How the Plugin Marketplace actually works

Part I - The Plugin Compensation Model

You are developing a game on Roblox. Some aspect of your workflow is lacking, so you write a Studio plugin. This plugin improves the workflow of the development of your game. You rejoice, as you are able to develop your game better. The hours put into the development of the plugin are compensated by the increase in revenue deriving from the plugin allowing you to push out updates and fixes to your game faster and more efficiently.

Compensation for hours worked are derived from your game, so putting in work that doesn’t improve your game is wasted work. If you are improving a plugin that does not result in an improvement to your game, then you will not be compensated for your work. Thus, if there is no game, but you are still doing work on plugins, then you are not being compensated.

Part II - Aren’t developers just peachy?

Out of the goodness of your heart, you release this plugin for use by other developers. You have no obligation to do this, nor are you beholden to any other users of your plugin. You’ve already been compensated (by your game), so this is entirely a charitable gesture. If you’re smart, you either maintain it as a hobby, or just let it sit there while you do more important things.

Part III - Here comes the money

Roblox decides to implement the option to put plugins on sale. They do this either because they mistake how the Plugin Compensation Model works, or they think developers’ charity should be rewarded with some petty cash.

Regardless, this attracts developers to do work purely on plugins. As we know, because they have no game backing their work, they are compensated only with enough to buy a nice virtual hat or something. That is, no money.

Conclusions - This isn’t a part

To summarize, without a game backing your plugin:

Make plugin -> ??? -> No money

With a game:

Make plugin -> Improve game -> Yes money

This is how the Plugin Compensation Model has worked since the inception of plugins, and this is how it continues to work to this day, despite what everyone thinks, and despite Roblox’s apparent efforts to make it look like plugins can bring in yes money independently. Don’t be fooled.

Assuming that this model does not change: