Playing Roblox’s new virtual back-to-school-shopping experience felt like gig work gamified

• The delivery app Shipt released a delivery challenge featured on Roblox’s popular “Driving Empire.”
• It felt like gamified gig work, with the mindset of a “Fast & Furious” driver racing against the clock.
• But the game also serves as an interesting parallel for recent debates around the gig-work economy.

Back-to-school shopping is just around the corner — that means sharpened pencils, fresh rubber erasures, pristine notebooks, and loose-leaf paper.

It can be an arduous task for parents and their kids. But the delivery company Shipt has a game with Roblox that the company says will exchange the stress of back-to-school shopping for a simulated experience parents and their kids can enjoy.

In the game, which is featured as a challenge on Roblox’s popular racing game, “Driving Empire,” gig work is gamified. Players race against the clock to deliver school-supplies orders to customers — essentially playing the role of a Shipt delivery worker.

The game may have been designed for family-friendly fun, but I couldn’t help but think about the debates circling the gig-work economy. Things are heated between apps and workers over how they should be paid and between workers and customers over how much they should tip.

“The purpose of Shipt’s new Driving Empire game is to create a unique digital experience that builds modern-day connectivity for millennial parents and their families on the global Roblox platform,” a Shipt spokesperson said.

Shipt did not answer questions regarding its gig workers. 

The delivery app, owned by Target, partnered with game developer Voldex to create the game, which is available through Friday, alongside deals on school supplies, snacks, and household items that run through Labor Day.

The game from Shipt follows in the footsteps of other retailers that have been tapping into metaverse marketing through Roblox, a gaming platform that has a largely child-age audience. Home Depot, Walmart, and Chipotle have all released gaming experiences on Roblox, where players could make Chipotle burritos or use Home Depot supplies to build birdhouses.