World Creator Spotlight Interview 🌟

Meet the Creators your.moth & its.gr - Creator of Street Rave

These questions are in reference to the Street Rave created by your.moth & its.gr in the Highrise Studio.

Can you tell us about yourself and how you got started with virtual world building?

Our names are Grisha and Vasilisa! Grisha is 24 years old, and I am 21! Initially, I was the only one who registered for the game. Later, when Grisha and I were still apart, I suggested he also register for the game. It was one of our ways to spend time together!

We didn't get into creating worlds right away. We learned about the first jam when it was already over, but we were already excited about participating! In the next jam, we managed to win with our world "aLittlePrince".

I'm lucky with Grisha because he's not only a great partner but also a wonderful programmer.

And I absolutely love coming up with ideas. He supported me in my ideas, and we immediately got to work. Grisha is responsible for the code, and I'm responsible for the concept and visuals. First, we victoriously finish one jam, then they announce the next one, and I say to Grisha at night, "Let's participate again!" and he, tired but excited, agrees to this adventure!

What inspired you to create your virtual world in Highrise?

Ideas always came easily to me: for our first jam, I came up with three worlds, but we decided to stick with one since we probably couldn't have invested so much effort into all three and would have just burned out.

This jam was no exception: I immediately imagined a picture with a nighttime street in a residential area with hints of cyberpunk. This idea was inspired by my love for phonk music. For some reason, these associations stuck to this music genre, and Grisha, as always, supported me. I'm sure without his contribution, this idea wouldn't have been realized so pleasantly!

So, we were inspired by ourselves, by the participation itself, and by the idea itself.

Can you describe the theme or concept behind your world?

As mentioned above, the idea was born out of a love for phonk music: the atmosphere created itself. Phonk is almost always about purple, blue, night, something related to movement. We both love Japanese cars, and I think this unexpectedly for us brought some hints of Japanese streets into the world. And naturally, we both love games, so the idea

was supplemented with references to the cyberpunk universe.

The world was supposed to be an obstacle course, so we wanted the idea itself to encourage the player to move and complete the course faster. What, if not phonk, motivates you to set a better record and instills confidence? We don't know!

What sets your world apart from others in Highrise?

I don't want to sound narcissistic, but I'm sure the presentation and visual components really set our world apart from others. It's not just a world; it's a whole location from a movie or a pleasant zone for photos. The eye catches details, seeing a pleasant whole picture. Everything complements each other, just as I wanted!

Similarly, I am sure that our world is distinguished by a minimal number of possible errors and pleasant game mechanics, like a camera that follows the player. Grisha has put a lot of soul into this, which definitely didn't go unnoticed!

Is there a world made by another creator that you really love? What do you look for in other people's world experiences?

Personally, I was very impressed by the world Zenagram Gardens. It's simple in its goal for the player, but that's what makes it appealing, along with its pleasant design. I also liked the world Phobia - it stood out with a good idea compared to many other worlds, but it lacked a bit of proper execution. I'm sure if its author continues to develop, they will manage to surprise us.

Grisha was impressed by the world Cosmic Rush. In his opinion, the world has well-developed game mechanics, a good choice of player interaction with the world. It stands out among the rest with its interesting and high-quality gameplay.

How do you approach designing and building within the virtual environment?

Grisha finds this somewhat tedious; he is our code and optimization professional, so I handle this. In reality, the initial picture comes to my mind right away, and the rest is done easily, as if each idea nurtures a new one. Designing and presenting the world is like anti-stress for me! It's just as exciting as watching Grisha's programming magic 🤪

What do you hope players will experience or take away from exploring your world?

We want players to have an individual experience visiting our worlds. Any world, like a full-fledged game, is a whole piece of art where everyone can find something for themselves. Some will remember the absence of errors, some will be impressed by the camera movement, some will fall in love with the world's lighting, and some will be inspired by the idea itself. Our worlds are about unique gameplay experiences and perspectives for each player. Every game is a journey. We want every player to find something of their own there.

What advice would you give to players who want to start creating worlds?

Definitely practice more, be bolder in expressing your individual views and aesthetics, don't ignore optimization and good gameplay. The motto should be simple: an idea won't be good without good code and visuals, just as good visuals or code won't be good without an idea. They complement each other and never go separately. Pay attention to everything!

Are there any unique features or hidden gems within your world that players should look out for?

Absolutely! But we suggest our current and future players explore this on their own! 🤪

How do you engage with the Highrise community to promote your world?

Like everyone, we try to talk more about our worlds and show them from different sides. We also want to note that we tried to interact with the audience as often as possible: we found out about any errors, their wishes, preferences, ideas. Any feedback is very important and it becomes an additional point of growth.

What challenges have you both faced during the creation process, and how did you overcome them?

We think the main difficulty was the need to sleep and eat! Fueled by excitement and inspiration, we wanted to do everything as quickly as possible, sometimes forgetting to take breaks. It's a good thing we reminded each other to rest.

What do you think users will find most exciting about creating their first world?

It's impossible to answer this question unequivocally... I'm sure it's the process itself. Some aspect of it or all of it. The most interesting thing is the birth of something complete from once small and uncertain steps.

Lastly, do you have any upcoming projects or plans for the future you would like to share with us?

Yes, absolutely, we have many ideas and desires for implementation, but we also want to have time to rest! Who knows: maybe you'll see us again in the upcoming jam, or maybe we'll surprise people a little later. We'll keep this decision a secret!

Thank you for sharing your insights with us, your.moth & its.gr! We can't wait to see what you create next. 🌟