After years of play tests and previews, Otherside got a place people could keep coming back to on November 12, 2025. Yuga Labs, the company behind Bored Ape Yacht Club, opened the Koda Nexus, a persistent social hub that serves as the new home base of its virtual world. "The Nexus is open," Otherside's official account posted that day. "Enter the living world of Otherside."
Historical news event: 2025-11-12. Retrospective report prepared November 2026.
The opening mattered for a project that had carried big expectations since 2022. That April, Yuga sold tokenized plots of virtual land called Otherdeeds in a mint that generated more than $560 million in sales in under 24 hours, according to Decrypt. Since then, Otherside had mostly existed as a series of limited test events, such as a second trip that drew more than 7,000 players in 2023. Koda Nexus offered somewhere a visitor could enter, explore and return to, rather than another promise of a distant metaverse.
A city with districts and rotating challenges
Yuga co-founder and CEO Greg Solano, known online as Garga, teased the opening the night before. "Tomorrow, we open the doors to the Koda Nexus. It's a new chapter for Otherside," he wrote on X on November 11.
According to an OpenSea digest summarising Solano's posts, the Nexus works as a full city with districts, an ancient temple and challenges that refresh every few weeks. The launch trailer showed a glowing portal, squads of players and early looks at swampy and neon-lit regions. Earlier test sessions had used "bubbles" to move players between areas such as a swamp and a district called Meetropolis, BlockchainGamerBiz reported.
The launch also activated Otherside's Koda characters and started the world's resource generation system, which Yuga planned to expand through future seasons.
Image: Otherside
No NFT needed to get in
Accessibility was a central selling point. Solano said players could log in with an email address or an X account and automatically receive a self-custodied crypto wallet behind the scenes, according to OpenSea. BlockchainGamerBiz reported that neither a wallet nor an NFT was required to enter.
That meant a newcomer didn't have to buy an expensive NFT or set up wallet software before their first visit. Yuga still kept blockchain ownership in the picture: everything collected inside the Nexus, including items, badges and avatars, was recorded onchain, which Solano described as a way for players to keep what they earn. Holders of Otherside land NFTs could connect them to the Nexus for extra ways to take part.
From a social hub to a game platform
Yuga announced the November 12 date at its ApeFest event in Las Vegas in late October. Decrypt reported that a release video laid out a three-layer plan: the Nexus social hub first, then a gaming layer of quests and battles built by developers and independent creators, and the Otherside Development Kit (ODK), a toolkit for building and publishing creations inside the world.
The ODK had already been used for more traditional multiplayer games set in the Otherside universe, including Bathroom Blitz, an 8v8 shooter, and Outbreak, a zombie infection game, according to BlockchainGamerBiz. Those were examples of what the platform could host, not proof that every planned game shipped on November 12.
Amazon and Daniel Arsham tie-ins
Yuga lined up partners to frame the launch as more than a clubhouse for token holders. It worked with Amazon Gaming on an exclusive co-branded Voyager avatar called Boximus, which went on sale in late October, and Otherside was promoted on Amazon Gaming's front page.
"Amazon has over 300 million users, and we're going to be selling digital assets to all of them," Yuga Labs chief creative officer Michael Figge said on stage at ApeFest, Decrypt reported in October 2025. Yuga also worked with artist Daniel Arsham on a limited 300-piece Voyager avatar collection.
These were separate promotions, not evidence that every partnership would become a permanent game mode. The company had also slimmed down to focus on Otherside and Bored Ape Yacht Club, selling off CryptoPunks, Meebits and Moonbirds, the last of which it had gained by acquiring PROOF in 2024.
The real test: will people stay?
With a large library of characters and years of anticipation behind it, Otherside's hardest problem remained keeping players. A launch can pull in NFT collectors for a weekend. A lasting digital city needs reasons for people to come back when no new token or avatar is being sold.
The November opening marked a shift in emphasis, from owning digital land to visiting a playable place. Whether Otherside could make that city feel alive would depend on steady content, reliable performance, creators building for it and social activities people actually enjoy.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Koda Nexus in Otherside?
The Koda Nexus is a persistent social hub and the central home base of Yuga Labs' Otherside virtual world. It opened on November 12, 2025, with districts, an ancient temple and challenges that refresh every few weeks.
Do you need an NFT to play Otherside's Koda Nexus?
No. Players could sign in with an email address or X account and receive a wallet automatically. Holders of Otherside land NFTs could connect them for extra features.
When did Otherside open to the public?
Yuga Labs opened the Koda Nexus, the first official version of Otherside, on November 12, 2025. The browser-based world had been in testing since 2022.
Who makes Otherside?
Otherside is made by Yuga Labs, the company behind the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT collection. Its Otherside Development Kit lets outside developers build games inside the world.
Sources
- Otherside on X, "The Nexus is open" (November 12, 2025)
- Greg Solano on X, Koda Nexus teaser (November 11, 2025)
- OpenSea, "This Week in Web3 and NFTs: Yuga Labs, Disney, Peppa Pig & more" (November 13, 2025)
- Decrypt, "Bored Ape Metaverse Game 'Otherside' Launching With Amazon NFT Drop" (October 27, 2025)
- BlockchainGamerBiz, "Yuga Labs' Otherside officially opens its doors on 12th November" (October 2025)
Featured image: Otherside
Frequently asked questions
What is the Koda Nexus in Otherside?
The Koda Nexus is a persistent social hub and the central home base of Yuga Labs' Otherside virtual world. It opened on November 12, 2025, with districts, an ancient temple and challenges that refresh every few weeks.
Do you need an NFT to play Otherside's Koda Nexus?
No. Players could sign in with an email address or X account and receive a wallet automatically. Holders of Otherside land NFTs could connect them for extra features.
When did Otherside open to the public?
Yuga Labs opened the Koda Nexus, the first official version of Otherside, on November 12, 2025. The browser-based world had been in testing since 2022.
Who makes Otherside?
Otherside is made by Yuga Labs, the company behind the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT collection. Its Otherside Development Kit lets outside developers build games inside the world.
Last updated NOV 10, 2026
