As a big time fan of immersive experiences and art, I knew I had to visit Otherworld. It’s been a long time coming, as I have been trying to go for years! I had the chance a few years ago to visit Meow Wolf’s Omega Mart in Las Vegas which was absolutely amazing. So, I was very excited to visit another immersive art experience right in my backyard!
One of the many amazing rooms in Otherworld.
Otherworld opened in May of 2019 in Columbus, Ohio. The exhibit features over 40 artists, each bringing their own artistic touch to the various rooms.
The experience started with the opportunity to enter through any room of your choice. I opted to enter through a room with a beautiful LED structure and two projection setups on the wall. Here, I was able to get some background on the story of Otherworld. One side of the room showed “Research Logs” and another showed “Development Logs.” We sifted through a couple of the files learning more about the story through photos and videos. To me, this was a great introduction to the background of the story and definitely led me to be more curious throughout the experience.
An in universe video describing the development trials of Otherworld.
This was not the only room where there were interactive storytelling elements. One that especially stood out to me was an office room with a computer and phone. As I browsed through the computer I found files that prompted me to call a phone number. The voicemail gave me more clues to the mystery, and when calling the number the TV on the wall changed to a symbol. These symbols are used throughout the experience to solve puzzles, most rooms have “mini” puzzles in order to solve them.
The computer where guests could look through all the files.
When I got my ticket, the ticket handlers prompted me to scan a guide to the puzzles. This seemed to not have been previously offered by the museum in the past. In my research about this place, I found many Reddit threads from confused guests unable to solve the puzzles in years prior. I thought that this guide was a great addition to the experience, it did not give away too many hints, it was just enough to get you started! Unfortunately my friend and I didn’t get a chance to solve all the puzzles, but we did enjoy doing some of the mini ones throughout each room.
The puzzle guide for guests wanting to solve them.
Another amazing thing about Otherworld was the animatronic! I was not expecting to see one at this experience. This animatronic seemed to be the “queen spider” and was placed high up on a platform in the room. An aspect about this element that made it so fun was that it appeared to be motion censored, so when guests walked past it almost seemed like they angered her. She would move forward and look around each time someone was near her. I am always a big fan of experiences that allow changes in the environment prompted by guests, and Otherworld was not short of them!
Overall, Otherworld is definitely worth a visit. We spent hours there and felt like we didn’t even scratch the surface of everything this place had to offer! The story was very well told, and the clues and interactive elements really added to the experience. I don’t want to give away too many details on the story, you’ll have to see for yourself the next time you’re in Columbus!
