Las Vegas, USA – October 28, 2025 — Yuga Labs, the creator of the world-famous Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), is gearing up for a major milestone in its metaverse ambitions. The company has announced that its long-awaited game, Otherside, will officially launch its first social hub — the Koda Nexus — on November 12, in partnership with Amazon Gaming.
The announcement was made during Yuga’s annual ApeFest in Las Vegas, marking a pivotal moment for one of Web3’s most anticipated virtual worlds.
A New Era for the Bored Ape Metaverse
Originally unveiled in 2022, Otherside has been under development for nearly three years, undergoing multiple closed playtests and experimental trials. The open-world platform is designed as an “always-on, ever-evolving” metaverse where players can explore, create, and interact using their NFTs — from Bored Apes to other Yuga-affiliated collections.
The newly released preview video outlines the metaverse’s three-layer structure. The first is the Nexus, serving as the central hub and gathering place for users. It will be followed by a gaming layer filled with community-driven quests, battles, and mini-games built by both Yuga Labs and independent developers. The final layer introduces the Otherside Development Kit (ODK) — a toolkit allowing creators to build, customize, and publish their own experiences within the world.
“Make no mistake, this isn’t just a release — it’s the foundation for a platform built for the future,” the launch trailer declares, underscoring Yuga’s goal of transforming Otherside into a self-sustaining digital universe.
Amazon Partnership Brings NFTs to the Mass Market
Yuga Labs’ partnership with Amazon Gaming marks a significant step toward bringing NFTs to mainstream audiences. As part of the launch, Otherside will be featured on the front page of Amazon Gaming, giving the metaverse exposure to over 300 million Amazon users worldwide.
The collaboration will debut an exclusive co-branded Voyager character called “Boximus”, available for purchase through the Otherside brand store starting Thursday. The digital collectible will serve as a playable avatar inside the metaverse, bridging the gap between traditional gaming and blockchain-based ownership.
“Amazon has over 300 million users, and we’re going to be selling digital assets to all of them,” said Michael Figge, Yuga Labs’ Chief Creative Officer, during his presentation at ApeFest. The statement reflects Yuga’s ambition to make NFT-based digital ownership as accessible as buying a book or video game on Amazon.
Merging Art, Gaming, and Collectibles
In addition to the Amazon tie-in, Yuga Labs announced a collaboration with renowned artist Daniel Arsham for a limited-edition Voyager collection. The drop will include 300 exclusive digital sculptures, blending fine art with interactive metaverse functionality. Each piece will evolve dynamically over time, changing in appearance and behavior as users interact with it — a fusion of art, utility, and digital storytelling that pushes the boundaries of traditional NFTs.
This partnership follows earlier high-profile collaborations, including Yuga’s 2023 partnership with Gucci, which brought Otherside-themed jewelry into the luxury fashion space. Together, these ventures showcase Yuga’s expanding vision to merge culture, art, and technology under one interactive ecosystem.
A Record-Breaking Beginning
Yuga Labs’ metaverse journey began with a bang. When Otherside first launched its land sale in 2022, it generated over $560 million in sales within 24 hours, while gas fees on Ethereum soared to $157 million during the mint — one of the largest blockchain events in Web3 history.
Since then, Yuga has streamlined its portfolio to focus on the Otherside metaverse and its flagship Bored Ape Yacht Club community. Over the past year, the company divested from some of its other NFT brands, including CryptoPunks, Meebits, and Moonbirds, to sharpen its attention on building a fully realized Web3 gaming and social ecosystem.
Redefining the Web3 Playground
With the Koda Nexus launch, Otherside aims to establish itself as a leading force in the next generation of immersive digital worlds. Combining blockchain-based ownership with large-scale social interaction and creator-led development, the project represents a natural evolution of the Bored Ape universe — one that brings together entertainment, community, and commerce.
As Yuga Labs moves closer to integrating mainstream gaming audiences through Amazon and high-art collaborations with creators like Arsham, the Otherside metaverse is poised to redefine what digital identity and ownership mean in the next era of online worlds.
Whether Otherside becomes the “metaverse that sticks” remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: the Bored Apes are no longer just collectibles — they’re becoming the avatars of a new digital civilization.
