How to make a game like RIVALS on Roblox
RIVALS is a first-person shooter built around short, fair duels, from 1v1 up to 5v5. Both sides get the same numbers, so a match always feels winnable, and it's over in minutes. What sets it apart isn't size: it's a small arena and guns that feel good. Here's how to build your own.
Why it works
Players queue up for short, even duels in small arenas, earn keys to unlock weapons, and climb the ranks.
- Fair from the start. Even teams and short rounds, so losing feels like a reason to go again.
- Matches are short. You're back in a new one within minutes, which is perfect on a phone.
- Skins to show off. Weapons and wraps give good players something to collect.
1Start on a map
Small arenas with clear routes and cover. Forja has arenas in plenty of styles, so yours doesn't have to look like everyone else's. A finished map means your first weeks go into the game itself. Open it in Roblox Studio with File, then Open from File. Here's how, and there are free maps too.
Maps for a game like RIVALS
Ready to open in Roblox Studio.
2Build it in this order
Each step is something you can play. Stop when it's fun, and let people try it before you build the next one.
- 1A gun that feels good. Aim, shoot, hit, with damage decided on the server. Spend longer here than you'd expect.
- 2A small arena. One map with a couple of routes and places to take cover. Small is what makes a duel tense.
- 3The duel. Two players go in, first to win 5 rounds takes it, then back to the lobby.
- 4A queue. Press a button in the lobby to find someone. Add 2v2 once 1v1 is fun.
- 5Weapon slots. A main weapon, a pistol, a melee and a throwable. Everyone picks what suits them.
- 6Keys, skins and ranks. Earn keys to unlock weapons, and sell skins. Add ranks only once you have enough players to fill them.
3Get the scripts
These are free to copy and paste, each with where it goes:
- Roblox gun scriptA gun with its damage checked on the server.
- Roblox round system scriptRounds, then back to the lobby.
- Roblox teleport scriptSend both players to the arena.
- Roblox leaderboard scriptWins beside each player's name.
For what's particular to this game, ask the script generator. Press one of these to start from it:
- A 1v1 queue: the first two players to press a button go to the arena, the first to win 5 rounds wins, and both go back to the lobby
- A loadout menu where a player picks a main weapon and a pistol before a duel, saved for next time
- A rank system where winning a duel raises a player's number and losing lowers it, more so against a stronger player
4Make it yours
- Change how you fight: swords, magic or paintball all work with the same fair duels.
- Build arenas with a twist, like one with a floor that falls away as the round goes on.
- Find a size of match nobody else does well, like duels for two against two only.
Don't copy it
RIVALS's name, art, music and code belong to its makers, and copying them can get your game taken down. Leaked copies and free kits are also a common place to hide backdoors, so check anything you pick up with the free backdoor scanner.
5Earn from it
Weapon skins are the natural thing to sell here, because they don't change who wins. RIVALS unlocks weapons with keys and has wraps that change how they look. Don't sell better guns: fairness is the whole reason people play.
The free game pass and developer product scripts get you started, and the tax calculator works out what to charge.
6Test it and publish
Try it with friends before anyone else. Then it's File, then Publish, and an age check to release it: here's how publishing works now. For the basics of this kind of game, read how to make a Roblox shooter.
Once it's out, show it on Forja so people can find it and play it.
Questions
Can I copy RIVALS?
Make your own game in the same style, not a copy. Nobody owns a kind of game, generally, but RIVALS's name, art, music and code belong to its makers, and they can have a copy taken down. Your own names and art are safer, and they give players a reason to pick yours.
Is there a free RIVALS kit?
Be careful with free kits and leaked copies. They're a common place to hide backdoors, which can give a stranger control of your game. Run anything like that through Forja's free backdoor scanner before you open it, or build from free scripts you can read.
Should I build first person or third person?
Whichever you can make feel good. First person makes aiming sharper and is what RIVALS does, and Roblox can lock the camera with one setting. Try both in your arena and see which is more fun.
Other games to learn from
Maps
Arenas & combat maps
Small arenas with clear routes and cover. Forja has arenas in plenty of styles, so yours doesn't have to look like everyone else's.
Browse mapsFree tool
Roblox script generator
Say what you need in plain words and get a working script, checked for backdoors.
Write a scriptForja isn't connected to RIVALS or the people who make it. This page explains how this kind of game works, so you can build your own.