Roblox Mandates TextChatService Migration by May 2027, Starts Native Chat Rollout

Roblox has set a hard deadline of May 2027 for all games to move player-to-player chat onto TextChatService (TCS). The company announced a four-phase rollout today that begins with immediate compliance checks and ends with TCS becoming the only supported chat system.

What Changes and When

Phase 0 (now): Any real-time conversation between players must route through a TextChannel. Games using signs, bulletin boards, pet names, license plates, trading prompts, announcement boards, admin tools, or comment systems as de facto chat channels are in violation. Roblox will contact non-compliant creators in coming weeks; continued violations can lead to suspension or removal.

Phase 1 (now – February 2027): Creators can opt in to test the new native chat stack by setting TextChatService.PlatformIntegratedChat to Enabled in Studio. Roblox will add customization features during this window based on feedback.

Phase 2 (February 2027): All new and existing games are auto-opted in, with an opt-out option that will be documented closer to the date.

Phase 3 (May 2027): The updated TextChatService becomes mandatory. No custom chat implementations outside the native APIs will function.

Five Migration Paths Creators Must Plan For

The announcement lists five common custom systems that need replacement:

• Custom chat UIs → TextChannelWindow, a native window with customization hooks.
• Custom moderation → Read-only moderation APIs; message content will no longer be readable in code.
• Custom commands → TextChannelCommands.
• Custom presets/quick phrases → Quick Words, managed in Creator Hub and published to players.
• Custom prefixes → A new native prefix system arriving early 2027.

Games that already use the default Roblox chat with zero customizations require no work.

Why Roblox Is Doing This

The company says the goal is a consistent, customizable chat experience that bakes in safety tools — reporting, muting, age-appropriate filters — for every player on every device. By centralizing chat, Roblox can push new features and safety updates automatically without creators maintaining parallel implementations.

Immediate Fixes for Common Violations

If your game lets players type free text that other players can see in real time, you must:

• Route that communication through a TextChannel so filtering and user settings apply automatically.
• For non-chat UGC inputs (signs, boards, pet names), enforce a minimum one-minute rate limit between submissions so they can't be used for conversation.
• Disable or restrict admin-module commands that let players message each other, or update to the latest compliant versions.

What's Still Unclear

The announcement references an "Unsupported APIs" section and a documentation link that were not fully reproduced in the forum post. Details on the exact shape of TextChannelWindow customization, the read-only moderation surface, and the upcoming prefix system are expected in follow-up posts before the February auto-opt-in. Creators should watch the Developer Forum and the TCS documentation for those specifics.