Mobile Legends: Bang Bang — a parent's guide

Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) is one of the most popular games in the Philippines, for kids and adults alike. It's a fast team game (a MOBA) where two teams of five fight to destroy each other's base. The Philippines has one of the strongest MLBB esports scenes in the world, which adds to its appeal.

App stores rate MLBB for young teens and up; check the current rating in your app store.

Why kids love it

• Playing with friends, cousins and classmates
• Short matches, often 10 to 20 minutes
• Ranks to climb and heroes to master
• Esports idols and tournaments

Things parents should know

Matches can't be paused

Leaving a match early hurts the team, and players who go AFK lose credit score and can face penalties. A child who's told "stop now" mid-match faces real consequences in the game. Instead, try: "No new match after 8:30." See ending screen time without a meltdown.

Ranked pressure

Ranked mode can be intense: losing streaks, "one more to rank up", late nights. Watch for frustration, anger and sleep loss.

Toxic chat

MLBB chat can be harsh: insults, blaming and trash talk, often in Tagalog and Bisaya slang. Children may take it personally, or learn to talk this way themselves.

Teach your child to:

• Mute players, or turn off chat in the game's settings
• Report abusive players after a match
• Not respond in kind

Strangers

Kids can add players as friends and chat. Most are just players, but the same grooming red flags apply: offers of diamonds or skins, requests to move to Messenger or another app, and personal questions.

Diamonds and spending

Diamonds are bought with real money, through the game, app stores, top-up sites, e-wallets or load. They're used for skins, heroes and draws for rare items, which work like loot boxes. See loot boxes and gacha games.

• Set app store purchase approval. See stopping surprise purchases.
• Watch your load and e-wallet balances.
• Agree a monthly limit.

Scams

• "Free diamonds" sites and videos: always scams
• Unofficial top-up sellers on Facebook offering cheap diamonds: risk of stolen cards and banned accounts
• Account buying and selling: against the game's terms, and sellers often take accounts back
• Paid rank boosting ("joki"): also against the terms, and requires sharing passwords

See scams that target kids.

Protect the account

Bind the account to an email or account you can access, and turn on any available security options.

Late-night play

Late-night matches with friends are common, especially on weekends. Agree a cut-off time, use device bedtime, and keep the phone out of the bedroom. See phones and sleep.

Play a match with them

Ask your child to teach you. Even losing badly together gives you insight into the game and a lot to talk about.