How to Explore and Control The Cursed Library (cursed.epic.net)

Updated

The Cursed Library is a browser-based interactive experience: turn your sound on, click anywhere to start, then click and drag to look around the library and select one of six portals (Worlds: Library, Ogre, Hidden, Wolf, Little Red, Night, Bluebeard, Kafka as listed on the page). Once inside a world, use the on-screen controls to move between scenes, go back, or quit. The site is an "EPIC Agency Experiment" created by Karim Maaloul (concept, illustration, code), Stevie J Jones and Jules Maxwell (music, poems, narration, voices, code).

Before you start

  • Sound on: The experience includes music, poems, and narration, so enable audio on your device before beginning.
  • Click to start: The landing screen instructs you to "Put your sound on and click anywhere to start."
  • Input: A mouse or trackpad is the primary control; the core navigation is click-and-drag.

Step-by-step: navigating the library

  1. Start the experience. Turn your sound on and click anywhere on the opening screen.
  2. Look around. Click and drag to turn around the library and find the portals.
  3. Choose a world. The page lists the Worlds — Library, Ogre, Hidden, Wolf, Little Red, Night, Bluebeard, Kafka — and asks you to "Find the six portals that will lead you to the dark worlds hidden in this cursed library." Select a portal to enter its world.
  4. Move within a world. Use Previous / next scene to move between scenes.
  5. Leave a world. Use Go back to return, or Quit world to exit the world entirely.
  6. Adjust the view. Use Toggle minimal experience to switch to a stripped-back presentation, and Open / Close info panel to view or hide the credits and information.

Expected result: You can freely turn around the library, enter any portal you find, step through its scenes, and exit cleanly back to the library at any time.

Controls at a glance

Action Control
Start Click anywhere (sound on first)
Look around the library Click and drag
Enter a world Select a portal
Move within a world Previous / next scene
Return from a world Go back
Exit a world Quit world
Simplify the interface Toggle minimal experience
Show or hide credits/info Open / Close info panel

Common sticking points

  • Nothing happens on the first click: Confirm your sound is on and that you clicked directly on the page, not on a browser overlay.
  • Can't find all the worlds: The experience frames the task as finding six portals; the Worlds list names the destinations, so explore by dragging around the full library rather than staying in one view.
  • Lost inside a world: Use Go back to return to the previous point or Quit world to exit to the library.
  • Distracted by interface elements: Switch on Toggle minimal experience to reduce on-screen clutter.

Who it's for

This guide suits first-time visitors who want to move through the experience without missing controls, and anyone returning who wants a quick reference for scene navigation and the minimal-experience toggle. No account or download steps are described on the page; the experience runs in the browser once you click to start.