Making slick menus with the roblox roundify ui plugin

If you've spent any time designing in Studio, you've probably realized the roblox roundify ui plugin is basically a necessity for making things look modern. Let's be real: the default square corners on Roblox UI elements are a bit of an eyesore. They scream "2012 hobbyist project," and unless you're intentionally going for a retro vibe, those sharp edges are probably holding your game's aesthetic back.

UI design has come a long way on the platform, and players these days expect a certain level of polish. When someone joins your game, the first thing they see isn't your cool script or your detailed map—it's the loading screen and the main menu. If those buttons look clunky and outdated, people might not stick around long enough to see the actual gameplay. That's where this little plugin comes in to save the day.

The struggle with square corners

We've all been there. You create a Frame, change the background color to a nice navy blue, and then realize it just looks flat. It's a box. A very boring, very sharp box. Back in the day, if you wanted rounded corners, you had to go into Photoshop or GIMP, create a rounded rectangle, export it as a PNG, upload it to Roblox, and then mess around with the SliceCenter property until it didn't look like a stretched-out mess.

It was a total pain. If you decided you wanted a slightly different shade of blue later on? You had to do the whole process over again. The roblox roundify ui plugin changed that by automating the tedious parts. It basically handles the generation of that "rounded" image and sets up the 9-slicing for you so that the corners stay perfect regardless of how much you scale the button.

How the plugin actually works

The magic of Roundify isn't just that it makes things round; it's how it uses 9-slicing. If you aren't familiar with that term, think of it like a rubber band. If you take a normal image and stretch it, the whole thing gets distorted—the corners get blurry and weirdly elongated. 9-slicing divides the image into a grid. The four corners stay the exact same size, while only the edges and the center stretch.

When you click that "Roundify" button, the plugin creates an ImageLabel (or ImageButton) as a child of your original frame. It then applies a pre-made rounded corner texture to it. The beauty is that it automatically calculates the SliceCenter for you. You don't have to do the math or guess the pixel offsets. You just click, and suddenly your menu looks like it belongs in a professional mobile app.

Why not just use UICorner?

I know what some of you are thinking. "Wait, doesn't Roblox have a built-in UICorner object now?"

Yes, they do. And to be fair, UICorner is great for simple stuff. It's easier to use because you just drop it into a frame and adjust a single number. However, the roblox roundify ui plugin still has its place in a developer's toolkit for a few reasons.

First off, Roundify uses an image-based approach. This allows for certain types of styling that UICorner sometimes struggles with, especially when you're dealing with very specific border styles or shadows. Secondly, some veteran developers just prefer the way 9-sliced images render. There was a time when UICorner had some performance quirks on lower-end devices (though most of that is fixed now), and Roundify was the reliable workhorse we all turned to.

Also, if you're looking to add gradients or complex textures inside those rounded bounds, having it already set up as an ImageLabel via Roundify can sometimes make the workflow feel a bit more intuitive.

Getting the most out of the plugin

Using the plugin is pretty straightforward, but there are a few tricks to make your UI stand out. Once you've installed it from the Roblox library, you'll see it in your "Plugins" tab.

  1. Select your Frame: Pick the boring square thing you want to fix.
  2. Open Roundify: Click the icon in your toolbar.
  3. Adjust the settings: Most people just hit the big "Roundify" button, but pay attention to the options. You can often choose the corner thickness or whether you want it to automatically inherit the color of the parent frame.
  4. Check the ZIndex: Sometimes, when the plugin creates the new ImageLabel, it might sit behind your text or other elements. You might need to tweak the ZIndex to make sure everything is visible.

One thing I see people mess up a lot is the border. If you want a rounded border, you can't just turn on the default Roblox border property on a rounded image—it won't follow the curves. You usually have to "Roundify" a slightly larger frame behind your main one to create a faux-border effect, or use the border options provided within the plugin's interface if the version you're using supports it.

Why UI polish matters for your game

It might seem like a small detail, but the "feel" of a game's interface directly correlates with player retention. Think about the most popular games on Roblox right now—Adopt Me, Blox Fruits, or any of the big simulators. Their UI is incredibly consistent. It's usually soft, colorful, and—you guessed it—rounded.

Rounded corners feel more "clickable." They feel friendly. Sharp corners feel clinical and harsh. When you use the roblox roundify ui plugin, you're signaling to the player that you care about the details. It shows that you didn't just throw the game together in an afternoon; you took the time to make it look decent.

Making it look "Premium"

If you want to go the extra mile, don't just stop at rounding the corners. Use the Roundify plugin in combination with some nice Drop Shadows. You can find shadow packs in the toolbox that use the same 9-slice logic. When you put a subtle shadow behind a rounded button, it gives the UI depth. It makes the button look like it's hovering over the screen, practically begging to be pressed.

Another tip: Consistency is king. If your main menu buttons have a corner radius of 12, don't make your inventory slots have a radius of 4. Keep it uniform. The plugin makes this easy because you can apply the same settings across multiple elements at once.

Troubleshooting common issues

Even though the roblox roundify ui plugin is a lifesaver, it's not without its quirks. Occasionally, you might find that your rounded edges look "crunchy" or pixelated. This usually happens if the ImageLabel isn't scaling correctly or if the original asset resolution is low.

Another common headache is when the background color of your original frame still shows through the corners. Pro tip: once you've "Roundified" a frame, set the BackgroundTransparency of the original frame to 1. This ensures that only the new, rounded ImageLabel is visible. It's a simple step, but it's the one most beginners forget, leading to those weird little "ghost corners" poking out from behind the curves.

The verdict

Is the roblox roundify ui plugin still relevant in 2024? Absolutely. While UICorner has taken over a lot of the heavy lifting for basic shapes, the plugin remains a fantastic way to handle image-based UI design. It's fast, it's free, and it's been a staple of the community for years for a reason.

If you're tired of your game looking like a collection of spreadsheets and boxes, do yourself a favor and grab it. It takes about five seconds to turn a "meh" interface into something that looks like it was designed by a pro. Just remember to keep your colors balanced, your Z-indices in check, and your "ghost corners" hidden. Your players (and your game's analytics) will definitely thank you for it. Happy building!