You step off your airship and look around. It seems you’ve stumbled upon a mysterious floating island with a single building! Naturally, being as curious as you are, you step forward to explore. There’s a single door labeled 23. Welcome to Apartment 23.

As you step inside, you make your way down the hallway of what appears to be an unoccupied building. You climb up the ladder, reaching the door labeled HOME. It seems you’ve discovered someone’s private apartment!

Exploring this area is fascinating. Every detail is finely crafted, letting you immerse yourself in the world of an artist’s secluded residence. Upstairs in the bedroom are easels, paint supplies, and wide windows which look out into the vast stretch of sky. Downstairs, you see a spacious living room, a TV and couch, a very clean kitchen, and a beautiful balcony overlooking the view. A Bloxy Award sits on one of the shelves, paying homage to the achievement won back in February 2018.

After visiting the amazing showcase Apartment 23, we spoke with the developer, Joseph155!

How did you find Roblox? And what made you start building?

I first found out about Roblox back in the summer of 2009 when I was over at a friend’s house. I remember being amazed that all the games were created by real players from the community. Ever since then I’ve been playing it non-stop.

I really enjoyed playing building games, creating towns and houses with other people for hours on end. Then slowly, I started making my own builds and showcases with the help of my friends who I keep in contact with to this day.

Where did you get the inspiration for Apartment 23?

The inspiration for Apartment 23 is from a photograph of concept artwork from an indie game I found of a player looking out from a wooden balcony. From this, I used my imagination creating all these abstract shapes and surreal architecture forming what is now Apartment 23.

What styles did you blend together to create this showcase?

This showcase itself was a mixture of cyberpunk, steampunk, and modern, all formed together into one and adding small details all over it. I also used a lot of old assets that I had laying around from my older builds, such as the sale sign at the front.

How long did it take you to build Apartment 23? And how did you go about designing and building it?

Apartment 23 took me around four weeks to complete, but I occasionally update the place from time to time by adding more ideas. With regards to building the apartment itself, I began by making the top part first. Then I slowly moved down and added things along the way. The main goal was to make each side of the build different and unique. I feel like I’ve achieved this goal as it gave the build so much more character.

Any other interesting facts about this showcase?

The original design of Apartment 23 was going to be in the middle of a murky futuristic skyline; earlier designs featured an underground cave. However, someone suggested to me that I should position the apartment on a floating island. I really liked this idea and it turned out better than I thought it would.

Any tips for up-and-coming builders who want to design showcases?

I would say that you should look at a community that specializes in showcase building and even other showcase builders for ideas. Most people are always happy to help you out. Another tip is to try, try again if something isn’t looking right.

Is there anything else players can look forward to from you?

I’m still going to be making showcases as usual. But mostly I’m going to be focusing on creating small illustrations, so be sure to check them out in the future!