypiangco is a strategy and marketing consultant , helping brands reach young audiences on Roblox.