Roblox hits a 52-week high as a wildly simple gardening game created by a 16-year-old explodes in popularity

An unbelievably simple gardening simulation game, said to be initially created in about three days by a 16-year-old, has Roblox shares trading at their highest level since late 2021.

The game, called “Grow a Garden,” has players plant seeds, sell their crops for in-game currency called sheckles, and then use that money to purchase more seeds and animals. Users can spend real-world cash to speed up the process. This is the sort of thing that happens when “GTA 6” is delayed.

“Grow a Garden,” which has classic Roblox blocky graphics, has become one of the world’s most popular games. A Roblox spokesperson confirmed to Sherwood News that the game smashed the concurrent player record held by “Fortnite,” with 16.5 million players gardening at once on Friday. That’s about the population of Sweden and Denmark combined. Roblox shares have spiked 72% since March 31, when “Grow a Garden” first sprouted.

Following its initial creation in late March and popularity spike, “Grow a Garden” was partially acquired by a well-known Roblox creator named Janzen Madsen who built out the game further with a team of developers. More recently, Do Big Studios, a Florida-based company that specializes in acquiring and marketing games on the Roblox platform, also invested in the game.

Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter last week said “Grow a Garden” is “driving massive engagement growth” in the company’s current quarter as summer vacation begins. The game has led a 75% surge in concurrent users since December and “has positioned Q2 2025 for a potential record-breaking quarter,” according to Pachter.

Roblox has fostered a massive community of creators, developing unique games within the platform. In its first quarter this year, Roblox reported that its payouts to creators had climbed to more than $281 million.