Zom-BIT | Back from the Dead
A Look at Kelseu and doodledrop's Featured Spookality World
Thanks to the other members of Glitches.VR for making this readable with their editing and proofreading skills 💚
Zom-BIT is
and ‘s hyper-optimized and stylish pixel world made for this year's VRChat Spookality world jam. Spookality is an event VRChat avatar and world creators look forward to year round as a way to showcase their talents and unique twists on the spooky season. Submissions were open from September 25th to October 17th, with the winners being featured on the 'Discover Worlds' page. Immersive media and horror pair exceptionally well together, as seen in the popular ghost hunting game Phasmophobia and the infamous VRChat world The Devouring. Like a virtual haunted house, immersive horror experiences plop you into a world that's, most likely, trying to cause psychic damage. Zom-BIT is not one of these worlds. Here, the zombies mop floors and serve burgers, the ghosts don't hurt you, and the skeletons? They're just vibing, man!
There was a time in late 2022 where I went from seeing doodle and Kels almost everyday, to every other day and then maybe not for a week, with little explanation. I knew they had been really into this game called Project Zomboid (which I was lucky to be invited to join and mess their shit up with my non-gamer abilities) but was excited to learn that they had been working night and day on their own zombie fighting experience for the 2022 Spookality deadline. Kelseu, who is currently studying game design, had a pixel art class at the time and doodledrop, admiring Nerd Koopa's 8-bit world series, used Spookality as an incentive to explore the style. It was an ambitious project.
When I asked doodle about some of the challenges they faced, he mentioned having an original goal of only 16 colors but realized that wasn't enough to create a proper sense of light and depth. He explains, "I also tried to keep all of the textures as compact as possible for the smallest download size, but I would quickly run out of space and have to re-UV everything a bunch of times. The whole project felt like a mess of unexpected bottlenecks up until the very end." Not only did the two build every asset from scratch with a cohesive art style, color palette and heaps of charm, they also had plans to implement a combat system. With the deadline fast approaching, the world just wasn't where it needed to be for them to be happy with its release. So, it stayed in the graveyard of doodledrop's private worlds, like so many of the great unpublished works that came before it.
“the first build-and-test we did was a big moment of excitement for me, being able to see all of my pixel art assembled together in-game motivated me to work harder”
That is until, only two weeks before the 2023 deadline, the duo resurrected the project for this year's Halloween jam. Now with a new deadline, a lot of groundwork already laid, and a year's worth of growth and knowledge, Zom-BIT was born! Upon entering the mall you see two perfectly pixelized posters, one for Kelseu and one for doodledrop, each explaining a bit about the world. Zom-BIT is a testament to how well these two can collaborate and elevate each other's work. They worked together on another VRChat world, Kelseu's Avatar Boutique, which showcases Kelseu's diverse and Quest-compatible avatar selection.
Zom-BIT, however, was a slightly different workflow since Kelseu was providing most of the 2D elements and sending them to doodle to be compiled later. When thinking of the world-making process, she mentions that "the first build-and-test we did was a big moment of excitement for me, being able to see all of my pixel art assembled together in-game motivated me to work harder." Behind the posters you can see dancing skeletons atop an indoor fountain, zombies roaming the nostalgic shopping center, and punny store names like 'Hot Stop It' and 'Rears'. Kelseu provided these 2D elements which were then placed, directed and rigged to roam by doodledrop. They also graciously involved Glitches.VR by asking Zilthus and I to make pixel posters of our own, with small blurbs to feature in the mall.
It's hard to convey with photographs or descriptions how it feels to be immersed in a pixel environment, especially one built with such care and attention to detail. There is a playfulness that takes hold of you when you explore this lively, undead mall. Weaving through back rooms, bathrooms and broom closets to find all of the little surprises placed by its creators, Zom-BIT is a truly endearing addition to this year's Spookality line-up.
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